Electrocatalytic performance of bimetallic platinum-ruthenium nanoclusters supported on graphite nanofibers

In this work, graphite nanofibers (GNFs) as a catalysts supports were impregnated with Pt and Ru precursor compounds to investigate the effect of various Pt-Ru compositions on the catalytic activity of direct methanol fuel cells (DMFCs). The particle sizes and morphological structures of the catalysts were analyzed by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The electrochemical oxidation of the prepared catalysts was investigated by cyclic voltammetry (CV) measurement. Inductive coupled plasma-mass spectrometer (ICP-MS) analysis showed that the metallic ratio in the catalysts was very near to expectations. Cyclic voltammetry showed that the catalysts were electro catalytically active in the methanol oxidation. Among the prepared catalysts, the Pt(50)Ru(50) catalysts exhibited the best electrocatalytic performance. It was concluded that catalytic activity is dependent on the alloy compositions of the catalysts, and that Ru metal has a positive effect on CO poisoning of Pt metal for methanol oxidation. (C) 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.