Intrinsically microporous polymer slows down fuel cell catalyst corrosion

The limited stability of fuel cell cathode catalysts causes a significant loss of operational cell voltage with commercial Pt-based catalysts, which hinders the wider commercialization of fuel cell technologies. We demonstrate beneficial effects of a highly rigid and porous polymer of intrinsic microporosity (PIM-EA-TB with BET surface area 1027 m² g^− 1) in accelerated catalyst corrosion experiments. Porous films of PIM-EA-TB offer an effective protective matrix for the prevention of Pt/C catalyst corrosion without impeding flux of reagents. The results of electrochemical cycling tests show that the PIM-EA-TB protected Pt/C (denoted here as PIM@Pt/C) exhibit a significantly enhanced durability as compared to a conventional Pt/C catalyst.     

新型钴-聚吡咯-碳载Pt燃料电池催化剂的制备与表征

采用脉冲微波辅助化学还原法制备了钴-聚吡咯-碳（Co-PPy-C）载Pt 催化剂（Pt/Co-PPy-C）,其中Pt 的总质量占20%. 利用透射电镜（TEM）、光电子射线能谱分析（XPS）和X射线衍射（XRD）研究了催化剂的结构,用循环伏安（CV）、线性扫描伏安（LSV）等方法考察了其电化学活性及氧还原反应（ORR）动力学特性及耐久性. Pt/Co-PPy-C电催化剂的金属颗粒直径约1.8 nm,略小于商用催化剂Pt/C（JM）颗粒尺寸（约2.5 nm）;催化剂在载体上分散均匀,粒径分布范围较窄. Pt/Co-PPy-C的电化学活性比表面积（ECSA）（75.1 m²·g^-1）高于商用催化剂的ECSA（51.3 m²·g^-1）. XPS测试表明,自制催化剂表面的Pt 主要以零价形式存在. 而XRD结果显示,自制催化剂中Pt（111）峰最强,Pt 主要为面心立方晶格. Pt/Co-PPy-C具有与Pt/C（JM）相同的半波电位;在0.9 V下,Pt/Co-PPy-C的比活性（1.21 mA·cm^-2）高于商用催化剂的比活性（1.04 mA·cm^-2）,表现出更好的ORR催化活性.动力学性能测试表明催化剂的ORR反应以四电子路线进行. CV测试1000 圈后,Pt/Co-PPy-C和Pt/C（JM）的ECSA 分别衰减了13.0%和24.0%,可见自制催化剂的耐久性高于商用Pt/C（JM）,在质子交换膜燃料电池（PEMFC）领域有一定的应用前景.     

CO tolerant Pt/WC methanol electro-oxidation catalyst

Platinum supported on WC (Pt/WC) catalyst (20 wt.% Pt) was synthesized as a new methanol electro-oxidation catalyst. Particle size of 7.5 nm was obtained from X-ray diffraction results and a uniform distribution of particles was observed by transmission electron microscopy. In cyclic voltammetry (CV) measurement, the reduction peak potential of PtO increased from 0.72 V in commercial Pt/C to 0.76 V in Pt/WC. By combining the CV and CO stripping results, spill-over of H⁺ from Pt to WC was observed. Electrochemically active surface area calculated from the desorption area of H⁺ were 11.2 and 5.74 m²/g catalyst for Pt/WC and Pt/C, while those obtained from the desorption area of CO were 4.42 and 6.40 m²/g catalyst, respectively. CO electro-oxidation peak potential greatly decreased from 0.80 V in Pt/C to 0.68 V in Pt/WC. The reaction of WC with water to produce WC–OH could lower to CO electro-oxidation peak potential. Specific activity for methanol electro-oxidation increased from 144 mA/m² in Pt/C to 188 mA/m² in Pt/WC.     

Highly active PtRuFe/C catalyst for methanol electro-oxidation

High methanol electro-oxidation activity was obtained on novel PtRuFe/C (2:1:1 at.%) catalyst. Mass and specific activities were 5.67 A  g⁻¹ catal. and 177 mA m⁻² for the PtRuFe/C catalyst while those of the commercial PtRu/C catalyst were 2.28 A g⁻¹ catal. and 87.7 mA m⁻², respectively. CO stripping results showed that on-set voltage for CO electro-oxidation was lowered by incorporation of Fe. XRD and XPS results revealed that Fe₂O₃ was formed instead of Fe(0), which resulted in large electron deficiency in Pt and easy CO electro-oxidation. The electron deficiency of Pt was proved by XPS results of Pt4f peaks, which moved to higher binding energies in PtRuFe/C than PtRu/C.     

Hyperporous‐Carbon‐Supported Nonprecious Metal Electrocatalysts for the Oxygen Reduction Reaction

Highly porous carbonaceous nonprecious metal catalysts for the oxygen reduction reaction are prepared by carbonization of low‐cost metalloporphyrin‐based hyper‐crosslinked polymers (MPH‐X). With high surface area (2768 m² g⁻¹), hierarchical porous structure, and high metal loading (9.97 wt %), the obtained hyperporous carbon MPH‐Fe/C catalyst exhibits high oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) activity with a half‐wave potential (0.816 V) that is comparable to the 0.819 V of commercial Pt/C. Stability tests reveal that MPH‐Fe/C also exhibits outstanding long‐term durability and methanol tolerance. Our findings may offer an alternative approach to produce nonprecious metal ORR catalysts on a large scale owing to the low‐cost MPH‐X precursors with diverse metal types.     

Enhanced activity for ethanol electrooxidation on Pt–MgO/C catalysts

MgO promoted Pt/C electrocatalysts were rapidly prepared by intermittent microwave heating method and characterized using different techniques. Electrooxidation of ethanol on MgO promoted Pt/C catalysts in alkaline media was studied. Such electrocatalysts are superior to pure Pt electrocatalysts. The influence of the amount of MgO in the catalysts on catalytic activity for ethanol oxidation was tested. The electrode with a weight ratio of Pt to MgO of 4:1 showed the highest electrocatalytic activity for ethanol oxidation. The presence of MgO in the electrocatalysts improved the kinetic processes, giving the exchange current density for ethanol oxidation of 1.8 × 10⁻⁵ A cm⁻² on Pt–MgO/C instead of 3.3 × 10⁻⁷ A cm⁻² on Pt/C.     

Pt 含量对Co@Pt/C核壳结构催化剂性能的影响

采用两步还原法制得Co@Pt/C核壳结构催化剂, 其中Co与Pt 的总质量分数为20%. 通过改变金属前驱体的用量, 制备了不同Co:Pt 原子比的Co@Pt/C 催化剂, 以20% (w) Co@Pt(1:1)/C 与20% (w) Co@Pt(1:3)/C 表示. 采用透射电镜(TEM)、光电子射线能谱分析(XPS)、循环伏安(CV)、线性扫描伏安(LSV)等方法考察了其结构与性能, 并与实验室早先制备的40% (w) Co@Pt/C 催化剂进行了比较. 自制20% Co@Pt(1:1)/C 与20% Co@Pt(1:3)/C 催化剂的金属颗粒直径约为2.2-2.3 nm, 在碳载体上分散均匀, 粒径分布范围较窄, 电化学活性比表面积(ECSA)分别为56 和60 m²·g^-1, 均超过商用催化剂20% Pt/C(E-tek) (ECSA=54 m²·g^-1). 20%Co@Pt(1:1)/C 与20% Co@Pt(1:3)/C 的半波电位相较于40% Co@Pt(1:1)/C 和40% Co@Pt(1:3)/C 均向正向移动, 表现出更好的氧还原(ORR)催化活性, 并有望降低催化剂的成本, 在质子交换膜燃料电池领域表现出良好的应用前景.     

Investigation of the Pt–Ni–Pb/C ternary alloy catalysts for methanol electrooxidation

This research is aimed to increase the activity of anodic catalysts and thus to lower noble metal loading in anodes for methanol electrooxidation. The Pt–Ni–Pb/C catalysts with different molar compositions were prepared. Their performance were tested by using a glassy carbon disk electrode through cyclic voltammetric curves in a solution of 0.5 mol L⁻¹ CH₃OH and 0.5 mol L⁻¹ H₂SO₄. The performances of Pt–Ni–Pb/C catalyst with optimum composition (the molar ratio of Pt/Ni/Pb is 5:4:1) and Pt/C (E-Tek) were also compared. Their particle sizes and structures were determined by means of X-ray diffraction (XRD). The XRD results show, compared with that of Pt/C, the lattice parameter of Pt–Ni–Pb (5:4:1)/C catalyst decreases, its diffraction peaks are shifted slightly to a higher 2θ values. This indicates the formation of an alloy involving the incorporation of Ni and Pb atoms into the fcc structure of Pt. The electrochemical measurement shows the activity of Pt–Ni–Pb/C catalyst with an atomic ratio of 5:4:1 for methanol electrooxidation is the best among all different compositions. The activity of Pt–Ni–Pb (5:4:1)/C catalyst is much higher than that of Pt/C (E-Tek).     

Catalytic oxidation of benzene at low temperature over novel combination of metal oxide based catalysts: CuO,MnO2, NiO with Ce0.75Zr0.25O2 as support

Mesoporous Ce_0.75Zr_0.25O₂ solid solution powders were successfully synthesized by a co-precipitation method. A combination of 10 wt% copper oxide, manganese oxide, and nickel oxide was added to the Ce_0.75Zr_0.25O₂ support by impregnation method and calcined in the air with a flow rate of 2 ml s^?1 at 400 °C for 4 h. All catalysts were characterized using Hydrogen Temperature Programmed Reduction (H₂-TPR), X-ray Diffraction (XRD), and Brunauer-Emmet-Teller (BET) isotherm methods to find the interaction between metals, the crystallinity of the catalyst, surface area and pore volume of the catalyst, respectively. The 3.3% CuO-3.3% MnO₂-3.3% NiO/Ce_0.75Zr_0.25O₂ catalyst showed higher catalytic activity for benzene oxidation with benzene conversion of 90% at 250 °C and weight hourly space velocity (72,000 mL g^?1 h^?1) when compared to one metal oxide only. This finding presents a high activity and low-cost catalysts for removing a very lean concentration of benzene containing in the industrial flue gas at low temperatures.     

Ultra-low platinum loading high-performance PEMFCs using buckypaper-supported electrodes

The microstructure of the catalyst layer in proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs) greatly influences catalyst (Pt) utilization and cell performance. We demonstrated a functionally graded catalyst layer based on a double-layered carbon nanotube/nanofiber film- (buckypaper) supported Pt composite catalyst to approach an idealized microstructure. The gradient distribution of Pt, electrolyte and porosity along the thickness effectively depresses the transport resistance of proton and gas. A rated power of 0.88 W/cm² at 0.65 V was achieved at 80 °C with a low Pt loading of 0.11 mg/cm² resulting in a relatively high Pt utilization of 0.18g_Pt/kW. The accelerated degradation test of catalyst support showed a good durability of buckypaper support because of the high graphitization degree of carbon nanofibers.     

Dealloyed carbon-supported PtAg nanostructures: Enhanced electrocatalytic activity for oxygen reduction reaction

Dealloyed PtAg/C nanostructures, prepared by selective electrochemical etching of Ag in 0.5 M H₂SO₄ from a series of alloyed Pt_mAg/C samples with atomic Pt/Ag ratio m = 0.1, 0.5, 1.0 and 1.5, were employed as cathode electrocatalysts for oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) in 0.5 M KOH. Compared with their as-prepared counterpart alloy catalysts, the dealloyed catalysts showed higher half-wave potentials (E_1/2) and significantly higher Pt mass-specific activity (MSA) data. The intrinsic activity (IA) of Pt increased more or less after the dealloying treatment but was strongly dependent on the composition (m) of the alloyed sample. The Pt IA numbers were comparable for the dealloyed catalysts derived from Pt_mAg/C of m = 0.5, 1.0 and 1.5, which were nearly twice that for E-TEK Pt/C catalyst and 3 times that for the dealloyed catalyst derived from Pt_0.1Ag/C.     

Improvement in performance of a direct ethanol fuel cell: Effect of sulfuric acid and Ni-mesh

A direct ethanol fuel cell (DEFC) is developed with low catalyst loading at anode and cathode compared to that reported in the literature. Pt/Ru (40%:20% by wt.)/C and Pt-black were used as anode and cathode catalyst with loadings in the range of 0.5–1.2 mg/cm². The temperatures of anode and cathode were varied from 34 °C to 110 °C, and the pressure was maintained at 1 bar. Although low catalyst loading was used, the cell performance is enhanced by 40–50% with the use of low concentration of sulfuric acid in ethanol and Ni-mesh as current collector at the anode. The power density 15 mW/cm² at 32 mA/cm² of current density is obtained from the single cell with 0.5 mg/cm² loading of Pt–Ru/C at anode (90 °C) and Pt-black at cathode (110 °C). The performance of DEFC increases with the increase in ethanol and sulfuric acid concentrations, electrocatalyst loadings up to 1 mg cm⁻² at anode and cathode. However, the performance of DEFC decreases with further increase in electrocatalyst loading.     

Advanced Catalytic Performance of Au–Pt Double‐Walled Nanotubes and Their Fabrication through Galvanic Replacement Reaction

Bimetallic tubular nanostructures have been the focus of intensive research as they have very interesting potential applications in various fields including catalysis and electronics. In this paper, we demonstrate a facile method for the fabrication of Au–Pt double‐walled nanotubes (Au–Pt DWNTs). The DWNTs are fabricated through the galvanic displacement reaction between Ag nanowires and various metal ions, and the Au–Pt DWNT catalysts exhibit high active catalytic performances toward both methanol electro‐oxidation and 4‐nitrophenol (4‐NP) reduction. First, they have a high electrochemically active surface area of 61.66 m² g^?1, which is close to the value of commercial Pt/C catalysts (64.76 m² g^?1), and the peak current density of Au–Pt DWNTs in methanol oxidation is recorded as 138.25 mA mg^?1, whereas those of Pt nanotubes, Au/Pt nanotubes (simple mixture), and commercial Pt/C are 24.12, 40.95, and120.65 mA mg^?1, respectively. The Au–Pt DWNTs show a markedly enhanced electrocatalytic activity for methanol oxidation compared with the other three catalysts. They also show an excellent catalytic performance in comparison with common Au nanotubes for 4‐nitrophenol (4‐NP) reduction. The attractive performance exhibited by these prepared Au–Pt DWNTs can be attributed to their unique structures, which make them promising candidates as high‐performance catalysts.     

Physico-chemical and electrical properties of activated carbon cloths: Effect of inherent nature of the fabric precursor

Five different cellulose-based fabrics were used to prepare activated carbon cloths (ACCs) by phosphoric acid activation at pre-established experimental conditions, in an attempt to explore the effect of the precursor's nature on properties of the resulting ACCs. Characterization by elemental analysis, nitrogen (77 K) adsorption, and scanning electron microscopy was carried out. Electrical properties of the developed ACCs were investigated to examine the possibility of regenerating the ACCs by direct electrical heating. Thermal behavior of the raw precursor and of one of the acid-treated fabrics was also studied by thermogravimetric analysis and noticeable differences due to the precursors’ characteristics and acid impregnation were detected, respectively. The ACCs derived from a denim precursor showed BET surface area (784 m² g⁻¹) and total pore volume (0.40 cm³ g⁻¹) lower than those obtained from the four other precursors (1058–1183 m² g⁻¹, 0.55–0.67 cm³ g⁻¹), whereas carbon content and yield for the former were higher. Morphology and physical appearance of the ACCs were dependent on the raw fabric employed, with most of the samples presenting well-preserved fibres integrity. Besides, the denim-derived ACCs also showed the lowest electrical resistivity (8.10⁻³ Ωm). It was properly correlated with the elemental carbon content and total pore volume of the developed ACCs.     

Preparation and characteristics of NiO-coated nano-fibriform silica

NiO-coated nano-fibriform silica (NFS) was prepared by an excessive soakage method and was characterized using transmission electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, and physical N₂ adsorption techniques under different conditions. The results demonstrate that the coated NiO is of a cubic crystal form. The best preparation conditions are incubation in a water bath at 95 °C for 2 h and drying at 45 °C for 17 h, which lead to a higher NFS utilization ratio and thus lower cost, and a well-distributed NiO coating on the carrier NFS. Nitrogen adsorption isotherms for NiO-coated NFS are similar to a type IV curve, with a specific surface area of 292.7 m²/g, adsorptive capacity of 379.2 cm³/g, and pore volume of 0.59 cm³/g. The average pore diameter of NiO-coated NFS is 8.01 nm, but most pore diameters are in the range 2.1–3.9 nm. Comparison of NiO-coated NFS and NiO(Ni)-coated sol–gel silica as catalysts reveals that NiO-coated NFS may be an effective catalyst and that NFS may be a good catalyst carrier.     

Iodinated carbon materials for oxygen reduction reaction in proton exchange membrane fuel cell. Scalable synthesis and electrochemical performances

Doped graphene-based cathode catalysts are considered as promising competitors for ORR, but their power density has been low compared to Pt-based cathodes, mainly due to poor mass-transport properties. A new electrocatalyst for PEMFCs, an iodine doped grahene was prepared, characterized, and tested and the results are presented in this paper. We report a hybrid derived electrocatalyst with increased electrochemical active area and enhanced mass-transport properties. The electrochemical performances of several configurations were tested and compared with a typical Pt/C cathode configuration. As a standalone catalyst, the iodine doped graphene gives a performance with 60% lower than if it is placed between gas diffusion layer and catalyst layer. If it is included as microporous layer, the electrochemical performances of the fuel cell are with 15% bigger in terms of power density than the typical fuel cell with the same Pt/C loading, proving the beneficial effect of the iodine doped graphene for the fuel cell in the ohmic and mass transfer region. Moreover, the hybrid cathode manufactured by commercial Pt/C together with the material with best proprieties, is tested in a H₂-Air fuel cell and a power density of 0.55 W cm⁻² at 0.52 V was obtained, which is superior to that of a commercial Pt-based cathode tested under identical conditions (0.46 W cm⁻²).     

Combinatorial screening of ternary Pt–Ni–Cr catalysts for methanol electro-oxidation

Methanol electro-oxidation activity of ternary Pt–Ni–Cr system was studied by using a combinatorial screening method. A Pt–Ni–Cr thin-film library was prepared by sputtering and quickly characterized by a multichannel multielectrode analyzer. Among the 63 different composition thin-film catalysts, Pt₂₈Ni₃₆Cr₃₆ showed the highest methanol electro-oxidation activity and good stability. This new composition was also studied in its powder form by synthesizing and characterizing Pt₂₈Ni₃₆Cr₃₆/C catalyst. In chronoamperometry testing, the Pt₂₈Ni₃₆Cr₃₆/C catalyst exhibited “decay-free” behavior during 600 s operation by keeping its current density up to 97.1% of its peak current density, while the current densities of Pt/C and Pt₅₀Ru₅₀/C catalysts decreased to 14.0% and 60.3% of their peak current densities, respectively. At 600 s operation, current density of the Pt₂₈Ni₃₆Cr₃₆/C catalyst was 23.8 A g_{noble metal}⁻¹, while that of those of the Pt/C and Pt₅₀Ru₅₀/C catalysts were 2.74 and 18.8 A g_{noble metal}⁻¹, respectively.     

High catalytic activity of ultrafine nanoporous palladium for electro-oxidation of methanol, ethanol, and formic acid

Nanoporous palladium (NPPd) with ultrafine ligament size of 3–6 nm was fabricated by dealloying of an Al–Pd alloy in an alkaline solution. Electrochemical measurements indicate that NPPd exhibits significantly high electrochemical active specific surface area (23 m² g⁻¹), and high catalytic activity for electro-oxidation of methanol, ethanol, and formic acid. Mass activities can reach 149, 148, 262 mA mg⁻¹ for the oxidation of methanol, ethanol and formic acid, respectively. Moreover, superior steady-state activities can be observed for all the electro-oxidation processes. NPPd will be a promising candidate for the anode catalyst for direct alcohol or formic acid fuel cells.     

pH-effect on oxygen reduction activity of Fe-based electro-catalysts

Recently, our group reported on an innovative synthesis of Fe/N/C-catalysts that considerably increased their activity for the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) in proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs). This work investigates the ORR-activity in 0.1 M KOH and 0.1 M HClO₄ of one such new Fe/N/C-catalyst prepared by ball-milling and compares it to that of a former Fe/N/C-catalyst prepared by impregnation and to that of 46 wt% Pt/C.At pH 13, the volumetric activities at 0.9 V vs. RHE of the ball-milling Fe/N/C-catalyst, the impregnation Fe/N/C-catalyst and 46 wt% Pt/C are 3.2, 0.3 and 14.8 A cm⁻³, respectively. The ball-milling Fe/N/C-catalyst is promising for alkaline fuel cells.     

新型钴-聚吡咯-碳载Pt燃料电池催化剂的制备与表征

采用脉冲微波辅助化学还原法制备了钴-聚吡咯-碳(Co-PPy-C)载Pt催化剂(Pt/Co-PPy-C),其中Pt的总质量占20%.利用透射电镜(TEM)、光电子射线能谱分析(XPS)和X射线衍射(XRD)研究了催化剂的结构,用循环伏安(CV)、线性扫描伏安(LSV)等方法考察了其电化学活性及氧还原反应(ORR)动力学特性及耐久性.Pt/Co-PPy-C电催化剂的金属颗粒直径约1.8 nm,略小于商用催化剂Pt/C(JM)颗粒尺寸(约2.5 nm);催化剂在载体上分散均匀,粒径分布范围较窄.Pt/Co-PPy-C的电化学活性比表面积(ECSA)(75.1 m2·g-1)高于商用催化剂的ECSA(51.3 m2·g-1).XPS测试表明,自制催化剂表面的Pt主要以零价形式存在.而XRD结果显示,自制催化剂中Pt(111)峰最强,Pt主要为面心立方晶格.Pt/Co-PPy-C具有与Pt/C(JM)相同的半波电位;在0.9 V下,Pt/Co-PPy-C的比活性(1.21 mA·cm-2)高于商用催化剂的比活性(1.04 mA·cm-2),表现出更好的ORR催化活性.动力学性能测试表明催化剂的ORR反应以四电子路线进行.CV测试1000圈后,Pt/Co-PPy-C和Pt/C(JM)的ECSA分别衰减了13.0%和24.0%,可见自制催化剂的耐久性高于商用Pt/C(JM),在质子交换膜燃料电池(PEMFC)领域有一定的应用前景.