Facile synthesis of Co-Pt hollow sphere electrocatalyst

In this paper, successful one-step chemical synthesis of Co-Pt hollow spheres with adjustable composition was developed in an effort to explore new synthesis methods, simplify the synthesis procedure, and improve the synthetic efficiency. In this synthesis, a direct thermolytic reduction of platinum acetylacetonate [Pt(CH3COHCOCH3)(2)] and cobalt(II) acetate [Co(CH3COO)(2)] in refluxing ethyl glycol was explored. In the reacting mixture, an anionic surfactant sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) was used as the capping and structure-directing agent. These Co-Pt hollow spheres demonstrated enhanced electrocatalytic activity toward methanol oxidation in comparison with Pt nanoparticles, which is crucial for anode electrocatalysis in DMFCs.