Methanol Electrooxidation on PtM/C (M = Ni, Co) and Pt/(SnO2/C) Catalysts

Abstract

We investigate the activity of bimetallic PtM/C (M = Ni, Co) catalysts with different microstructures and platinum catalysts supported on a nanostructured composite carrier (SnO2/C) in the electrooxidation reaction of methanol. For bimetallic catalysts, the effect of heat treatment on their structural and functional characteristics is also studied. Among bimetallic catalysts in the as-obtained state, the Pt@Ni/C catalyst prepared by the subsequent reduction of nickel and platinum from solutions of their compounds exhibited the highest activity in the methanol electrooxidation, significantly exceeding that for the commercial Pt/C product. Heat treatment at 350°C increased the activity of the PtCo/C catalyst containing nanoparticles of a solid solution but adversely affected the tolerance of all the studied bimetallic catalysts to the intermediate products of methanol oxidation. All the studied Pt/(SnO2/C) materials demonstrated a higher mass activity in the electrooxidation reaction of methanol compared to commercial Pt/C and bimetallic systems, while the catalyst with a weight fraction of platinum of 12% and a molar ratio of Pt: SnO2 of 1: 1.1 showed the highest mass activity.