“Charging” the cigarette butt: heteroatomic porous carbon nanosheets with edge-induced topological defects for enhanced oxygen evolution performance

Abstract

Owing to the complexity of electron transfer pathways, the sluggish oxygen evolution reaction process is defined as the bottleneck for the practical application of Zn–air batteries. In this effort, metal nanoparticles (Co, Ni, Fe, etc.) encapsulated within nitrogen-doped carbon materials with abundant edge sites were synthesized by one-step pyrolysis treatment using cigarette butts as raw materials, which can drastically accelerate the overall rate of oxygen evolution reaction by facilitating the adsorption of oxygenated intermediates by the edge-induced topological defects. The prepared catalyst of nitrogen-doped carbon porous nanosheets loaded with Co nanoparticles (Co@NC-500) exhibits enhanced catalytic activity toward oxygen evolution reaction, with a low overpotential of 350 mV at the current density of 10 mA·cm^–2. Furthermore, the Zn–air battery assembled with Co@NC-500 catalyst demonstrates a desirable performance affording an open-circuit potential of 1.336 V and power density of 33.6 mW·cm^–2, indicating considerable practical application potential.

Key words： oxygen evolution reaction; porous carbon nanosheets; Co nanoparticles; edge-induced topological defects; Zn–air batteries

Conflicts of interest

There are no conflicts to declare.

Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 22179065, 22111530112), and the S&T project from Shanghai Tobacco Group Co. Ltd.

Electronic Supplementary Material

Supplementary material is available in the online version of this article at https://doi.org/10.1007/s11705-023-2318-8 and is accessible for authorized users.

References

1 Lu C, Tian M, Zheng X, Wei C, Rummeli M H, Strasser P, Yang R. Cotton pad derived 3D lithiophilic carbon host for robust Li metal anode: in-situ generated ionic conductive Li₃N protective decoration. Chemical Engineering Journal, 2022, 430: 132722

2 Cai G, Zhang W, Jiao L, Yu S H, Jiang H L. Template-directed growth of well-aligned MOF arrays and derived self-supporting electrodes for water splitting. Chem, 2017, 2(6): 791–802

3 Zhang J W, Zhang H, Ren T Z, Yuan Z Y, Bandosz T J. Fe−Ni doped porous carbon as an efficient catalyst for oxygen evolution reaction. Frontiers of Chemical Science and Engineering, 2021, 15(2): 279–287

4 Wang Y, Su H, He Y, Li L, Zhu S, Shen H, Xie P, Fu X, Zhou G, Feng C, Zhao D, Xiao F, Zhu X, Zeng Y, Shao M, Chen S, Wu G, Zeng J, Wang C. Advanced electrocatalysts with single-metal-atom active sites. Chemical Reviews, 2020, 120(21): 12217–12314

5 Yu J, Li B Q, Zhao C X, Liu J N, Zhang Q. Asymmetric air cathode design for enhanced interfacial electrocatalytic reactions in high-performance zinc−air batteries. Advanced Materials, 2020, 32(12): e1908488

6 Han S, Hu X, Wang J, Fang X, Zhu Y. Novel route to Fe-based cathode as an efficient bifunctional catalysts for rechargeable Zn−air battery. Advanced Energy Materials, 2018, 8(22): 1800955

7 Weng C C, Ren J T, Wang H Y, Lv X W, Song Y J, Wang Y S, Chen L, Tian W W, Yuan Z Y. Triple-phase oxygen electrocatalysis of hollow spherical structures for rechargeable Zn−air batteries. Applied Catalysis B: Environmental, 2022, 307: 121190

8 Zeng W, Wei C, Zeng K, Cao X, Rümmeli M H, Yang R. NiFeMo nanoparticles encapsulated within nitrogen-doped reduced graphene oxide as bifunctional electrocatalysts for zinc−air batteries. ChemElectroChem, 2020, 8(3): 524–531

9 Yan L, Xu Z, Hu W, Ning J, Zhong Y, Hu Y. Formation of sandwiched leaf-like CNTs-Co/ZnCo₂O₄@NC-CNTs nanohybrids for high-power-density rechargeable Zn–air batteries. Nano Energy, 2021, 82: 105710

10 Tian W W, Ren J T, Lv X W, Yuan Z Y A. “gas-breathing” integrated air diffusion electrode design with improved oxygen utilization efficiency for high-performance Zn–air batteries. Chemical Engineering Journal, 2022, 431: 133210

11 Li L, Yang H, Miao J, Zhang L, Wang H Y, Zeng Z, Huang W, Dong X, Liu B. Unraveling oxygen evolution reaction on carbon-based electrocatalysts: effect of oxygen doping on adsorption of oxygenated intermediates. ACS Energy Letters, 2017, 2(2): 294–300

12 Zhang R Q, Ma A, Liang X, Zhao L M, Zhao H, Yuan Z Y. Cobalt nanoparticle decorated N-doped carbons derived from a cobalt covalent organic framework for oxygen electrochemistry. Frontiers of Chemical Science and Engineering, 2021, 15(6): 1550–1560

13 Min K, Hwang M, Shim S E, Lim D, Baeck S H. Defect-rich Fe-doped Co₃O₄ derived from bimetallic-organic framework as an enhanced electrocatalyst for oxygen evolution reaction. Chemical Engineering Journal, 2021, 424: 130400

14 Xu Y, Li X, Wang J, Yu Q, Qian X, Chen L, Dan Y. Fe-doped CoP flower-like microstructure on carbon membrane as integrated electrode with enhanced sodium ion storage. Chemistry, 2020, 26(6): 1298–1305

15 Ren J T, Yuan G G, Weng C C, Chen L, Yuan Z Y. Uniquely integrated Fe-doped Ni(OH)₂ nanosheets for highly efficient oxygen and hydrogen evolution reactions. Nanoscale, 2018, 10(22): 10620–10628

16 Lan X, Ali B, Wang Y, Wang T. Hollow and yolk–shell Co-N-C@SiO₂ nanoreactors: controllable synthesis with high selectivity and activity for nitroarene hydrogenation. ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces, 2020, 12(3): 3624–3630

17 Lv X W, Liu Y, Hao R, Tian W, Yuan Z Y. Urchin-like Al-doped Co₃O₄ nanospheres rich in surface oxygen vacancies enable efficient ammonia electrosynthesis. ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces, 2020, 12(15): 17502–17508

18 Kong Q H, Lv X W, Weng C C, Ren J T, Tian W W, Yuan Z Y. Curving engineering of hollow concave-shaped rhombic dodecahedrons of N-doped carbon encapsulated with Fe-doped Co/Co₃O₄ nanoparticles for an efficient oxygen reduction reaction and Zn–air batteries. ACS Sustainable Chemistry & Engineering, 2022, 10(34): 11441–11450

19 Zhang W, Xu C H, Zheng H, Li R, Zhou K. Oxygen-rich cobalt-nitrogen-carbon porous nanosheets for bifunctional oxygen electrocatalysis. Advanced Functional Materials, 2022, 32(23): 2200763

20 Tang C, Wang H F, Chen X, Li B Q, Hou T Z, Zhang B, Zhang Q, Titirici M M, Wei F. Topological defects in metal-free nanocarbon for oxygen electrocatalysis. Advanced Materials, 2016, 28(32): 6845–6851

21 Hao Y R, Xue H, Lv L, Sun J, Guo N, Song T, Dong H, Zhang J, Wang Q. Unraveling the synergistic effect of defects and interfacial electronic structure modulation of pealike CoFe@Fe₃N to achieve superior oxygen reduction performance. Applied Catalysis B: Environmental, 2021, 295: 120314

22 Su C, Acik M, Takai K, Lu J, Hao S J, Zheng Y, Wu P, Bao Q, Enoki T, Chabal Y J, Ping Loh K. Probing the catalytic activity of porous graphene oxide and the origin of this behaviour. Nature Communications, 2012, 3(1): 1298

23 Pang H, Sun P, Gong H, Zhang N, Cao J, Zhang R, Luo M, Li Y, Sun G, Li Y, Deng J, Gao M, Wang M, Kong B. Wood-derived bimetallic and heteroatomic hierarchically porous carbon aerogel for rechargeable flow Zn–air batteries. ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces, 2021, 13(33): 39458–39469

24 Zheng X, Cao X, Zeng K, Yan J, Sun Z, Rummeli M H, Yang R. A self-jet vapor-phase growth of 3D FeNi@NCNT clusters as efficient oxygen electrocatalysts for zinc–air batteries. Small, 2021, 17(4): e2006183

25 Ren T Z, Cui M J, Zhao Y M, Mo W L, Wang Z. The activated carbon with pyrolle-N from cotton stalk for the electrochemical performance. Advanced Materials Science and Technology, 2022, 4(2): 0410212

26 Xu S S, Qiu S W, Yuan Z Y, Ren T Z, Bandosz T J. Nitrogen-containing activated carbon of improved electrochemical performance derived from cotton stalks using indirect chemical activation. Journal of Colloid and Interface Science, 2019, 540: 285–294

27 Guo X, Yang N, Zhu Z, Zhang Y, Chen J, Qi J, Li X. Iron-cobalt phosphide nanoarrays grown on waste wool-derived carbon: an efficient electrocatalyst for degradation of tetracycline. Journal of Environmental Chemical Engineering, 2022, 10(6): 108788

28 Hu Z P, Zhang L F, Wang Z, Yuan Z Y. Bean dregs-derived hierarchical porous carbons as metal-free catalysts for efficient dehydrogenation of propane to propylene. Journal of Chemical Technology and Biotechnology, 2018, 93(12): 3410–3417

29 Li L, Jia C, Zhu X, Zhang S. Utilization of cigarette butt waste as functional carbon precursor for supercapacitors and adsorbents. Journal of Cleaner Production, 2020, 256: 120326

30 Hu Z P, Zhao H, Chen C, Yuan Z Y. Castanea mollissima shell-derived porous carbons as metal-free catalysts for highly efficient dehydrogenation of propane to propylene. Catalysis Today, 2018, 316: 214–222

31 Zhang Y K, Gao L, Hong Y, Shen W J, Wang Y, Zhu J H. Sustainable sorbent derived from discarded cigarette butts for elimination of tobacco specific nitrosamines carcinogen. Environmental Technology & Innovation, 2021, 24: 101825

32 Zhou Z, Liu X, Li C, Yang Y, Xu J, Xu M. Flaming combustion and smoldering of active impregnated cigarette butts: a novel method for synthesis of nanostructured MnO_x catalysts for NO_x reduction. Fuel, 2020, 277: 118230

33 Meng Q, Chen W, Wu L, Lei J, Liu X, Zhu W, Duan T. A strategy of making waste profitable: nitrogen doped cigarette butt derived carbon for high performance supercapacitors. Energy, 2019, 189: 116241

34 Xiong Q, Bai Q, Li C, Li D, Miao X, Shen Y, Uyama H. Nitrogen-doped hierarchical porous carbons from used cigarette filters for supercapacitors. Journal of the Taiwan Institute of Chemical Engineers, 2019, 95: 315–323

35 Thue P S, Lima E C, Sieliechi J M, Saucier C, Dias S L P, Vaghetti J C P, Rodembusch F S, Pavan F A. Effects of first-row transition metals and impregnation ratios on the physicochemical properties of microwave-assisted activated carbons from wood biomass. Journal of Colloid and Interface Science, 2017, 486: 163–175

36 Zheng X, Cao X, Zeng K, Sun Z, Yan J, Li X, Jin C, Chen X, Yang R. Cotton pad-derived large-area 3D N-doped graphene-like full carbon cathode with an O-rich functional group for flexible all solid Zn–air batteries. Journal of Materials Chemistry A, 2020, 8(22): 11202–11209

37 Ren J T, Yuan Z Y. A universal route to N-coordinated metals anchored on porous carbon nanosheets for highly efficient oxygen electrochemistry. Journal of Materials Chemistry A, 2019, 7(22): 13591–13601

38 Lv X W, Hu Z P, Chen L, Ren J T, Liu Y P, Yuan Z Y. Organic-inorganic metal phosphonate-derived nitrogen-doped core-shell Ni₂P nanoparticles supported on Ni foam for efficient hydrogen evolution reaction at all pH values. ACS Sustainable Chemistry & Engineering, 2019, 7(15): 12770–12778

39 Guo D, Shibuya R, Akiba C, Saji S, Kondo T, Nakamura J. Active sites of nitrogen-doped carbon materials for oxygen reduction reaction clarified using model catalysts. Science, 2016, 351(6271): 361–365

40 Zou X, Huang X, Goswami A, Silva R, Sathe B R, Mikmekova E, Asefa T. Cobalt-embedded nitrogen-rich carbon nanotubes efficiently catalyze hydrogen evolution reaction at all pH values. Angewandte Chemie, 2014, 53(17): 4461–4465

41 Ding W, Wei Z, Chen S, Qi X, Yang T, Hu J, Wang D, Wan L J, Alvi S F, Li L. Space-confinement-induced synthesis of pyridinic- and pyrrolic-nitrogen-doped graphene for the catalysis of oxygen reduction. Angewandte Chemie, 2013, 52(45): 11971–11975

42 Yu P, Wang L, Sun F, Xie Y, Liu X, Ma J, Wang X, Tian C, Li J, Fu H. Co nanoislands rooted on Co−N−C nanosheets as efficient oxygen electrocatalyst for Zn−air batteries. Advanced Materials, 2019, 31(30): e1901666

43 Zhong M, He W W, Shuang W, Liu Y Y, Hu T L, Bu X H. Metal-organic framework derived core−shell Co/Co₃O₄@N-C nanocomposites as high performance anode materials for lithium ion batteries. Inorganic Chemistry, 2018, 57(8): 4620–4628

44 Lu Z, Wang J, Huang S, Hou Y, Li Y, Zhao Y, Mu S, Zhang J, Zhao Y N. B-codoped defect-rich graphitic carbon nanocages as high performance multifunctional electrocatalysts. Nano Energy, 2017, 42: 334–340

45 Yang L, Zeng X, Wang D, Cao D. Biomass-derived FeNi alloy and nitrogen-codoped porous carbons as highly efficient oxygen reduction and evolution bifunctional electrocatalysts for rechargeable Zn−air battery. Energy Storage Materials, 2018, 12: 277–283

46 Tao L, Wang Q, Dou S, Ma Z, Huo J, Wang S, Dai L. Edge-rich and dopant-free graphene as a highly efficient metal-free electrocatalyst for the oxygen reduction reaction. Chemical Communications, 2016, 52(13): 2764–2767

47 Tang C, Zhang Q. Nanocarbon for oxygen reduction electrocatalysis: dopants, edges, and defects. Advanced Materials, 2017, 29(13): 1604103