Facile In Situ Synthesis of Amphiphilic Carbon-Supported Pt: Innovative Catalyst Preparation for Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cells

Carbon materials are widely utilized to support platinum (Pt) catalysts for proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs). However, carbon surfaces generally promote hydrophobicity, which limits the transport of active species and lowers the efficiency of PEMFCs. Consequently, functional groups should be introduced on the carbon surface to create transport channels. One promising strategy is to modify the amphiphilic functional group on a carbon surface. In this study, the liquid-phase plasma process was applied to realizing a facile one-step synthesis of amphiphilic functional group-modified carbon-supported platinum (Am@C/Pt) to serve as a catalyst. This novel synthesis strategy provides several advantages over conventional processes, such as reducing the number of steps and minimizing the chemical and energy consumptions. Experimental results revealed that the PEMFCs' efficiency with Am@C/Pt is mainly controlled by the number of hydrophilic and hydrophobic characters on the carbon surface. A single PEMFC demonstrated a maximum current and power density of 2.41 A cm(-2) and 1.68 W cm(-2), respectively, at 0.7 V, which was significantly higher than those of commercially available carbon-supported Pt catalysts. Furthermore, Am@C/Pt demonstrated superior durability after 5000 test cycles.

Automated summary

A study demonstrated a one-step synthesis of amphiphilic functional group-modified carbon-supported platinum catalyst via liquid-phase plasma process, improving the efficiency and durability of PEMFCs. The research findings suggest that the number of hydrophilic and hydrophobic characters on the carbon surface plays a crucial role in the performance of PEMFCs.