Hierarchically porous fluorine-doped graphene nanosheets as efficient metal-free electrocatalyst for oxygen reduction in gas diffusion electrode

Here a simple yet cost-effective strategy is developed to fabricate fluorine-doped graphene nanosheets, we successfully, prepared fluorine doped graphene via thermal treatment of graphene oxide and NaF (sodium fluoride) in H2SO4 solution phase. Importantly, the electrocatalytic activity for oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) is carefully evaluated for fluorographene (FG). None-metal graphene electro catalysts for the ORR are attractive for their high activity and economic advantages. A significant research effort is also directed to the so-called “metal-free” ORR on heteroatom-doped graphene surfaces. The electrochemical activity of F-RGO in the ORR is investigated by cyclic voltammetry (CV) and linear sweep voltammetry (LSV) using rotating disk electrode (RDE) measurements on glassy carbon and on gas diffusion electrode (GDE) based carbon paper in oxygen saturated alkaline aqueous solutions.

Fluorine-doping, Graphene nanosheets, Oxygen reduction reaction, Metal-free catalyst