Oxygen reduction reaction and DMFC application for EDTA-derived non precious metal FeNC and CoNC catalysts.

Oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) is one of the most important processes for polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs) and direct alcohol fuel cells (DAFCs) as well as for metal-air batteries application. Nowadays, the commercialization of these devices is hindered by the high cost of the components. In order to employ earthly abundant compounds, in-house non-Pt-group ternary compounds (FeNC or CoNC) have been synthesised and studied as a function of variable heat treatments. A facile synthesis has been carried out by first chelating Fe or Co precursors with EDTA (nitrogen precursor). In a second step, an oxidized carbon has been mixed to the chelated species and then thermally treated at 800 or 1000°C. Electrochemical tests have been carried out to investigate the activity and durability of the electrocatalysts for the ORR. Moreover, they have been physicochemically characterized by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Direct methanol fuel cell (DMFC) analyses have been carried out to investigate the performance of the non-precious cathode catalysts, using a low amount of Pt (0.7 mg/cm2) at the anode side. It appears that FeNC, treated at 800°C, is the best performing low-cost cathode catalyst in terms of higher oxygen reduction reaction activity and methanol tolerance.