International Journal of Molecular Sciences· 2026Q1· Review
Recent Advances in ZIF-8 Performance for Electrochemical Applications: A Comprehensive Review
- 1citations
- Q1SCImago
- 2026year
Short summary
Zeolitic imidazolate framework-8 (ZIF-8) shows promise in fuel cells and batteries as both an electrocatalyst precursor and a membrane component, achieving performance comparable to commercial Pt/C systems in some applications.
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Key points
- ZIF-8 acts as a precursor for electrocatalysts (N-doped carbons, M-N-C) and as a membrane component in fuel cells.
- ZIF-8-derived materials show improved catalytic activity in fuel cells, zinc-air batteries, supercapacitors, and water splitting.
- Strategies like heteroatom doping and composite fabrication enable ZIF-8 catalysts to rival commercial Pt/C systems.
- ZIF-8 composite membranes enhance proton conductivity and methanol blocking.
AI-generated from the title and abstract; the full text is not read.
Abstract
Zeolitic imidazolate framework-8 (ZIF-8) has emerged as a material for electrochemical energy conversion, serving dual primary roles in fuel cell technologies: (i) as an electrocatalyst precursor for oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) and methanol oxidation reaction (MOR) through pyrolysis-derived N-doped porous carbons and metal-nitrogen-carbon (M-N-C) structures, and (ii) as a membrane component that enhances proton conductivity via imidazole-mediated Grotthuss hopping while suppressing fuel crossover through molecular sieving. This comprehensive review systematically evaluates ZIF-8 performance across multiple fuel cell types, including primarily proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs), as well as direct methanol fuel cells (DMFCs), anion exchange membrane fuel cells (AEMFCs), and microbial fuel cells (MFCs), while also covering related electrochemical applications such as zinc-air batteries, supercapacitors, and water splitting devices, where ZIF-8-derived materials demonstrate improved catalytic activity. The review examines structure-performance relationships, highlighting strategies such as heteroatom doping, bimetallic synergy, hierarchical porosity engineering, and polymer composite fabrication that have enabled ZIF-8-based catalysts to achieve ORR half-wave potentials and PEMFC power densities, rivaling commercial Pt/C systems. ZIF-8 composite membranes demonstrate proton conductivities in polybenzimidazole systems and effective methanol blocking. Despite improved progress, challenges persist regarding long-term stability, scalable synthesis, and degradation mechanism understanding. This review critically analyzes recent advances, identifies performance-limiting factors across applications, and outlines future research directions for developing commercially viable ZIF-8-based electrochemical technologies.
The authors' abstract, as published at the source. International Journal of Molecular Sciences, 2026 · DOI ↗
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Field: Renewable Energy, Sustainability and the Environment
Renewable Energy, Sustainability and the EnvironmentEnergy