Polydopamine-Coated Manganese Complex/Graphene Nanocomposite for Enhanced Electrocatalytic Activity Towards Oxygen Reduction

Platinum electrodes are commonly used electrocatalysts for oxygen reduction reactions (ORR) in fuel cells. However, this material is not economical due to its high cost and scarcity. We prepared an Mn(III) catalyst supported on graphene and further coated with polydopamine, resulting in superior ORR activity compared to the uncoated PDA structures. During ORR, a peak potential at 0.433 V was recorded, which is a significant shift compared to the uncoated material’s −0.303 V (both versus SHE). All the materials reduced oxygen in a wide pH range via a four-electron pathway. Rotating disk electrode and rotating ring disk electrode studies of the polydopamine-coated material revealed ORR occurring via 4.14 and 4.00 electrons, respectively. A rate constant of 6.33 × 10(6) mol(−1)s(−1) was observed for the polydopamine-coated material–over 4.5 times greater than the uncoated nanocomposite and superior to those reported for similar carbon-supported metal catalysts. Simply integrating an inexpensive bioinspired polymer coating onto the Mn-graphene nanocomposite increased ORR performance significantly, with a peak potential shift of over +730 mV. This indicates that the material can reduce oxygen at a higher rate but with lower energy usage, revealing its excellent potential as an ORR electrocatalyst in fuel cells.