Aminated lignin chelated metal derived bifunctional electrocatalyst with high catalytic performance

The M-C-N type catalyst prepared by doping with non-metal elements and transition metal elements is considered as a substitute for traditional precious metals to play a more significant role in the electrochemical field. However, the uncontrolled reunion of metal particles has become the main factor limiting the improvement of its performance. Therefore, this work proposes using lignin as a carbon source, and amine groups with strong coordination ability are introduced into the structure through the surface modification strategy so that the metal is embedded in the carbon-based framework in a chelated form to control the particle size. Compared with the metal catalyst prepared by unmodified lignin, the metal catalyst prepared by amination modification exhibits a smaller particle size and more uniform dispersion. Electrochemical performance results show that the bimetallic catalyst AL-Ni/[email protected] supported by amine-based lignin exhibits catalytic activity comparing with commercial electrocatalysts Pt/C and RuO2 in ORR and OER, and also has higher stability and methanol resistance. This work not only provides a strategy for the controllable structure of carbon-based metal catalysts, but also has specific guiding significance for the design and development of cheap electrocatalysts and the utilization of new energy sources.