Ni-Fe bimetallic core-shell structured catalysts supported on biomass longan aril derived nitrogen doped carbon for efficient oxygen reduction and evolution performance

A simple two-step synthetic strategy for the preparation of Ni-Fe bimetallic nanoparticles with nitrogen doped carbon shell and support (FeNi@NC/NC) is successfully developed. Biomass longan aril serves not only as carbon source for catalyst supporting, but also a shell forming material and nitrogen doping receptor. When serving as electrocatalysts for oxygen electrode reaction, such bimetallic composite exhibits superior bi-functional electrocatalytic activities towards oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) and oxygen evolution reaction (OER). Benefiting from the high-conductive carbon shell and the coordination effect between NiFe alloy and nitrogen doped porous carbon support, the resultant FeNi@NC/NC achieved high durability over ORR and OER.