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Enhancing Electrocatalytic Methanol Oxidation on PtCuNi Core-Shell Alloy Structures in Acid Electrolytes
Qianqian Wu1,2, Xin Huang1, Tingting Wan1,2
1Department of Chemistry and Center for Atomic Engineering of Advanced Materials, School of Materials Science and Engineering, Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Chemistry for In-organic/Organic Hybrid Functionalized Materials, Anhui University, Hefei, Anhui 230601, P. R. China.
Abstract:
A key challenge for direct methanol fuel cells is the sluggish reaction kinetics, poor anti-CO poisoning ability, and insufficient Pt utilization of platinum-based catalysts during methanol oxidation reaction (MOR). Herein, we report a facile approach for PtCuNi electrocatalysts with adjustable inner and surface configurations. By judiciously controlling the nucleation/growth kinetics, PtCuNi core-shell alloy nanoparticles (PtCuNi-CS NPs) fortified with a Cu-rich core and a Pt-rich shell are obtained. Especially, PtCuNi-CS NPs show the highest mass activity and specific activity toward MOR, 5.7 and 5.1 times higher than those of commercial Pt/C. Density functional theory calculations reveal that the PtCuNi-CS NPs with a suitable d-band center possess excellent electro-oxidation activity. Additionally, the doping of Cu and Ni atoms endows the PtCuNi-CS NPs with enhanced OH* adsorption. This work provides an effective design strategy to develop Pt-based trimetallic electrocatalysts as efficient anode materials for fuel cell applications.
