Highly active and durable hollow NiPt/C as electrocatalysts for methanol electro-oxidation reaction

At present, platinum-based alloys are irreplaceable catalysts for direct methanol fuel cells. How to reduce the amount of Pt and improve its electrocatalytic performance is one of the difficulties in this field. Noble-metal hollow nanocrystals are one of the most promising catalysts due to their high specific surface area and high stability. In this paper, we used the combination of electrochemical displacement reaction and Kirkendal effect to prepare hollow NiPt/C by sacrificial template method, and explore the effect of capping agent content on the electrocatalytic methanol oxidation reaction (MOR) performance of synthetic materials. Electrochemical tests show that the hollow binary catalyst prepared with a capping agent content of 50 mg had the highest electrochemical active area. In particular, 4000-s chronoamperometry tests in acidic solution show that the stability of NiPt/C with hollow structure is enhanced. We ascribe the better catalytic activity to the hollow feature, higher specific electrochemical surface area, and more abundant active sites.

Automated summary

In this paper, hollow NiPt/C nanocrystals were prepared using the sacrificial template method, and the influence of capping agent content on the electrocatalytic methanol oxidation reaction (MOR) performance of the synthetic materials was explored. The electrochemical tests showed that the hollow binary catalyst prepared with a capping agent content of 50 mg had the highest electrochemical active area, and exhibited enhanced stability in acidic solution. The improved catalytic activity was attributed to the hollow structure, higher specific electrochemical surface area, and more abundant active sites.