PtPd porous nanorods with enhanced electrocatalytic activity and durability for oxygen reduction reaction

Through a bromide-induced galvanic replacement reaction between Pd nanowires and K2PtCl6, PtPd porous nanorods are successfully synthesized. With such interesting porous and alloy-structured PtPd nanorods as cathode catalyst for oxygen reduction reaction (ORR), obvious advantages are shown evidently in the electrochemical studies. First, the porous structure shows large electrochemical surface area (ECSA), thus providing an efficient way to reduce the usage of expensive noble metals. Second, due to the large surface area and the synergistic effect of alloy crystalline phase, the resulting porous nanorods exhibit enhanced catalytic activity for ORR compared to the Pd nanowires and commercial Pt/C catalyst. Third, the PtPd porous nanorods exhibit excellent durability in ORR with only 5.88% loss of the initial ECSA after the accelerated durability tests (1000 potential cycles), whereas the Pd nanowires and commercial Pt/C catalyst lose 21.6% and 40.4% of their original ECSA. Such porous nanorods appear to be promising cathode electrocatalysts for fuel cells with enlarged surface area, enhanced catalytic activity and improved durability. (C) 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.