Abstract
Given the harsh operating conditions in hydrogen/oxygen fuel cells, the stability of catalysts is one of the critical questions affecting their commercialization. We describe a distinct class of oxygen reduction (ORR) core–shell electrocatalysts comprised of nitride metal cores enclosed by thin Pt shells that is easily synthesized. The synthesis is reproducible and amenable to scale up. Our theoretical analysis and the experimental data indicate that metal nitride nanoparticle cores could significantly enhance the ORR activity as well as the durability of the core–shell catalysts as a consequence of combined geometrical, electronic and segregation effects on the Pt shells. In addition to its fuel cells application, this class of catalysts holds promise to significantly contribute in resolving the problem of platinum scarcity and furthermore indicates the guidelines for future research and development.
Original language | English (US) |
---|---|
Pages (from-to) | 442-449 |
Number of pages | 8 |
Journal | Nano Energy |
Volume | 13 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Apr 2015 |
Externally published | Yes |
Bibliographical note
KAUST Repository Item: Exported on 2020-10-01Acknowledgements: This research was performed at Brookhaven National laboratory under contract DE-AC02-98CH10886 with the US Department of Energy, Office of Basic Energy Science, Material Science and Engineering Division, Division of Chemical Sciences, Geosciences and Biosciences Division. Beam lines X18A at the NSLS are supported in part by the Synchrotron Catalysis Consortium, US Department of Energy Grant no DE-FG02-05ER15688. This work was also conducted under the framework of KIER׳s (Korea Institute of Energy Research) Research and Development Program (B4-2423). DFT calculations were performed at KAUST Supercomputing Laboratory and the National Energy Research Scientific Computing Center (Contract no. DE-AC02-05CH11231).
This publication acknowledges KAUST support, but has no KAUST affiliated authors.