Effects of ozone treatment of carbon support on Pt-Ru/C catalysts performance for direct methanol fuel cell

This research is aimed to increase the activity and utilization of Pt-Ru alloy catalysts and thus to lower the catalyst loading in anodes for methanol electrooxidation. The Pt-Ru/C catalysts were prepared by chemical reduction. The support of Vulcan XC-72 carbon black was pretreated by ozone at different temperatures for different times. The specific surface area of the samples was evaluated by the standard BET method. The surface concentrations of oxygen were determined by XPS. The results showed that the surface concentrations of oxygen on the carbon were first decreased and then increased with pretreating times, and the specific surface area of the carbon was decreased with pretreating times at the same temperature. The specific surface area was increased with increasing temperature, and the surface concentration of oxygen was first decreased and then increased with increasing temperature for the same pretreating time. Pt-Ru/C catalysts supported by untreated and 03 treated carbon black were characterized and tested for methanol electrooxidation. X-ray diffraction (XRD) was used to characterize the influence of carbon treated with ozone on Pt-Ru/C catalysts. It was found that the catalysts were composed only of f.c.c. Pt-Ru alloy particles without metallic Ru or Ru oxide. Cyclic voltammetry (CV) and Tafel curves were used for methanol electrooxidation on Pt-Ru/C catalysts in a solution of 0.5 mol/L CH3OH and 0.5 mol/L H2SO4, showing that the catalytic activity of Pt-Ru/C catalysts supported by ozone treated carbon was higher than that by the untreated one. The ozone treatment time and temperature, which affect the performance of Pt-Ru/C catalysts, were discussed. Electrochemical measurements showed that the catalysts supported by the carbon after ozone treatment for 6 min at 140 degrees C had the best performance. (C) 2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.