The electrocatalytic behavior of electrodeposited Ni–Mo–P alloy films towards ethanol electrooxidation

Ternary Ni–Mo–P thin films have been electrodeposited from citrate‐based electrolyte onto graphite substrates for application as anode catalysts for ethanol electrooxidation. The operating deposition parameters were optimized to produce Ni–Mo–P alloy films of outstanding catalytic activity. The phase structure of the deposits was evaluated employing X‐ray diffraction technique. Morphology and chemical composition of the deposited alloy films were studied using scanning electron microscopy and energy‐dispersive X‐ray analysis, respectively. The results demonstrated that the rate of Ni–Mo–P deposition increases with increasing the ammonium molybdate concentration in the plating electrolyte up to 10 g l^?1. Also, the amount of Mo in the deposits increases with increasing the ammonium molybdate concentration up to 7.5 g l^?1, and the maximum Mo content in the film was 9.1 at.%. The catalytic activity of Ni–Mo–P/C alloy films has been evaluated towards electrooxidation of ethanol in 1.0 M NaOH solution by using cyclic voltammetry and chronoamperometry. The catalytic performance of the prepared anodes as a function of the amount of Mo was studied. The results showed an increase in the oxidation peak current density of ethanol with increasing the Mo at.% in the deposited alloy films. Additionally, Ni–Mo–P/C electrodes displayed significantly improved catalytic activity and stability towards electrooxidation of ethanol compared with that of Ni–P/C electrode. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Phase Behavior of Bicontinuous and Water/Diesel Fuel Microemulsions Using Nonionic Surfactants Combined with Hydrophilic Alcohol Ethoxylates

Bicontinuous and water-in-diesel microemulsions were formulated using single nonionic alkyl poly glycol ethers combined with hydrophilic alcohol ethoxylates. The phase behavior at temperatures ranging from 0°C to 50°C was investigated. Visual inspection as well as cross-polarizers were used to detect anisotropy. The fish phase diagrams were determined. The presence of the hydrophilic alcohol ethoxylates was necessary to initiate both types of microemulsions. Increasing the hydrophobic chain length of the surfactant led to a wider range of temperature stability at lower surfactant concentration. Meanwhile, increasing the ethylene oxide units in the headgroup by two units led to a phase diagram that is dominated by lyotropic liquid crystal. The formulated water in diesel microemulsions were tested experimentally in a 4-cylinder diesel engine. From this it is observed that the emissions of NO_x, soot, and CO₂ were reduced substantially compared to neat diesel, while for the CO the reduction occurs just at low load.      

Polymers-Copolymer as Flow Improvers for Fuel Oils and Their Electrical Conductivity

In order to find efficient cold flow improvers for fuel oil, polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA), polystyrene (PS), and a copolymer [styrene (S)–methylmethacrylate (MMA) were prepared. The structure of these polymers and the copolymer were characterized by infrared spectral analysis and their molecular weights were measured. These polymers-copolymer were used as additives for fuel oils in order to lower their pour point. Accordingly, they were evaluated as flow improvers for fuel oil. The results indicated that PMMA possesses less performance as pour point depressant. While the addition of PS and the copolymer (S–MMA) yield excellent pour point depressants for fuel oil. Upon studying the prepared additives and their properties, it was found that the electrical properties of the copolymer were changed due to the presence of polar ion in MMA effect on the electrical properties. The highest electrical conductivity was found when styrene:MMA molar ratio was 1:1.     

Dispersed Structure of Ethanol‐Gasoline Fuel According to Dynamic Light Scattering Method

The dispersed structures of mixtures of five different gasolines with anhydrous ethanol were investigated by the dynamic light scattering (DLS) method. The aim of the work was to find whether these blends are colloid systems. Influence of different parameters was investigated to verify the results of this research. Ethanol‐gasoline blends were found to be colloid systems with the drop size of 20–150 nm.     

氢分离与CO催化甲烷化双功能型钯复合膜

以多孔Al₂O₃陶瓷为基体材料, 采用浸渍法担载NiO后用2B铅笔修饰NiO/Al₂O₃表面, 通过化学镀法沉积约5 μm厚的金属钯, 还原后成功制得Pd/Pencil/Ni/Al₂O₃膜. 为进行对比, 还制备了未担载镍的Pd/Pencil/Al₂O₃膜. 膜的表面和断面形貌分别采用扫描电镜和金相显微镜观测, 膜的透氢动力学通过H₂/N₂单气体法测试, 并以成分为H₂ 77.8%, CO 5.2%, CO₂ 13.5%和CH₄ 3.5%的原料氢测定了膜的氢分离效果. 结果表明, 未载镍的Pd/Pencil/Al₂O₃膜只具有氢分离作用, 而Pd/Pencil/Ni/Al₂O₃膜还可以有效地将钯膜泄漏的CO和CO₂转化为甲烷, 因而成为双功能型钯膜. 这种双功能膜尤其适用于面向质子交换膜燃料电池(PEMFC)的氢气分离, 既有效解决了PEMFC对氢燃料中CO格外敏感的难题, 又提高了对钯膜缺陷的容忍度, 因而延长了钯膜的使用寿命.     

Designed Synthesis of Well‐Defined Pd@Pt Core–Shell Nanoparticles with Controlled Shell Thickness as Efficient Oxygen Reduction Electrocatalysts

Improving the electrocatalytic activity and durability of Pt‐based catalysts with low Pt content toward the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) is one of the main challenges in advancing the performance of polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs). Herein, a designed synthesis of well‐defined Pd@Pt core–shell nanoparticles (NPs) with a controlled Pt shell thickness of 0.4–1.2 nm by a facile wet chemical method and their electrocatalytic performances for ORR as a function of shell thickness are reported. Pd@Pt NPs with predetermined structural parameters were prepared by in situ heteroepitaxial growth of Pt on as‐synthesized 6 nm Pd NPs without any sacrificial layers and intermediate workup processes, and thus the synthetic procedure for the production of Pd@Pt NPs with well‐defined sizes and shell thicknesses is greatly simplified. The Pt shell thickness could be precisely controlled by adjusting the molar ratio of Pt to Pd. The ORR performance of the Pd@Pt NPs strongly depended on the thickness of their Pt shells. The Pd@Pt NPs with 0.94 nm Pt shells exhibited enhanced specific activity and higher durability compared to other Pd@Pt NPs and commercial Pt/C catalysts. Testing Pd@Pt NPs with 0.94 nm Pt shells in a membrane electrode assembly revealed a single‐cell performance comparable with that of the Pt/C catalyst despite their lower Pt content, that is the present NP catalysts can facilitate low‐cost and high‐efficient applications of PEMFCs.     

Rapid,General Synthesis of PdPt Bimetallic Alloy Nanosponges and Their Enhanced Catalytic Performance for Ethanol/Methanol Electrooxidation in an Alkaline Medium

We have demonstrated a rapid and general strategy to synthesize novel three‐dimensional PdPt bimetallic alloy nanosponges in the absence of a capping agent. Significantly, the as‐prepared PdPt bimetallic alloy nanosponges exhibited greatly enhanced activity and stability towards ethanol/methanol electrooxidation in an alkaline medium, which demonstrates the potential of applying these PdPt bimetallic alloy nanosponges as effective electrocatalysts for direct alcohol fuel cells. In addition, this simple method has also been applied for the synthesis of AuPt, AuPd bimetallic, and AuPtPd trimetallic alloy nanosponges. The as‐synthesized three‐dimensional bimetallic/trimetallic alloy nanosponges, because of their convenient preparation, well‐defined sponge‐like network, large‐scale production, and high electrocatalytic performance for ethanol/methanol electrooxidation, may find promising potential applications in various fields, such as formic acid oxidation or oxygen reduction reactions, electrochemical sensors, and hydrogen‐gas sensors.     

Facile Self‐Assembly Synthesis of PdPt Bimetallic Nanotubes with Good Performance for Ethanol Oxidation in an Alkaline Medium

PdPt bimetallic nanotubes were prepared by the self‐assembly of Pt and Pd on Te nanowires at room temperature. The morphologies of the as‐prepared PdPt nanotubes were investigated by scanning electron microscopy and transmission electron microscopy, and the results display a large amount of PdPt bimetallic nanotubes with a diameter of 10–20 nm and a length of several micrometers. The composition and structure of the nanotubes were characterized by X‐ray diffraction, high‐resolution transmission electron microscopy, scanning transmission electron microscopy, and energy spectrum analysis, and the results display uniform compositional distributions of both elements (Pd and Pt). The mechanism of the formation of the nanotube structure was supposed. The electrocatalytic performance of PdPt nanotubes were studied by cyclic voltammetry and chronoamperometry. Electrochemical results show that the as‐prepared PdPt nanotube catalysts have not only high activity but also good stability for ethanol oxidation in alkaline medium.     

基于自交联杂萘联苯聚芳醚阴离子交换膜制备及其物理化学性质

以氯甲基杂环聚醚酮(CMPPEK)为原料,加入三乙胺进行铵化,并分别加入二乙烯三胺(DETA)和二乙胺(DEA),生成的仲胺基(或叔胺基)与邻近分子链氯甲基团进行自交联.经过制膜和离子交换反应,制备了DETA自交联杂萘联苯聚芳醚阴离子交换膜(DETA-QPPEK-OH)和DEA自交联杂萘联苯聚芳醚阴离子交换膜(DEA-QPPEK-OH).采用傅里叶变换红外(FTIR)光谱对制备自交联膜的化学结构进行表征.研究了DETA-QPPEK-OH和DEA-QPPEK-OH膜的理化性质,结果表明前者具有较低吸水率和更低溶胀度.通过研究DETAQPPEK-OH和DEA-QPPEK-OH膜的离子传导率随温度的变化规律,结果表明在80°C时其离子传导率分别达到0.060和0.028 S cm-1,表明本文制备的自交联膜具有较高离子传导率.此外还通过热重分析(TGA)对两类自交联膜的热稳定性进行了研究.     

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.