High-Performance FeCo/NC-Mo<sub>2</sub>TiC<sub>2</sub>/Carbon Nanotube Hybrid Support Catalyst toward Oxygen Reduction for Alkaline Anion Exchange Membrane Fuel Cell
Ling Wang, Zhongwei Fang, Jiawei Zhang, Chenxi Xu, Richard Espiritu, Jigui Cheng
Abstract
High reaction activity, long-term stability, and low-cost non-noble metal-nitrogen-carbon catalysts (M-N-C) have been widely recognized as prospective catalysts toward an oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) in an alkaline medium. However, sluggish chemical reaction kinetics and the poor stability of the catalysts are still the main challenges for their widespread application. Herein, carbon nanotube (CNT)-MXene hybrid supports are utilized, with non-noble metal FeCo used as the cathode ORR catalyst, for an alkaline anion exchange membrane fuel cell. The FeCo/NC-Mo2TiC2 catalysts exhibit significantly enhanced electrochemical ORR activity, with an onset potential of 1.017 V and a half-wave potential of 0.887 V. Moreover, FeCo/NC-Mo2TiC2 exhibits remarkable stability, and the half-wave potential is attenuated by only 26 mV after 10000 cycles. The peak power density of the fuel cell by a FeCo/NC-Mo2TiC2 catalyst achieves 501 mW cm–2.