Influence on Electrochemical Reactivity and Synthesis of Stainless Steel/Nitrogen-Doped Carbon Nanofibers

Transition metal/carbon nanomaterials are currently gaining reputation as inexpensive, high-performance, and robust electrocatalysts as a replacement for noble catalysts. In this study, we report on the synthesis and enhanced electrochemical reactivity of nitrogen (N)-doped graphitic carbon nanostructures (CNSs) on metal alloy substrates. The CNS was synthesized on a stainless steel (SUS304) foil by the chemical vapor deposition method. Fe and Cr alloy nanoparticles along with Mn and Ni impurities were observed to be integrated within the N-doped CNS sample from microscopic and spectroscopic analyses. In the electrochemical studies, oxygen reduction reaction (ORR), oxygen evolution reaction (OER), and hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) activities were observed to be significantly enhanced for the CNS sample with low overpotential values (ORR = 66 mV, OER = 155.28 mV, and HER = 148.38 mV). Stainless steel is a well-known water splitting catalyst that has played an important role in improving the OER behavior of carbon nanomaterials. It was also observed that Cr2O3 nodules considerably boosted the ORR reactivity of the sample exhibiting a 4e(-) process in alkaline media. The OER activity of the CNS was excellent compared to iridium oxide (IrO2), signifying the efficiency of the developed catalyst. Our study revealed the impact of synthesizing the N-doped CNS on stainless steel alloy substrates (STNCNS) and its effect on the electrochemical reactivity in aqueous media.