Nanostructured iron/carbon for scavenging oxygen

A composition comprising

• i. a composite material comprising at least one metal particle and a carbon material;
• ii. an inorganic salt;
• and
• iii. optionally an aqueous medium;
• wherein said carbon material is derived from a biomass material that comprises a saccharide, wherein the saccharide is selected from a monosaccharide, disaccharide, oligosaccharide or a polysaccharide;
• wherein the monosaccharide is selected from the group consisting of glucose, fructose and galactose;
• wherein the oligosaccharide is selected from the group consisting of a sugar or an amino sugar;
• or wherein the polysaccharide is selected from the group consisting of a cyclodextrin, a cellulose, a glycogen, a chitin and a hemicellulose, wherein said carbon material is a carbon particle or a sheet-like material having a porous structure with size of pores only in the range of 10 to 700 nm, wherein said metal particle is a zero-valent transition metal particle, and wherein said at least one metal particle is uniformly distributed on or within said carbon material.