Study On The CO-Tolerant Electrocatalysts For Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cells

PtRu/C is now recognized as the most promising CO-tolerant anode electrocatalyst for proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs). However, the modified performance by PtRu/C is still not good enough for the commercialization of PEMFCs, and more active CO-tolerant electrocatalysts are critically needed for the practical application of this technology. In this paper, intensive study, in which the support, the active components and the synthesis strategy were involved, were carried out.Firstly, A series of PtRu nanocomposites supported on H₂O₂-oxidized multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) were synthesized via two chemical reduction methods—the HCHO method and the EG method. The effects of the solvents (water and ethylene glycol) and the surface composition of the MWCNTs on the deposition and the dispersion of the metal particles were investigated through N2 adsorption, TEM, ICP, FTIR, TPD-MS and the measurements of the wetting heats of the MWCNTs in the corresponding solvents. The characterizations suggested that combination of the surface chemistry of the MWCNTs with the polarity of the solvents was the most important factor. Evaluations of the catalysts at the anode of the single PEMFCs were conducted. Structure–performance relationship of the PtRu/MWCNTs catalysts were also studied.Secondly, the PtRuIr/C and PtRuNi/C catalysts were synthesized via a microwave-irradiated polyol plus annealing (MIPA) synthesis strategy. The catalysts were characterized by TEM, XRD, ICP, EDS, CO-stripping voltammetry, single cell...