High Surface Iron/Cobalt‐Containing Nitrogen‐Doped Carbon Aerogels as Non‐Precious Advanced Electrocatalysts for Oxygen Reduction

Abstract Nitrogen‐doped carbon‐based catalysts are promising candidates to substitute expensive and moderately durable platinum‐based catalysts for polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs). Condensation of ionic liquids (ILs) in salt melts enables the formation of hierarchically porous nitrogen‐doped carbons with very high surface areas. Here we present synthesis and the employment of high‐nitrogen‐doped carbon aerogels modified with iron and cobalt for the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR), the relevant half‐cell reaction for all fuel cells, using rotating disk/ring‐disk electrode measurements. We show favorable performances compared to the current Pt/C standard. TEM analysis of the iron composites gave an amorphous, quasi‐atomic distribution of the metal, while iron/cobalt composites form very small, well‐supported nanoparticles.