Chemical-free fabrication of N, P dual-doped honeycomb-like carbon as an efficient electrocatalyst for oxygen reduction

Heteroatom-doped nanoporous carbons are now emerging as alternatives to platinum and its alloys as electrocatalysts to facilitate oxygen reduction reaction in metal-air batteries and fuel cells. However, the synthesis of nanoporous carbons usually involve in complicated procedures and intensive chemicals, which may dramatically raise their manufacture cost that even surpasses that of precious platinum. Herein, we demonstrate the single-step, chemical-free fabrication of N, P dualdoped honeycomb carbon that has hierarchically porous structure and oxygen electrocatalysis activity close to the benchmark Pt/C. This material was fabricated through the direct pyrolysis of popcorn in a static, semi-opened environment. With this strategy, nitrous and phosphoric groups from proteins and phosphates within the popcorn are condensed with graphitic matrix to form N C and P C bonds, and pyrolysis byproducts (such as H2O and CO2) can etch disordered carbon domains to form hierarchical pores and edge carbons. Practical test of this honeycomb carbon as air electrode of a primary Zn-air battery shows an open-circuit potential of 1.44 V and peak power density of 36.6 mW cm−2 that is even better than Pt/C. The impact of this work is that it will facilitate the targeted design and cost-saved fabrication of metal-free catalysts for electrocatalytic applications.