Activity Quantification of Fuel Cell Catalysts via Sequential Poisoning by Multiple Reaction Inhibitors

The development of non-Pt or carbon-based catalysts for anion exchange membrane fuel cells (AEMFCs) requires identification of the active sites of the catalyst. Since not only metals but also carbon materials exhibit oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) activity in alkaline conditions, the contribution of carbon-based materials to ORR performance should also be thoroughly analyzed. However, the conventional CN^- poisoning experiments, which are mainly used to explain the main active site of M-N-C catalysts, are limited to only qualitative discussions, having the potential to make fundamental errors. Here, we report a modified electrochemical analysis to quantitatively investigate the contribution of the metal and carbon active sites to ORR currents at a fixed potential by sequentially performing chronoamperometry with two reaction inhibitors, CN^- and benzyl trimethylammonium (BTMA⁺). As a result, we discover how to quantify the individual contributions of two active sites (Pt nanoparticles and carbon support) of carbon-supported Pt (Pt/C) nanoparticles as a model catalyst. This study is expected to provide important clues for the active site analysis of carbon-supported non-Pt catalysts, such as M-N-C catalysts composed of heterogeneous elements.