The investigation of Fe/Mn-N-C performance as an oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) electrocatalyst in PEM fuel cell

Polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells (PEMFC) are environmentally friendly energy converters that use hydrogen and oxygen to produce electricity. Recently this device has been considered a good substitution for fossil fuel combustion in various applications such as cars and backup powers. One of the challenges that prevent these fuel cells from being commercialized is the sluggish oxygen reduction reaction (ORR), which takes place at the cathode side. The common electrocatalyst for this reaction is platinum-based and since platinum is a costly element and also rare to find, scientists are trying to find alternatives for them. In this work, a MOF-based ORR electrocatalyst (Fe/Mn-N-C) has been synthesized and its performance in PEM fuel cell has been investigated. The electrocatalytic stability, structure, and morphology of Fe/Mn-N-C were examined via the RDE durability test and Fe-SEM, respectively. The results show that this cathode catalyst in a long-term operation after۵۰۰۰ cycles, almost has the same performance. The onset potential of the synthesized catalyst hasn’t changed (Eonset= ۰.۶۲ VAg/AgCl) and the half-wave potential shifted only ۳۰mVAg/AgCl. Cells’ maximum power density was also obtained at ۱۱۴mW/cm .