One-Dimensional Carbon for Electrocatalytic Activities

One-dimensional (1D) carbon structures like carbon nanotubes (CNTs), carbon nanofibers (CNFs), and graphene ribbons, for instance, have drawn a lot of interest in the field of electrocatalysis because of their distinctive characteristics and superior electrochemical performance. The purpose of this chapter is to give a general review of the electrocatalytic properties of 1D carbon nanomaterials and their prospective uses in a range of energy conversion and storage technologies. The main attractive properties of these carbon structures are based on their satisfactory electrocatalytic activity for several processes due to their high surface area as well as conductivity. The first section provides a brief overview of some of the main theoretical aspects related to technologies such as water-splitting electrolyzers, fuel cells, and metal-air batteries. From that, some of their main electrochemical reactions such as hydrogen evolution reaction (HER), oxygen evolution reaction (OER), oxygen reduction reaction (ORR), and hydrogen oxidation reaction (HOR) are discussed based on the application of their respective electrochemical devices. The second section provides some of the main techniques and approaches utilized for the synthesis of 1D carbon-based materials while providing some of their main advantages and drawbacks. The third section provides an in-depth discussion of some of the most recent works from the literature under the scope of the electrochemical performance of 1D carbon-based materials and the main phenomena that justify their use in such technologies. Lastly, an outlook and future aspects regarding the main advantages and current hurdles on the use of 1D carbon-based material are provided to elucidate some of the main issues for the readers while providing some insight for future experimental design.