Tailoring the stability of Fe-N-C via pyridinic nitrogen for acid oxygen reduction reaction

[Display omitted] •Influence of Fe bonded with different type N on the stability of ORR was analyzed.•Fe-N-C catalyst with high pyridinic N content was successfully prepared.•Fe-N-C with high pyridinic N content presents much enhanced ORR stability.•The practical value of catalyst was tested in PEMFC and Zn-air cell. Developing advanced non-precious metal catalysts towards acidic oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) is critical for electrochemical energy conversion devices. Fe-N-C catalysts are demonstrated to be the most promising alternatives to platinum-based catalysts for ORR. Herein, Fe single atoms (SAs) coordinated by pyridinic nitrogen catalysts (denoted as Fe-pyridinic N-C) are synthesized through pyrolysis of ZIF-8 encapsulating ferrocene. Owing to the synergistic effects between Fe SAs and pyridinic N, Fe-pyridinic N-C exhibits remarkable ORR activity and outstanding stability in acid media, evidenced by golden kinetic current density of 9.71 mA cm−2 at 0.8 V, along with only 21 mV decrease in half-wave potential after 20,000 cycles. Theoretical calculations demonstrate that pyridine-type N possesses stronger binding energy with Fe SAs compared with pyrrole-type N, in other words, high pyridinic N content will help stabilize the catalyst. This study will be of great significance for the development of non-noble metal catalysts towards ORR with enhanced stability in acidic media.