Electrochemical synthesis of Pd nanoparticles on functional MWNT surfaces

Palladium (Pd) nanoparticles were electrocrystallized on 4-aminobenzene monolayer-grafted multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWNTs) by a potential-step method. The structure and nature of the resulting Pd/MWNT composite were characterized by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD), the results show that the electrochemically synthesized Pd nanopartices were homogeneously dispersed and well separated form one another on the modified MANT surfaces, the mean diameter of Pd nanoparticles is about 1-3 nm. The electrocatalytic properties of the Pd/MWNT electrode for oxidation of hydrazine have been investigated by cyclic voltammetry (CV), and excellent electrocatalytic activity can be observed. This may be attributed to the small particle size, high dispersion of palladium particles. The results imply that the Pd/MWNT composites have good potential application in fuel cell. (C) 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.