Research progress of iron-based oxygen reduction catalysts in fuel cells

At present, platinum based catalysts are the most commonly used for the cathode oxygen reduction reaction, one of the core reactions in fuel cells. However, the shortcomings of the platinum based catalysts, such as high cost, poor tolerance to methanol and easy carbon monoxide poisoning, seriously limit its large-scale applications, which makes development of non-platinum-based catalysts essential. Iron-based catalysts are considered the most promising alternatives to platinum-based catalysts due to their excellent catalytic activity, high stability, good methanol tolerance, and low price. In this review, the research status, catalytic mechanism, and activity influencing factors of different iron-based oxygen reduction catalysts were discussed. In the end, the existing problems and future development directions of various catalysts were proposed. © 2023 Fine Chemicals. All rights reserved.