P-059

Daina Upskuvienė

daina.upskuviene@ftmc.lt

Virginija Ulevičienė, Aldona Balčiūnaitė, Loreta Tamašauskaitė-Tamašiūnaitė, Eugenijus Norkus

Department of Catalysis, Center for Physical Sciences and Technology (FTMC), Vilnius, Lithuania

Galina Dobele, Aleksandrs Volperts, Ance Plavniece, Aivars Zhurinsh

Latvian State Institute of Wood Chemistry, Dzerbenes Str. 27, LV-1006 Riga, Latvia

Synthesis of Nickel and Nitrogen Co-Doped Biomass-Derived Carbon for Enhanced Oxygen Reduction

The oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) is a critical process in energy conversion technologies, such as fuel cells and metal-air batteries. Developing efficient and sustainable catalysts for ORR remains a major challenge, with platinum-based materials being widely used but costly and scarce. In this context, carbon-based catalysts, particularly those doped with transition metals and heteroatoms, have emerged as promising alternatives due to their high catalytic activity, cost-effectiveness, and environmental sustainability. This study presents the fabrication of nickel (Ni) and nitrogen (N) co-doped carbon materials derived from biomass as efficient catalysts for ORR. By leveraging the synergistic effects of Ni and N doping, we aim to enhance the electrochemical performance of biomass-derived carbon, providing a sustainable pathway for the development of advanced ORR catalysts.

Activated wood carbon (AWC) was synthesized using alder wood char as a carbon precursor and co-doped with Ni and N in a single step. The resulting materials were designated as AWC-Ni-N and AWC-N. The catalysts were thoroughly analyzed using techniques such as ICP-OES, XRD, XPS, SEM-EDS, BET surface area analysis, and Raman spectroscopy to assess their elemental composition, structural features, and surface properties. The ORR performance of AWC-N and AWC-Ni-N catalysts was evaluated by cyclic voltammetry (CV) in an Ar- or O2-saturated 0.5 M H2SO4 solution, with electrode potentials ranging from 0.6 to -0.3 V (vs. SCE) at a scan rate of 10 mV s⁻¹.

A more distinct oxygen reduction peak was observed for the AWC-Ni-N catalysts compared to AWC-N, indicating that the incorporation of Ni enhances catalytic performance. The onset potential, or the potential at which ORR begins, was notably more positive for AWC-Ni-N than for AWC-N, suggesting these catalysts require a lower overpotential to initiate the reaction and, thus, exhibit superior catalytic efficiency. Furthermore, the AWC-Ni-N catalysts demonstrated good stability for ORR, highlighting their potential as effective electrode materials for sustainable fuel cell applications.