Graphene help researchers to develop efficient oxygen catalysts for lithium-oxygen batteries

Researchers from the Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics (DICP) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) and Henan Agricultural University have designed two-dimensional (2D) Mn₃O₄ nanosheets with dominant crystal planes on graphene (Mn₃O₄ NS/G) as efficient oxygen catalysts for Li-O₂ batteries, achieving ultrahigh capacity and long-term stability.

The team explained that designing oxygen catalysts with well-defined shapes and high-activity crystal facets can effectively regulate the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) and oxygen evolution reaction (OER) at the three-phase interfaces, but it is still remains challenging. The researchers reported that the Mn₃O₄ NS/G with the (101) facets and enriched oxygen vacancies offered a lower charge overpotential of 0.86 V than that of Mn₃O₄ nanoparticles on graphene (1.15 V).