LAUSR

Abstract Precursors of tungsten carbide/Melamine/carbon aerogels(WC@C/N/CA)porous catalysts were designed and prepared by using the porous carbon aerogels with SiO 2 as the hard template and very large specific surface areas were obtained. By adding tungsten carbide, melamine and SiO 2 into the early-stage phenolic resin ageing, we prepared the integrated porous catalyst precursors. The chemical state and interaction of key elements in non-Pt catalysts were regulated by high-temperature carbonization, template removal and secondary calcination. Finally, excellent non-Pt oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) catalysts were prepared. The catalyst prepared at 850 °C formed a core-shell (WC@C) structure, and had good catalyst performance after 4 h of secondary calcination. The ORR activity reached 1.027 V under alkaline media, which is higher than that of commercial Pt/C catalysts. The high ORR activity and stability of the WC@C/N/CA catalysts were explained via X-ray diffraction, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, Raman, and Brunauer-Emmett-Teller measurement. The specific surface area was improved because of the porous structures, resulting in the enhancement on the density of active sites.