Enhancing the Catalytic Activity of Zeolitic Imidazolate Framework‐8‐Derived N‐Doped Carbon with Incorporated CeO2 Nanoparticles in the Oxygen Reduction Reaction

Incorporation of CeO2 nanoparticles into the cavity of zeolitic imidazolate framework‐8 (ZIF‐8) was followed by high‐temperature pyrolysis to generate CeO2@N‐doped carbon materials. Introduction of the CeO2 nanoparticles greatly enhanced the catalytic activity of the ZIF‐8‐derived carbon materials in the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) owing to the presence of Ce3+ and oxygen vacancies with high content of chemisorbed oxygen in CeO2 and the well‐maintained skeleton of the original ZIF‐8 with uniform mesoporous structure. The material treated at 900 °C (CeO2@N‐C‐900) showed excellent ORR catalytic activity in both acidic and alkaline electrolyte. The ORR onset and half‐wave potentials of CeO2@N‐C‐900 were 1.003 and 0.908 V versus RHE, respectively, in 0.1 m KOH aqueous solution, which are comparable to those of Pt/C catalysts. Furthermore, it exhibited much better stability and methanol crossover tolerance than Pt/C, indicative of its good potential for applications in energy conversion.