There is an urgent need to develop renewable sources of energy and use existing resources in an efficient manner. In this study, in order to improve the utilization of unused biomass and develop green processes and sustainable technologies for energy production and storage, unused Douglas fir sawdust (SD) was transformed into catalysts for the oxygen reduction reaction. Fe and N were doped into SD during hydrothermal carbonization, and the N- and Fe-doped wood-derived carbon (Fe/N/SD) was carbonized in a nitrogen atmosphere. After the catalyst had been calcined at 800°C, its showed the highest current density (−5.86 mAcm⁻² at 0.5 V versus reversible hydrogen electrode or RHE) and E_onset value (0.913 V versus RHE). Furthermore, its current density was higher than that of Pt/C (20 wt% Pt) (−5.66 mA cm⁻² @0.5 V versus RHE). Finally, after 50 000 s, the current density of sample Fe/N/SD (2 : 10 : 10) remained at 79.3% of the initial value. Thus, the synthesized catalysts, which can be produced readily at a low cost, are suitable for use in various types of energy generation and storage devices, such as fuel cells and air batteries.

This article is part of the theme issue ‘Bio-derived and bioinspired sustainable advanced materials for emerging technologies (part 2)’.

迫切需要开发可再生能源并有效利用现有资源。在本研究中，为了提高未利用生物质的利用率，开发绿色过程和能源生产和储存的可持续技术，未利用的花旗松锯末 (SD) 被转化为氧还原反应的催化剂。Fe和N在水热碳化过程中被掺杂到SD中，N和Fe掺杂的木源碳（Fe/N/SD）在氮气氛中被碳化。该催化剂在 800°C 下煅烧后，显示出最高的电流密度（-5.86 mAcm ^-2在 0.5 V 与可逆氢电极或 RHE）和 E_起始值（0.913 V 与 RHE）。此外，其电流密度高于 Pt/C（20 wt% Pt）（-5.66 mA cm ^-2 @0.5 V 对 RHE）。最后，在 50 000 s 后，样品 Fe/N/SD (2 : 10 : 10) 的电流密度保持在初始值的 79.3%。因此，合成的催化剂可以以低成本容易地生产，适用于各种类型的能量产生和存储装置，例如燃料电池和空气电池。

本文是主题问题“用于新兴技术的生物衍生和仿生可持续先进材料（第 2 部分）”的一部分。