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In the past decade, polymer electrolyte membrane fuels (PEMFCs) have been evaluated for both automotive and stationary applications. One of the main obstacles for large scale commercialization of this technology is related to the sluggish oxygen reduction reaction that takes place on the cathode side of fuel cell. Consequently, ongoing research efforts are focused on the design of cathode materials that could improve the kinetics and durability. Majority of these efforts rely on novel synthetic approaches that provide control over the structure, size, shape and composition of catalytically active materials. This article highlights the most recent advances that have been made to tailor critical parameters of the nanoscale materials in order to achieve more efficient performance of the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Carbon supported platinum and platinum alloys (PtCo, PtNi and PtCu) for PEMFC cathodes were prepared and studied for their oxygen reduction reaction activity and durability under potential cycling at 80°C in 0.5M HClO4. Catalysts with different metal alloy composition and particle size were synthesized by annealing at different temperatures to discriminate between the effects of alloying and particle size on the electrocatalytic activity and durability. XRD was used for the structural characterization of pristine catalysts, while the bulk compositions were analyzed by EDS before and after durability tests. XPS was employed to determine the surface composition of selected alloys after durability tests. The particle size of the fresh and aged catalysts was determined by TEM. Rapid dealloying, particularly from non-noble metal rich alloys, was already witnessed for the alloys potentially cycled at room temperature. Significant particle growth depending on the initial particle size was observed for both Pt and Pt alloys after the durability tests. For the alloys with similar initial particle size, the initial electrocatalytic activity depends on the initial alloy composition. Although a 3-fold enhancement in the ORR activity was observed for the non-noble metal rich alloys after initial dealloying, the specific activity of Pt and Pt alloys becomes quite similar at the end of the durability tests. Annealing of Pt/C and Pt alloys at 950°C results in catalysts with the highest specific and mass activity and with the highest stability. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The behaviour of carbon supported Pt75M25 (M=Co, Ni) electrocatalysts, both as anode and cathode materials, was investigated in direct methanol fuel cells (DMFCs) and compared to that of a pure Pt electrocatalyst on the same carbon support. The physical and morphological characteristics of these electrocatalysts were examined by XRD, XAS and TEM techniques. The performances of Pt75Ni25/C and Pt75Co25/C as cathode materials in DMFC were better than those of the same electrocatalysts as anode materials. When used as cathode materials the cell with Pt75Ni25/C showed a better performance than those with Pt/C or Pt75Co25/C both in terms of mass activity and specific activity. The performances of these electrocatalysts as anode materials in DMFC were similar to that of Pt. The enhanced performance of Pt75Ni25/C as cathode electrocatalyst was ascribed both to the improved activity for oxygen reduction and to the higher methanol tolerance of the alloy. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Platinum is a main catalyst for the electroreduction of oxygen, a reaction of primary importance to the technology of low-temperature fuel cells. Due to the high cost of platinum, there is a need to significantly lower its loadings at interfaces. However, then O2-reduction often proceeds at a less positive potential, and produces higher amounts of undesirable H2O2-intermediate. Hybrid supports, which utilize metal oxides (e.g., CeO2, WO3, Ta2O5, Nb2O5, and ZrO2), stabilize Pt and carbon nanostructures and diminish their corrosion while exhibiting high activity toward the four-electron (most efficient) reduction in oxygen. Porosity of carbon supports facilitates dispersion and stability of Pt nanoparticles. Alternatively, the Pt-based bi- and multi-metallic catalysts, including PtM alloys or M-core/Pt-shell nanostructures, where M stands for certain transition metals (e.g., Au, Co, Cu, Ni, and Fe), can be considered. The catalytic efficiency depends on geometric (decrease in Pt–Pt bond distances) and electronic (increase in d-electron vacancy in Pt) factors, in addition to possible metal–support interactions and interfacial structural changes affecting adsorption and activation of O2-molecules. Despite the stabilization of carbons, doping with heteroatoms, such as sulfur, nitrogen, phosphorus, and boron results in the formation of catalytically active centers. Thus, the useful catalysts are likely to be multi-component and multi-functional. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Developments of high efficient materials for electrocatalyst are significant topics of numerous researches since a few decades. Recent global interests related with energy conversion and storage lead to the expansion of efforts to find cost-effective catalysts that can substitute conventional catalytic materials. Especially, in the field of fuel cell, novel materials for oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) have been noticed to overcome disadvantages of conventional platinum-based catalysts. Various approaching methods have been attempted to achieve low cost and high electrochemical activity comparable with Pt-based catalysts, including reducing Pt consumption by the formation of hybrid materials, Pt-based alloys, and not-Pt metal or carbon based materials. To enhance catalytic performance and stability, numerous methods such as structural modifications and complex formations with other functional materials are proposed, and they are basically based on well-defined and well-ordered catalytic active sites by exquisite control at nanoscale. In this review, we highlight the development of nano-structured catalytic materials for ORR based on recent findings, and discuss about an outlook for the direction of future researches. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]