Immobilization of Platinum Nanoparticles on Covalent Organic Framework-Derived Carbon for Oxygen Reduction Catalysis

Platinum (Pt)-based catalysts are considered as the most active catalysts for the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR). However, their applications have remained limited because of the high cost of Pt, and developing catalysts with low Pt contents is a challenge. Herein, a highly active catalyst (Pt-COF800) is constructed for the ORR by immobilizing hierarchical Pt subnano- and nanoparticles on covalent organic framework (COF)-derived carbon. The catalyst shows excellent activity in alkaline conditions. The physical characterization demonstrates low nuclear Pt atoms and nanoparticles and confirms the role of heterogeneous active sites. This work paves the way for the construction of functional porous carbon materials with dual-scale Pt clusters and may be applied to industrial catalytic reactions.