The aim of this study was to clarify the effectiveness and challenges of applying mesoporous tin oxide (SnO2)-based supports for Pt catalysts in the cathodes of polymer electrolyte fuel cells (PEFCs) to simultaneously achieve high performance and high durability. Recently, the focus of PEFC application in automobiles has shifted to heavy-duty vehicles (HDVs), which require high durability, high energy-conversion efficiency, and high power density. It has been reported that employing mesoporous carbon supports improves the initial performance by mitigating catalyst poisoning caused by sulfonic acid groups of the ionomer as well as by reducing the oxygen transport resistance through the Pt/ionomer interface. However, carbon materials in the cathode can degrade oxidatively during long-term operation, and more stable materials are desired. In this study, we synthesized connected mesoporous Sb-doped tin oxides (CMSbTOs) with controlled mesopore sizes in the range of 4-11 nm and tested their performance and durability as cathode catalyst supports. The CMSbTO supports exhibited higher fuel cell performance at a pore size of 7.3 nm than the solid-core SnO2-based, solid-core carbon, and mesoporous carbon supports under dry conditions, which can be attributed to the mitigation of the formation of the Pt/ionomer interface and the better proton conductivity within the mesopores even at the low-humidity conditions. In addition, the CMSbTO supports exhibited high durability under oxidative conditions. These results demonstrate the promising applicability of mesoporous tin oxide supports in PEFCs for HDVs. The remaining challenges, including the requirements for improving performance under wet conditions and stability under reductive conditions, are also discussed.
Keywords: Pt/ionomer interface; catalyst support; mass transport; mesoporous tin oxide; oxygen reduction reaction; polymer electrolyte fuel cells.