# Phosphazene-Based Porous Polymer as Electrode Material for Electrochemical Applications

## TL;DR

A new porous polymer made from phosphazene is shown to be a promising material for electrochemical devices like supercapacitors and fuel cells.

## Contribution

The synthesis of a phosphazene-based porous polymer and its conversion into a heteroatom-doped carbon material with high electrochemical performance is presented.

## Key findings

- The synthesized polymer has a mesoporous structure and a surface area of 76.9 m2/g.
- After carbonization, the material achieves a surface area of 177 m2/g and a specific capacitance of 155.6 F/g.
- The carbon material shows catalytic activity for oxygen electroreduction at 15.9 A/g.

## Abstract

Porous highly cross-linked polymer (PIP) was synthesized by a polycondensation reaction between hexachlorocyclotriphosphazene and piperazine. The obtained polymer has a surface area of 76.9 m2/g and a mesoporous structure. After carbonization, the obtained product (PIP-C) has a surface area of 177 m2/g. The obtained carbon product contained nitrogen and phosphorus heteroatoms, which leads to a higher specific capacitance (155.6 F/g) and catalytical activity in the electroreduction of oxygen (15.9 A/g). This work shows the possibility of the use of such porous phosphazene polymers as precursors for heteroatom-doped carbon materials, which might be used in electrochemical devices like electrodes for supercapacitors or metal-free electrocatalysts in fuel cells.