Influence of Aerobic vs Anaerobic Pyrolysis on the Electrochemical Behavior of Mesocrystals

The development of surface-active materials to improve the performance of electrochemical processes is becoming increasingly important in response to the growing challenges of sustainability. Due to their high active surface area, arrangements of nanoparticles are strong candidates for electrode materials. However, the surface activity of nanoparticles is often affected by the presence of stabilization agents such as organic ligand layers on the particle surface. This work investigates the postsynthetic aerobic and anaerobic pyrolysis of iron oxide mesocrystals to transform the organic ligand shell into an electrochemically active surface. This process introduces fissures into the nanoparticle assemblies while concomitantly reducing the particle separation distances, thereby enhancing both capacitance and magnetic coupling. Our findings demonstrate that anaerobic pyrolysis preserves mesocrystalline order, whereas aerobic pyrolysis disrupts order but significantly improves electrochemical activity by enhancing the active surface area.