Iron(II) tetraaminophthalocyanine functionalized graphene: Synthesis, characterization and their application in direct methanol fuel cell

•FeTAPc-Gr was prepared via covalent bonding and π–π assembling method.•FeTAPc nanoparticles homogeneously dispersed on graphene.•FeTAPc-Gr exhibited good stability and tolerance to methanol crossover.

A novel iron(II) tetraaminophthalocyanine graphene (FeTAPc-Gr) micro/nanocomposite as a non-noble catalyst for oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) was prepared by amidation of the carboxyl groups at the edge of graphene nanosheets with amino group of FeTAPc, meanwhile, we found that FeTAPc moieties could assemble to nanoparticles on graphene sheet trough π–π interaction in our experiment condition. FePc-Gr composite was characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The electrocatalytic performance for ORR was assessed by cyclic voltammetry (CV) and linear sweep voltammetry (LSV) methods. A well-defined characteristic ORR peak, centered at −0.148 V vs. SCE was observed on FeTAPc-Gr composite catalyst, whereas the peak potential on commercial Pt/C was −0.199 V vs. SCE at the same condition. The resulting product exhibits excellent ORR activity, super tolerance to methanol crossover and good stability, which lead to the invention of a new non-noble catalyst for ORR in fuel cell.

Graphical abstractA novel iron(II) tetraaminophthalocyanine graphene (FeTAPc-Gr) micro/nanocomposite as a non-noble catalyst for oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) is prepared by covalent bonding and π–π interaction. Attributed to the synergetic effect of graphene and FeTAPc, the composite exhibits comparable catalytic property to commercial Pt/C catalyst.Figure optionsDownload full-size imageDownload as PowerPoint slide