Cyanogel auto-reduction induced synthesis of PdCo nanocubes on carbon nanobowls: a highly active electrocatalyst for ethanol electrooxidation

Guang-Rui Xu; Ya-Nan Zhai; Fu-Min Li; Guang-Tao Zhao; Shu-Ni Li; Hong-Chang Yao; Jia-Xing Jiang; Yu Chen

doi:10.1039/c9nr04767k

Cyanogel auto-reduction induced synthesis of PdCo nanocubes on carbon nanobowls: a highly active electrocatalyst for ethanol electrooxidation

Nanoscale. 2019 Jul 28;11(28):13477-13483. doi: 10.1039/c9nr04767k. Epub 2019 Jul 9.

Authors

Guang-Rui Xu¹, Ya-Nan Zhai², Fu-Min Li², Guang-Tao Zhao¹, Shu-Ni Li², Hong-Chang Yao³, Jia-Xing Jiang¹, Yu Chen¹

Affiliations

¹ Key Laboratory of Macromolecular Science of Shaanxi Province, Key Laboratory of Applied Surface and Colloid Chemistry (Ministry of Education), Shaanxi Key Laboratory for Advanced Energy Devices, School of Materials Science and Engineering, Shaanxi Normal University, Xi'an 710062, PR China. ndchenyu@gmail.com zhaoguangtao@snnu.edu.cn.
² School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Shaanxi Normal University, Xi'an 710062, PR China.
³ College of Chemistry and Molecular Engineering, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou 450001, PR China.

PMID: 31287477
DOI: 10.1039/c9nr04767k

Abstract

Direct ethanol fuel cells (DEFCs) with a high conversion efficiency are quite promising candidates for energy conversion devices. Herein, we have successfully synthesized PdCo alloy nanocubes supported on carbon nanobowl (denoted as Pd₂Co₁/CNB) nanohybrids by using the cyanogel auto-reduction method at high temperature. The morphology, composition and structure of Pd₂Co₁/CNB nanohybrids are characterized in detail, revealing that PdCo nanocubes have a high alloying degree and special {110} facets. In cyclic voltammetry measurements, Pd₂Co₁/CNB nanohybrids show a mass activity of 1089.0 A g _Pd^-1 and a specific activity of 40.03 mA cm^-2 for ethanol electrooxidation at peak potential, which are much higher than that of the commercial Pd/C electrocatalyst (278.2 A g_Pd^-1 and 8.22 mA cm^-2). Additionally, chronoamperometry measurements show that Pd₂Co₁/CNB nanohybrids have excellent durability for ethanol electrooxidation. A high alloying degree, special {110} facets and the CNB supporting material contribute to the high activity and durability of Pd₂Co₁/CNB nanohybrids, making them a highly promising Pt-alternative electrocatalyst for ethanol electrooxidation in DEFCs.