Electrooxidation of glycerol on monometallic and bimetallic catalysts-containing porous carbon cloth electrodes in an alkaline medium

Abstract

The electrooxidation of glycerol was studied on monometallic (Pt/C, Co/C, Ni/C, Cu/C) and bimetallic catalysts (PtCo/C, PtNi/C, PtCu/C) - containing porous carbon cloth electrodes in an alkaline medium to gain insight about the potentials of electrodes for simultaneous hydrogen and chemical production. Physical and chemical properties of catalysts were characterized by using X-ray diffraction, X-ray photoemission spectroscopy, and transmission electron microscopy while electrochemical characteristics of electrodes were investigated by cyclic voltammetry, choronoamperometry, and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. Bimetallic catalysts-containing electrodes showed higher glycerol electrooxidation activities and stabilities compared to monometallic catalysts-containing electrodes. The highest activity was observed on the PtCu/C-containing electrode due to its higher electrochemical active surface area and low kinetic and mass transfer resistance. It was also found that the presence of porous carbon cloth had a considerable effect on the glycerol electrooxidation activity.