SUMMARY:
UCLA researchers in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering developed a strategy to synthesize ultrafine carbon layers to protect nanocatalysts which are essential for the development of fuel cell technology.
BACKGROUND:
Platinum catalysts are essential for use in hydrogen fuel cell technologies to cleanly and efficiently produce electricity. Traditional platinum catalysts are generally stable but require large quantities of expensive platinum group metals to achieve the necessary surface area required for use in fuel cells. Ultrafine nanocatalysts can reduce the amount of platinum used while maintaining high electrochemical surface area (ECSA) and high material utilization. However, ECSA can be easily damaged by the environment limiting their usability. Protective layers can alleviate the damages but reduce the performance of the catalyst. There is a need for ultrathin protective layers that can protect these nanocatalysts without limiting their function.
INNOVATION:
UCLA researchers in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering developed a strategy to uniformly introduce and mix metal precursors with ultrathin carbon support. The developed composition of metal catalysts and the protective layers were evaluated with a fuel cell membrane electrode assembly where they showed significant improvements in oxygen reduction mass activity compared to existing commercial electrodes. Furthermore, it also showed improved durability and required less platinum than existing platinum catalysts.
POTENTIAL APPLICATIONS:
- Fuel cells
- Chemical synthesis
- Electrochemistry
ADVANTAGES:
- Long lasting performance
- Easy to Produce
- High catalytic performance
DEVELOPMENT TO DATE:
First successful demonstration by formation of carbon overprotective layer over metal catalyst.
RELATED PUBLICATIONS:
Zhao, Z., Liu, Z., Zhang, A. et al. Graphene-nanopocket-encaged PtCo nanocatalysts for highly durable fuel cell operation under demanding ultralow-Pt-loading conditions. Nat. Nanotechnol. (2022). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41565-022-01170-9.