Alkali‐Driven Assembly of Protein‐Rich Biomass Boosts the Electrocatalytic Activity of the Derived Carbon Materials for Oxygen Reduction

Abstract Though of great significance, it is still a challenge to facilely engineer biomass into heteroatom‐doped porous carbon materials (HPCs)‐based electrocatalysts with high activity and durability to replace Pt‐based ones for oxygen reduction reaction (ORR). Herein, alkali‐driven assembly strategy is proposed to boost the ORR catalytic performance of the HPCs derived from protein‐rich biomass. Egg white for instance, can self‐assemble into a hydrogel with 3D networks in the presence of alkali. The formed hydrogel can work as a self‐heteroatom (N, S) doped and self‐activated precursor for fabricating HPCs. The as‐obtained NSPC‐1‐900 ORR catalyst has onset potential ( E onset ) and half‐wave potential ( E 1/2 ) values of 1.03 and 0.88 V (vs. RHE) respectively, and it represents an air electrode catalyst for Zn‐air batteries with high power density and durability. This work affords a facile and effective strategy of utilizing low‐cost, abundant and sustainable biomass to prepare HPCs for energy storage and conversion.