Pt based anode catalysts for direct ethanol fuel cells

In the present work several Pt-based anode catalysts supported on carbon XC-72R were prepared with a novel method and characterized by means of XRD, TEM and XPS analysis. It was found that all these catalysts are consisted of uniform nanosized particles with sharp distribution and Pt lattice parameter decreases with the addition of Ru or Pd and increases with the addition of Sn or W. Cyclic voltammetry (CV) measurements and single direct ethanol fuel cell (DEFC) tests jointly showed that the presence of Sn, Ru and W enhances the activity of Pt towards ethanol electro-oxidation in the following order: Pt1Sn1/C > Pt1Ru1/C > Pt1W1/C > Pt1Pd1/C > Pt/C. Moreover, Pt1Ru1/C further modified by W and Mo showed improved ethanol electro-oxidation activity, but its DEFC performance was found to be inferior to that measured for Pt1Sn1/C. Under this respect, several PtSn/C catalysts with different Pt/Sn atomic ratio were also identically prepared and characterized and their direct ethanol fuel cell performances were evaluated. It was found that the single direct ethanol fuel cell having Pt1Sn1/C or Pt3Sn2/C or Pt2Sn1/C as anode catalyst showed better performances than those with Pt3Sn1/C or Pt4Sn1/C. It was also found that the latter two cells exhibited higher performances than the single cell using Pt1Ru1/C, which is exclusively used in PEMFC as anode catalyst for both methanol electro-oxidation and CO-tolerance. This distinct difference in DEFC performance between the catalysts examined here would be attributed to the so-called bifunctional mechanism and to the electronic interaction between Pt and additives. It is thought that an amount of -OHads, an amount of surface Pt active sites and the conductivity effect of PtSn/C catalysts would determine the activity of PtSn/C with different Pt/Sn ratios. At lower temperature values or at low current density regions where the electro-oxidation of ethanol is considered not so fast and its chemisorption is not the rate-determining step, the Pt3Sn2/C seems to be more suitable for the direct ethanol fuel cell. At 75 degreesC, the single ethanol fuel cell with Pt3Sn2/C as anode catalyst showed a comparable performance to that with Pt2Sn1/C, but at higher temperature of 90 degreesC, the latter presented much better performance. It is thought from a practical point of view that Pt2Sn1/C, supplying sufficient -OHads and having adequate active Pt sites and acceptable ohmic effect, could be the appropriate anode catalyst for DEFC. (C) 2003 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Novel synthesis of highly active Pt/C cathode electrocatalyst for direct methanol fuel cell

A 40 wt% Pt/C cathode electrocatalyst with controlled Pt particle size of similar to 2.9 nm showing better performance than commercial catalyst for direct methanol fuel cell was prepared by a polyol process with water but without using stabilizing agent.

Direct synthesis of Al-SBA-15 mesoporous materials via hydrolysis-controlled approach

Aluminum-substituted mesoporous SBA-15 (Al-SBA-15) materials were directly synthesized by a hydrolysis-controlled approach in which the hydrolysis of the silicon precursor (tetraethyl orthosilicate, TEOS) is accelerated by fluoride or by using tetramethyl orthosilicate (TMOS) as silicon precursor rather than TEOS. These materials were characterized by powder X-ray diffraction (XRD), N-2 sorption isotherms, TEM, Al-27 MAS NMR, IR spectra of pyridine adsorption, and NH3-TPD. It is found that the matched hydrolysis and condensation rates of silicon and aluminum precursors are important factors to achieve highly ordered mesoporous materials. Al-27 MAS NMR spectra of Al-SBA-15 show that all aluminum species were incorporated into the silica framework for the samples prepared with the addition of fluoride. A two-step approach (sol-gel reaction at low pH followed by crystallization at high pH) was also employed for the synthesis of Al-SBA-15. Studies show that the two-step approach could efficiently avoid the leaching of aluminum from the framework of the material. The calcined Al-SBA-15 materials show highly ordered hexagonal mesostructure and have both Bronsted and Lewis acid sites with medium acidity.

Multi-walled carbon nanotubes supported Pt-Fe cathodic catalyst for direct methanol fuel cell

Multi-walled carbon nanotubes supported Pt-Fe cathodic catalyst shows higher specific activity towards oxygen reduction reaction as compared to Pt/MWNTs when employed as cathodic catalyst in direct methanol fuel cell.

Direct conversion of methane under nonoxidative conditions

Direct conversion of methane into hydrogen and valuable chemicals under nonoxidative conditions is a process severely limited thermodynamically. However, the movement from the present era of fossil fuels into the coming hydrogen energy age makes it an interesting and important approach compared with the direct conversion of methane under the aid of oxidants. This paper gives a brief overview of the direct conversion of CH4 under nonoxidative conditions. At the same time, our understanding of methane dehydroaromatization over Mo/HZSM-5 catalysts for the simultaneous formation of hydrogen and light aromatics is discussed in general, while the bifunctionality of Mo/HZSM-5 catalysts and the role of carbonaceous deposits formed during the reaction are reviewed in more detail. A perspective of the topic from both academic points of view and potential industrial applications is also presented. (C) 2003 Elsevier Science (USA). All rights reserved.