Journal of Power Sources, Vol.282, 452-461, 2015
Facile synthesis of Pt-Pd@Silicon nanostructure as an advanced electrocatalyst for direct methanol fuel cells
In this work, platinum-palladium (Pt-Pd) is assembled in-situ on the surface of porous silicon flour (PSiF) through chemical reduction of PtCl62-/PdCl42- and oxidation of the precursor solution SiF64-. The components and the morphological properties of the Pt-Pd on PSiF is investigated by means of transmission electron microscopy, energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and X-ray diffraction techniques. In the next stage, screen printed graphene electrode (SPGE) is prepared by electro-reduction of exfoliated graphene oxide at the surface of a screen printed carbon electrode (SPCE), which is subsequently characterized by FT-IR, Raman spectroscopy, FE-SEM, and electrochemical methods. Finally, a combination of Pt-Pd@PSi nanostructure and SPGE is used for the electro-oxidation of methanol in direct methanol fuel cell. The electrochemical results demonstrate that the Pt-Pd@PSiF -SPGE exhibits an excellent electrocatalytic activity for methanol oxidation. In addition, the electron transfer kinetic of methanol oxidation on Pt-Pd@PSiF-SPGE is investigated by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. The results showed that the surface of Pt-Pd@PSiF-SPGE is not affected (poisoned) by intermediate products such as CO. (C) 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
Keywords:Screen printed graphene electrode;Pt-Pd bimetallic;Porous silicon flour;Methanol oxidation reaction