Nanoscale Carbon Modified α-MnO Nanowires: Highly Active and Stable Oxygen Reduction Electrocatalysts with Low Carbon Content.

Carbon-coated α-MnO nanowires (C-MnO NWs) were prepared from α-MnO NWs by a two-step sucrose coating and pyrolysis method. This method resulted in the formation of a thin, porous, low mass-percentage amorphous carbon coating (<5 nm, ≤1.2 wt % C) on the nanowire with an increase in single-nanowire electronic conductivity of roughly 5 orders of magnitude (α-MnO, 3.