Multilevel Nitrogen-Doped Carbon Nanostructures through CoFe Alloy Integration for Trifunctional Electrocatalysis

Designing efficient non-noble metal multifunctional electrocatalysts with hierarchical nanostructures is paramount for advancing renewable energy technologies. In this study, we present a method that utilizes Fe2O3 and metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) as coprecursors for high-temperature carbonization, resulting in a composite structure of CoFe alloy nanoparticles, nitrogen-doped carbon nanosheets, and nanotubes. The unique hierarchical architecture of the synthesized CoFe@NC-0.25 provides a high specific surface area and facilitates synergistic interactions among CoFe alloy active sites, resulting in exceptional trifunctional catalytic performance. Specifically, it exhibits a half-wave potential of 0.86 V for the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) and overpotentials of 352 and 244 mV at a current density of 10 mA cm–2 for the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) and hydrogen evolution reaction (HER), respectively. In addition, all three reactions showed excellent stability in a 10 h endurance test. This work underscores the critical role of these structural attributes in enhancing catalytic efficiency, presenting a promising strategy for the development of efficient multifunctional non-noble metal electrocatalysts.