Performance of Pt/C Doped with Ni for Oxygen Electro-Reduction in Alkaline Media

• Published in: Rare metal materials and engineering Vol. 38; no. 1; pp. 1 - 6
• Main Authors: Liu, Shibin, Cheng, Bianping, Chi, Yongqing, Zhang, Zhonglin, Hao, Xiaogang, Li, Yibing, Duan, Donghong
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier Ltd 2009
• Subjects: alkaline media; Carbon; Catalysts; catalytic activity; methanol-tolerance; Nanostructure; Nickel; oxygen electro-reduction; Platinum; Platinum base alloys; Pt-Ni/C; X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy; X-rays; Pt-Ni/C; oxygen electro-reduction; methanol-tolerance; catalytic activity; alkaline media
• ISSN: 1875-5372; 1875-5372
• DOI: 10.1016/S1875-5372(10)60011-2

Carbon-supported Pt-Ni catalyst samples were prepared by the colloidal method and characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopic (XPS) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Potentiodynamic was used to measure the performance of the electro-catalysts for the oxygen electro-reduction. The results indicate that the Pt-Ni alloy particles are distributed homogeneously on the carbon surface, and their particle sizes are 3−5 nm. In the same alkali concentration solution, the activity and methanol-tolerance of Pt nano-particle catalysts are greatly enhanced by doping Ni. For the catalyst, the optimum atom ratio of Pt to Ni is Pt 50Ni 50/C, and its methanol-tolerance is enhanced markedly as compared with Pt/C. The maximal current of the oxygen electro-reduction over Pt 50Ni 50/C reaches 106 mA/mg, and the onset over potential is 50 mV less than that over Pt/C in 0.1 mol/L KOH solution.