Mxene coupled over nitrogen-doped graphene anchoring palladium nanocrystals as an advanced electrocatalyst for the...

Development of good support materials is widely adopted as a valid strategy to fabricate high performance electrocatalysts for the ethanol oxidation reaction (EOR). In this study, the small diameter Ti₃C₂T_x MXene thin nanosheets inserted into three-dimensional nitrogen-doped grapheme (NG) was constructed via a facile hydrothermal method and employed as support materials for anchoring Pd nanocrystals (Pd/Ti₃C₂T_x@NG). The obtained-Pd/Ti₃C₂T_x@NG as EOR electrocatalyst in alkaline media outperforms the commercial Pd/C with better electrocatalytic activity, enhanced long-term stability and high CO tolerance. The Ti₃C₂T_x inserted into NG probably plays a key role for enhancing the properties of the synthesized-catalyst. Inserting Ti₃C₂T_x into NG allows the electrocatalysts to have high porosity, surface hydrophilicity, sufficient number of anchor sites for Pd nanocrystals and modifies its electronic properties, which can promote the electrocatalytic activity and durability. The enhanced EOR performance endows Pd/Ti₃C₂T_x@NG with great application potential in fuel cells as an anode catalyst. Furthermore, the prepared Ti₃C₂T_x@NG is also suitable in various desired applications, especially other oxidation reactions.