Acta Phys. -Chim. Sin. ›› 2013, Vol. 29 ›› Issue (08): 1745-1752.doi: 10.3866/PKU.WHXB201305101

• ELECTROCHEMISTRY AND NEW ENERGY • Previous Articles     Next Articles

Effects of Pt Content on the Catalytic Performance of Co@Pt/C Core-Shell Structured Electrocatalysts

ZHAO Tian-Tian1,2, LIN Rui1,2, ZHANG Lu1,2, CAO Chui-Hui1,2, MA Jian-Xin1,2   

  1. 1 Clean Energy Automotive Engineering Center, Tongji University, Shanghai 201804;
    2 School of Automotive Studies, Tongji University, Shanghai 201804
  • Received:2013-04-06 Revised:2013-05-09 Published:2013-07-09
  • Contact: LIN Rui, MA Jian-Xin E-mail:ruilin@tongji.edu.cn;jxma@tongji.edu.cn
  • Supported by:

    The project was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (21276199) and 111 Project, China (B08019).

Abstract:

Core-shell structured Co@Pt/C electrocatalysts containing different mass fractions of Co to Pt, which are represented as 20% (w) Co@Pt(1:1)/C and 20% (w) Co@Pt(1:3)/C, were prepared by changing the ratio of metallic precursors using a successive reduction method. The structure and electrochemical performance of the as-prepared catalysts were characterized by transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), cyclic voltammetry (CV), and linear sweep voltammetry (LSV). The performance of the as-prepared catalysts was compared with that of 40% (w) Co@Pt/C catalyst we synthesized previously. The sizes of Co@Pt(1:1) and Co@Pt(1:3) particles ranged from 2.2 to 2.3 nm, and the metal particles were well dispersed on the carbon support. The electrochemical specific area (ECSA) of 20% Co@Pt(1:1)/C (56 m2·g-1) and 20% Co@Pt(1:3)/C (60 m2·g-1) were higher than that of commercial 20% Pt/C (E-tek) (54 m2·g-1). Compared with those of 40% Co@Pt(1:1)/C and 40% Co@Pt(1:3)/C, the half-wave potentials of 20% Co@Pt(1:1)/C and 20% Co@Pt(1:3)/C shifted to the positive direction, and they correspondingly showed improved catalytic performance. The low cost and high performance of the 20% Co@Pt/C catalyst make it a promising low-Pt catalyst for proton exchange membrane fuel cells.

Key words: Proton exchange membrane fuel cell, Core-shell structured catalyst, Electrochemical performance, Oxygen reduction reaction, Half wave potential