Activity and stability studies of platinized multi-walled carbon nanotubes as fuel cell electrocatalysts

作者：Stamatin Serban N^*; Borghei Maryam; Dhiman Rajnish; Andersen Shuang Ma; Ruiz Virginia; Kauppinen Esko; Skou Eivind M

来源：Applied Catalysis B: Environmental , 2015, 162: 289-299.

DOI：10.1016/j.apcatb.2014.07.005

• Oxygen reduction reaction
• Platinum nanoparticles
• Carbon nanotubes
• Electrochemical stability

A non-covalent functionalization for multi-walled carbon nanotubes has been used as an alternative to the damaging acid treatment. Platinum nanoparticies with similar particle size distribution have been deposited on the surface modified multi-walled carbon nanotubes. The interaction between platinum nanoparticles and multi-walled carbon nanotubes functionalized with 1-pyrenecarboxylic acid is studied and its electrochemical stability investigated. This study reveals the existence of a platinum-support interaction and leads to three main conclusions. First, the addition of 1-pyrenecarboxylic acid is improving the dispersion of platinum nanoparticles, leading to an improved electrochemical activity towards oxygen reduction reaction. Second, the investigations regarding the electrochemical stability showed that the platinum-support interaction plays an important role in improving the long-term stability by as much as 20%. Third, post-mortem microscopy analysis showed a surprising effect. During the electrochemical stability investigations concerned with carbon corrosion it was found that the multi-walled carbon nanotubes were undergoing severe structural change, transforming finally into carbon spheres.

• 出版日期2015-1