Lewis-Basic Lanthanide Metal-Organic Framework-Derived Versatile Multi-Active-Site Synergistic Catalysts for Oxygen Reduction Reaction

Oxygen reduction reaction underpins the development of the whole fuel-cell field, where there is a strong impetus to develop efficient and stable catalysts that can replace the precious metal Pt/C. Herein, a series of excellent catalysts for ORR derived from Ce/La dual lanthanide metal-organic framework with functional Lewis-basic sites were synthesized for the first time. The synergistic effect of high concentration of oxygen vacancies from La-embedded CeO2 and Fe-Nx sites as well as porous structure endows the catalyst superior performance to Pt/C, with a half-wave potential (E1/2) of 0.870 V and a current density (j) of 5.43 mA/cm2. Furthermore, the catalysts are also effective for other nonelectrocatalytic reactions. It is expected that this research will contribute to synthesis of an excellent nonplatinum electrocatalyst for fuel-cell applications, and the oxygen vacancies stabilized in carbon matrix offer a method for versatile catalyst design for other reactions.