Carbon nanotube-graphene supported bimetallic electrocatalyst for direct borohydride hydrogen peroxide fuel cells

Abstract

At present study, carbon nanotube-graphene (CNT-G) supported PtAu, Au and Pt catalysts were prepared by microwave-assisted synthesis method to investigate the direct liquid-fed sodium borohydride/hydrogen peroxide (NaBH4/H2O2) fuel cell performance. Prepared catalysts were characterized by TGA, XRD, TEM, ICP-OES, cyclic voltammetry and rotating disc electrode (RDE) voltammetry. The catalysts were tested in a single NaBH4/H2O2 fuel cell with 25 cm2 active area to evaluate fuel cell performance. The effects of temperature and fuel concentration on fuel cell performance were examined to observed best operating conditions. As a result of direct NaBH4/H2O2 fuel cell experiments, maximum power densities of 139 mW/cm2, 125 mW/cm2 and 113 mW/cm2 were obtained for PtAu/CNT-G, Au/CNT-G and Pt/CNT-G catalysts, respectively. PtAu/CNT-G catalyst showed the enhanced NaBH4/H2O2 fuel cell performance, which was higher than the Pt/CNT-G catalyst and Au/CNT-G catalyst at 50 °C. The enhanced NaBH4/H2O2 performance can be attributed to synergistic effects between Pt and Au particles on CNT-G support providing a better catalyst utilization and interaction. These results suggest that the prepared PtAu/CNT-G catalyst is a promising anode catalyst for NaBH4/H2O2 fuel cell application. © 2020 Elsevier Ltd