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Unconventional-Phase Pd20Te7 Octahedra With High-Index Facets for Oxygen Reduction
Pinlin Wang1, Qing Gong1, Fei Xue1
1State Key Laboratory of Physical Chemistry of Solid Surfaces, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Xiamen University, Xiamen, China.
Researchers synthesized novel palladium telluride nano-octahedra with high-index facets for improved alkaline oxygen reduction. These advanced nanomaterials show enhanced electrocatalytic activity and stability in fuel cells.
Area of Science:
- Materials Science
- Nanotechnology
- Electrochemistry
Background:
- Synthesizing nanomaterials with high-index facets is challenging due to high surface energy.
- Unconventional-phase palladium (Pd)-based nanocrystals with high-index facets are underexplored.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop a method for synthesizing unconventional-phase Pd20Te7 nano-octahedra (NOs) with high-index facets.
- To evaluate the electrocatalytic performance of these NOs for alkaline oxygen reduction reaction (ORR).
Main Methods:
- Ethylene glycol was used as a morphology and size controller.
- The synthesis produced Pd20Te7 NOs enclosed by {300}, {290}, and {223} high-index facets.
- Electrocatalytic activity was measured for ORR in alkaline media and in H2-O2 fuel cells.
Main Results:
- Pd20Te7 NOs exhibited excellent electrocatalytic activity for alkaline ORR, with a mass activity 1.89-fold higher than Pd20Te7 nanoparticles (NPs).
- The membrane electrode assembly (MEA) using Pd20Te7 NOs achieved a peak power density of 0.59 W cm-2 and mass activity of 14.33 A mgPGM-1 in H2-O2 fuel cells, significantly outperforming NPs.
- The NOs-based MEA demonstrated stable operation for 1440 min at 0.4 A cm-2 with a low Pd loading.
Conclusions:
- The study successfully synthesized high-index faceted Pd20Te7 NOs using ethylene glycol.
- These NOs show superior electrocatalytic performance for ORR and in fuel cells compared to NPs.
- This work provides a new strategy for designing high-index faceted nanocrystals for efficient catalysis.
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