Waste to wealth: atomically dispersed cobalt–nitrogen–carbon from spent LiCoO2

Abstract

Atomic cobalt–nitrogen–carbon (Co–NC) material was synthesized using spent LiCoO₂, and contained a heavy Co–N₄ loading (1.42 at%). The synthesized Co–NC exhibited high oxygen reduction reaction activity (with onset and half-wave potentials of 0.97 V and 0.87 V, respectively) and robust Al–air battery performance, delivering a specific power of 121.3 mW cm⁻².