Nano-engineering of a 3D-ordered membrane electrode assembly with ultrathin Pt skin on open-walled PdCo nanotube arrays for fuel cells

Abstract

Proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs) suffer from high consumption of Pt and low durability under harsh operating conditions. To reduce the consumption of Pt and improve the durability, a 3D-ordered membrane electrode assembly (MEA) based on ultrathin Pt skin on open-walled PdCo nanotube arrays (NTAs) was nano-engineered for PEMFCs via template-assisted underpotential deposition (UPD) and galvanic displacement. Benefiting from the advanced nanostructure, a maximum power density of 222.5 kW g_Pt⁻¹ was achieved with a cathodic Pt loading of 3.5 μg cm⁻², which was 13.7 fold higher than that of a conventional MEA. Accelerated degradation tests demonstrate that the prepared nanostructured MEA is more stable than the conventional MEA.