Ethylene Glycol Electrooxidation Based on Pentangle‐Like PtCu Nanocatalysts

The research of active and stable electrocatalysts toward liquid‐fuel oxidation reaction is of great significance for the large‐scale commercialization of fuel cells. Although extensive efforts have been devoted to pursuing high‐performance nanocatalysts for fuel cells, both the high cost and sluggish reaction kinetics have been two major drawbacks that limited its commercial development. In this regard, we demonstrated a facile solvothermal method for the syntheses of an advanced class of PtCu nanocatalysts with a unique pentangle‐like shape. By combining the merits of a highly active surface area as well as the synergistic and electronic effects, the as‐prepared pentangle‐like Pt₃Cu nanocatalysts showed superior electrocatalytic activity towards ethylene glycol oxidation with a mass and specific activities of 5162.6 mA mg^?1 and 9.7 mA cm^?2, approximately 5.0 and 5.1 times higher than the commercial Pt/C, respectively. More significantly, the Pt₃Cu pentangle also showed excellent long‐term stability with less activity decay and negligible changes in structure after 500 cycles, indicating another class of anode catalysts for fuel cells and beyond.