Electrochemical reduction of oxygen on double-walled carbon nanotube modified glassy carbon electrodes in acid and alkaline solutions

Abstract

The oxygen reduction reaction has been investigated on double-walled carbon nanotube (DWCNT) modified glassy carbon (GC) electrodes in acid and alkaline media using the rotating disk electrode (RDE) method. The surface morphology and composition of DWCNT samples was examined by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). Aqueous suspensions of DWCNTs were prepared using Nafion and non-ionic surfactant Triton X-100 as dispersing agents. The RDE results indicated that the DWCNT modified GC electrodes are active catalysts for oxygen reduction in alkaline solution. In acid media DWCNT/GC electrodes possess poor electrocatalytic properties for O2 reduction which indicates lack of metal catalyst impurities in the DWCNT material studied. The oxygen reduction behaviour of DWCNTs was similar to that of multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) observed in our previous studies. Keywords: Oxygen reduction, Electrocatalysis, Double-walled carbon nanotubes, DWCNTs