Study on the Oxygen Reduction Performance of Nitrogen and Chlorine Co-doped Defect-rich Carbon Electrocatalysts

Abstract

A metal-free chlorine-nitrogen co-doped defect-rich carbon electrocatalyst (MF-ClNC) was synthesized via salt-assisted two-step pyrolysis. Synergistic Cl/N doping and defect engineering modulate the electronic structure, optimizing O₂ adsorption/desorption for the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR). MF-ClNC exhibits exceptional ORR activity in both alkaline (halfwave potential of 0.91 V) and natural seawater (halfwave potential of 0.78 V) electrolytes, surpassing commercial Pt/C and most reported nonprecious catalysts. Its excellent stability further highlights the potential of this synergistic doping-defect strategy in metal-free carbon catalysts for seawater-based metal-air batteries.