TiO_2 Nanotubes Promoted PT-NI/C Catalyst with Low PT Content as Anode Catalyst for Direct Ethanol Fuel Cells

摘要

TiO_2 nanotubes (TiO_2NTs) are added into a low-platinum content Pt-Ni/C catalyst to improve its catalytic activity for the ethanol oxidation reaction (EOR). The promotion effect of TiO_2NTs on Pt-Ni/C catalyst is studied. The results obtained by cyclic voltmmetry (CV) and chronoamperometry indicate that TiO_2NTs can greatly enhance the catalytic activity of the Pt-Ni/C catalyst. Compared with a commercial Pt-Ru/C catalyst, the Pt-Ni-TiO_2NT/C catalyst has a larger electrochemical active surface (EAS) and shows lower onset potential for the EOR. The elemental composition and electronic structure of the catalyst are characterized by EDX, ICP-OES, XRD and XPS. Morphological properties of these catalysts are characterized by HRTEM. It can be concluded that the presence of TiO_2 NTs can retain more of the Pt metallic species and provide more hydroxides groups, which results in a facile removal of reaction intermediates and lower onset oxidation potentials.