Ag supported on carbon fiber cloth as the catalyst for hydrazine oxidation in alkaline medium

Silver particles with microspheric structure are directly electrodeposited on carbon fiber cloth (CFC) substrate by square-wave potential electrodeposition method. The electrocatalytic behaviors of the Ag/CFC electrode toward hydrazine oxidation in alkaline solution are examined by cyclic voltammetry and chronoamperometry. An onset oxidation potential of -0.5 V and a peak current density of 30 mA cm(-2) are achieved in the solution containing 1.0 mol L-1 KOH and 20.0 mmol L-1 hydrazine. The microspheric structure of the Ag/CFC electrode provides large electroactive surface area, hence, abundant active sites are vacant for hydrazine oxidation. The calculated apparent activation energies at different potentials show that hydrazine electro-oxidation at higher potential has faster kinetics than that at lower potential. In addition, the transfer electron number of hydrazine oxidation reaction on the Ag/CFC electrode is close to four, suggesting hydrazine is almost completely electrooxidized on the electrode and the full use of hydrazine fuel is basically achieved. (C) 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.