Non-Bonding Interaction of Neighboring Fe and Ni Single-Atom Pairs on MOF-Derived N-Doped Carbon for Enhanced CO2 Electroreduction

Single-atom catalysts (SACs), featuring high atom utilization, have captured widespread interests in diverse applications. However, the single-atom sites in SACs are generally recognized as independent units and the interplay of adjacent sites is largely overlooked. Herein, by the direct pyrolysis of MOFs assembled with Fe and Ni-doped ZnO nanoparticles, a novel Fe-1-Ni-1-N-C catalyst, with neighboring Fe and Ni single-atom pairs decorated on nitrogen-doped carbon support, has been precisely constructed. Thanks to the synergism of neighboring Fe and Ni single-atom pairs, Fe-1-Ni-1-N-C presents significantly boosted performances for electrocatalytic reduction of CO2, far surpassing Fe-1-N-C and Ni-1-N-C with separate Fe or Ni single atoms. Additionally, the Fe-1-Ni-1-N-C also exhibits superior performance with excellent CO selectivity and durability in Zn-CO2 battery. Theoretical simulations reveal that, in Fe-1-Ni-1-N-C, single Fe atoms can be highly activated by adjacent single-atom Ni via non-bonding interaction, significantly facilitating the formation of COOH* intermediate and thereby accelerating the overall CO2 reduction. This work supplies a general strategy to construct single-atom catalysts containing multiple metal species and reveals the vital importance of the communitive effect between adjacent single atoms toward improved catalysis.

Automated summary

Through the direct pyrolysis of MOFs assembled with Fe and Ni-doped ZnO nanoparticles, a novel Fe-1-Ni-1-N-C catalyst with neighboring Fe and Ni single-atom pairs on nitrogen-doped carbon support has been precisely constructed. The synergism of neighboring Fe and Ni single-atom pairs significantly boosts the electrocatalytic reduction of CO2, surpassing catalysts with separate Fe or Ni single atoms. The study reveals the importance of the communicative effect between adjacent single atoms for improved catalysis in single-atom catalysts containing multiple metal species.