Flexible Solid-State Direct Ethanol Fuel Cell Catalyzed by Nanoporous High-Entropy Al-Pd-Ni-Cu-Mo Anode and Spinel (AlMnCo)3O4 Cathode

As in many other electrochemical energy-converting systems, the flexible direct ethanol fuel cells rely heavily on high-performance catalysts with low noble metal contents and high tolerance to poisoning. In this work, a generic dealloying procedure to synthesize nanoporous multicomponent anodic and cathodic catalysts for the high-performance ethanol fuel cells is reported. On the anode side, the nanoporous AlPdNiCuMo high-entropy alloy exhibits an electrochemically active surface area of 88.53 m(2) g(Pd)(-1) and a mass activity of 2.67 A mg(Pd)(-1) for the ethanol oxidation reaction. On the cathode side, the dealloyed spinel (AlMnCo)(3)O-4 nanosheets with no noble metals demonstrate a comparable catalytic performance as the standard Pt/C for the oxygen reduction reaction, and tolerance to high concentrations of ethanol. Equipped with such anodic and cathodic catalysts, the flexible solid-state ethanol fuel cell is able to deliver an ultra-high energy density of 13.63 mWh cm(-2) with only 3 mL ethanol, which is outstanding compared with other similar solid-state energy devices. Moreover, the solid-state ethanol fuel cell is highly flexible, durable and exhibits an inject-and-run function.

Automated summary

A generic dealloying procedure was reported to synthesize nanoporous multicomponent anodic and cathodic catalysts for high-performance ethanol fuel cells. The flexible solid-state ethanol fuel cell demonstrated outstanding energy density with high flexibility, durability, and an inject-and-run function. The use of high-entropy alloy and dealloyed spinel nanosheets as catalysts contributed to the impressive performance of the fuel cell.