Electrocatalytic activity of Carbon-supported near-surface alloys (NSAs) for Formic acid oxidation

개미산 산화 반응을 위한 카본 담지 표면 합금의 전기촉매 활성

Formic acid recently attracted attention as an alternative fuel for direct liquid fuel cells(DLFCs) due to its high theoretical open circuit voltage(1.45V). In this paper, a novel chemical strategy is described for the preparation and characterization of carbon-supported and surface-alloys, which were prepared by using a successive reduction process. After preparing Au colloid nanoparticles, the deposition of Au colloid nanoparticles occurred spontaneously in the carbon black-dispersed aqueous solution. Then nano-scaled Pt layer were formed on the surface of carbon-supported Au nanoparticles. The Au-Pt[x] showed the higher electrocatalytic activity than those of the particle-alloys and commercial one (Johnson-Matthey) for the reaction of formic acid oxidation when the mass-specific currents were compared. The increased electrocatalytic activity might be attributed to the effective surface structure of surface-alloys, which have a high utilization of active materials for the surface reaction of electrode.