title: Catalytic disproportionation of the superoxide intermediate from electrochemical O2 reduction in nonaqueous electrolytes.
abstract: Tris(pentafluorophenyl)borane (TPFPB) was found to be an efficient catalyst for rapid superoxide (O2(-)) disproportionation. The kinetics for the catalytic disproportionation reaction is much faster than the reaction between O2(-) and propylene carbonate. Therefore, the negative impact of the reaction between the electrolyte and O2(-) produced by the O2 reduction is minimized. The cathodic current for O2 reduction can be doubled in the presence of TPFPB. The high reduction current resulted from the pseudo two-electron O2-reduction reaction due to the replenishment of O2 at the electrode surface. This discovery could lead to a new avenue for the development of high-capacity, high-rate, rechargeable Li-air batteries.
authors: Department of Chemistry, University of Massachusetts Boston, 100 Morrissey Blvd., Boston, MA 02125, USA.
authors: Dong
authors: D
authors: Zheng
authors: Qiang
authors: Q
authors: Wang
authors: Hung-Sui
authors: HS
authors: Lee
authors: Xiao-Qing
authors: XQ
authors: Yang
authors: Deyang
authors: D
authors: Qu