Non-modified Thermally-derived Onion-like Carbon As Electrocatalyst for [VO]2+/[VO2]+ Redox Flow Battery

We report the nanodiamond-derived onion-like carbon successfully applied as an electrocatalyst for [VO]2+/[VO2]+ redox flow battery, as drop-coated (in the as-synthesized state) on glassy carbon or carbon felt electrodes. We show that its reversibility and catalytic activity in its as-synthesized state was comparable to some of the best data in the literature which employed surface modifications. We clarified the origin of such excellent performances by physical/electrochemical analyses.