Low-Temperature Synthesized Pt3Fe Alloy Nanoparticles on Etched Carbon Nanotubes Catalyst Support Using Oxygen-Deficient Fe2O3 as a Catalytic Center for PEMFC Applications

Proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs) have emerged as one of the most promising next-generation renewable energy technologies for the future. However, for the commercialization of PEMFC, low loading of Pt-based catalysts with suitable catalyst support is the utmost necessity. Pt alloys are useful for achieving good electrochemical activity with low Pt loading. But, high-temperature synthesis of these alloys leads to lower cyclic stability. Herein, we have synthesized Pt3Fe alloy on etched carbon nanotubes at low-temperature using oxygen-deficient Fe2O3-ECNT. This low-temperature synthesized Pt3Fe-ECNT shows excellent electrocatalytic activity due to the change in the d-band center and lattice contraction in the bimetallic alloy system. Lower hydrogen binding energy, increases in the electrochemical surface area (84 +/- 3 m2 g-1) and mass activity (0.45 A mgPt-1) of the Pt3Fe-ECNT catalyst, compared to commercial Pt/C (0.36 A mgPt-1), confirms it to be a better catalyst for PEMFC. Furthermore, single-cell studies also show promising performance under real PEMFC conditions. A maximum power density of 530 mW cm-2 at 60 degrees C is achieved with Pt loading far lower than the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) 2020 target (0.125 mgPt cm-2) with an excellent Pt catalyst utilization and fast kinetics. After an accelerated durability test of 10 000 cycles, stability studies substantiate it as a suitable catalyst for PEMFC applications.

Automated summary

Researchers successfully synthesized Pt3Fe alloy using oxygen-deficient Fe2O3-ECNT for etched carbon nanotubes at low-temperature, and the resulting Pt3Fe-ECNT catalyst showed excellent electrocatalytic activity, better than commercial Pt/C catalyst.