Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jan 27, 2026

Scalable Syntheses of Graphene Oxide and Reduced Graphene Oxide using Cascade Design Oxidation and Highly Basic Reduction Reactions
Published on: July 3, 2025
Sub-1 nm PtSn ultrathin sheet as an extraordinary electrocatalyst for methanol and ethanol oxidation reactions
Jee-Yee Chen1, Suh-Ciuan Lim1, Chun-Hong Kuo2
1Department of Chemical Engineering, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu 30013, Taiwan.
Abstract:
Sub-1 nm PtSn nanosheets of 0.6-0.9 nm in thickness were synthesized via a solution colloidal method and were applied as electrooxidation catalysts for methanol oxidation reaction (MOR) and ethanol oxidation (EOR) in alkaline and acid environments. Owing to the specific structural and compositional characteristics, the as-prepared PtSn nanosheets exhibits superior activity and durability relative to commercial Pt black and Pt/carbon catalysts. PtSn nanosheets not only exhibit an outstanding mass activity in MOR (871.6 mA mg Pt-1), which is 2.3 times (371 mA mg Pt-1) and 10.1 times (86.1 mA mg Pt-1) higher than that of commercial Pt/carbon and Pt black respectively, but also display an mass activity in EOR (673.6 mA mg Pt-1) with 5.3 times higher commercial Pt black (127.7 mA mg Pt-1) and 2.3 times higher than commercial Pt/C catalyst (295 mA mgPt-1). The reported value is the highest activity in both MOR and EOR examinations compared to the reported PtSn-based electrocatalysts,. The improved performance may be due to the highly-reactive exposed (1 1 1) facet sites resulted from its sub-1 nm 2D sheet like morphology.
Related Concept Videos
Oxidation-Reduction Reactions
SN1 Reaction: Stereochemistry
In the first step of an SN1 reaction, the bond between the electrophilic carbon and the leaving group ionizes to generate the carbocation intermediate. The second step of the mechanism is the nucleophilic attack.
In the formed carbocation, the positively charged carbon is sp2 hybridized with a trigonal planar geometry. As all the three substituents lie on the same plane, a plane of symmetry for the...
SN1 Reaction: Kinetics
However, Sir Christopher Ingold and Edward D. Hughes, who studied the kinetics of various nucleophilic substitution reactions, noticed that a tertiary alkyl halide does undergo a nucleophilic substitution reaction in the presence of a weak nucleophile. While studying the substitution...
SN1 Reaction: Mechanism
Firstly, the haloalkane ionizes to generate a carbocation intermediate and a halide ion. This heterolytic cleavage is highly endothermic with large activation energy. The ionization of the substrate, facilitated by a...
Phase I Oxidative Reactions: Overview
Oxidation Numbers

