Heat-Treated Binary Metalloporphyrins For Methanol Tolerant Cathode In Direct Methanol Fuel Cells

摘要

Direct methanol fuel cells (DMFCs) have received much attention during the last decade [1-4], because methanol is an inexpensive, readily available, and easily stored and transported liquid fuel. The state of art catalyst used for fuel cells is platinum black for the cathode electrode. However, in the DMFCs, the methanol will dissolve in the electrolyte and diffuse from the anode electrode to the cathode electrode, causing a chemical short [1]. In such a condition the cathode catalyzes not only the oxygen reduction but also methanol oxidation simultaneously, which significantly decreases the fuel efficiency and causes loss of power in the fuel cells. One of approaches to solve this problem is to develop a methanol tolerant catalyst, which possesses not only high activity for catalyze oxygen reduction, but also is inactive to methanol oxidation. The Case Western Reserve University reported a methanol tolerant catalyst for catalysis of oxygen reduction using heat-treated' (HT) metalloporphyrins [5], where single metalloporphyrin was heat-treated. In order to improve the catalytic activity and selectivity, we have heat-treated binary metalloporphyrins as catalysts for oxygen reduction.