Ultrafast synthesis of cobalt/carbon nanocomposites by magnetic induction heating for oxygen evolution reaction

Metal/carbon nanocomposites have shown great potential as high-performance, low-cost electrocatalysts owing largely to their unique metal-support interactions. These nanocomposites are typically prepared by conventional pyrolysis that is tedious and energy-intensive. Herein, we report the ultrafast preparation of cobalt/carbon nanocomposites by magnetic induction heating (MIH) of metal organic frameworks within seconds under an inert atmosphere. The resulting samples consist of cobalt nanoparticles encapsulated within defective carbon shells, and effectively catalyze oxygen evolution reaction (OER) in alkaline media. Among the series, the sample prepared at 400 A for 10 s exhibits the best OER performance, needing a low overpotential of +308 mV to reach the current density of 10 mA cm⁻², along with excellent stability, and even outperforms commercial RuO₂ at high overpotentials. This is ascribed to the charge transfer between the carbon scaffold and metal nanoparticles. Operando X-ray absorption spectroscopy measurements show that the electrochemically produced CoOOH species is responsible for the high electrocatalytic performance. The results highlight the unique potential of MIH in the development of effective nanocomposite catalysts for electrochemical energy technologies.