First principles study of oxygen molecule interaction with the graphitic active sites of a boron-doped pyrolyzed Fe-N-C catalyst.

We study the adsorption and the dissociation of O molecules on the active sites of a boron-doped pyrolyzed Fe-N-C catalyst using density functional theory. Initially, we determine the possible structure of the FeN active site of the pyrolyzed Fe-N-C catalyst doped with a boron atom by considering the presence of a nitrogen atom as a metal-free site. The most stable configuration of the structure occurs when the boron and nitrogen atoms coalesce with the FeN site forming a complex site. This structure has higher stability compared to the undoped FeN site. The doped FeN possesses the unique ability to adsorb an oxygen molecule in a side-on mode due to the presence of the boron-nitrogen pair acting as a supporting site. One O atom of the O molecule sticks strongly to the top of the iron atom, while the other binds with the boron atom. This O side-on adsorption stretches the O-O bond length by 15%. Furthermore, the examined catalyst surface can dissociate the oxygen molecule easily with only half the energy barrier of the undoped FeN structure.