Ternary PtSnRh–SnO2 nanoclusters: synthesis and electroactivity for ethanol oxidation fuel cell reaction

Wenxin Du; Qi Wang; Carlo A. LaScala; Lihua Zhang; Dong Su; Anatoly I. Frenkel; Virendra K. Mathur; Xiaowei Teng

doi:10.1039/C0JM04358C

Ternary PtSnRh–SnO₂ nanoclusters: synthesis and electroactivity for ethanoloxidationfuel cell reaction†

Wenxin Du,^a Qi Wang,^b Carlo A. LaScala,^a Lihua Zhang,^c Dong Su,^c Anatoly I. Frenkel,^d Virendra K. Mathur^a and Xiaowei Teng*^a

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* Corresponding authors

^a Department of Chemical Engineering, University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH, USA
E-mail: xw.teng@unh.edu
Fax: +1 603 862 3747
Tel: +1 603 862 4245

^b Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Delaware, Newark, DE, USA

^c Center for Functional Nanomaterials, Brookhaven National Laboratory, Upton, NY, USA

^d Department of Physics, Yeshiva University, New York, NY, USA

Abstract

Carbon supported ternary Pt₅₂Sn_(36−x)Rh₁₂–Sn_xO_2x electrocatalysts with the average diameter of 2.8 ± 0.5 nm were synthesized using a Polyol process followed by thermal treatment. Several techniques including high resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and extended X-ray absorption fine structure (EXAFS) were used to identify the coexistence of homogeneously distributed Pt/Sn/Rh random alloy and non-alloyed SnO₂ throughout the catalyst. The Pt₅₂Sn_(36−x)Rh₁₂–Sn_xO_2x catalyst showed a superior long-term activity and stability towards ethanol oxidation than the commercial Pt catalyst. Our data of ternary Pt/Sn/Rh catalysts with different chemical compositions and crystalline structures also indicated that the superior performance of Pt₅₂Sn_(36−x)Rh₁₂–Sn_xO_2x might result from the electronic effect of the Pt/Sn/Rh random alloy.

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Article information

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1039/C0JM04358C
Article type: Paper
Submitted: 13 Dec 2010
Accepted: 11 Apr 2011
First published: 16 May 2011

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J. Mater. Chem., 2011,21, 8887-8892

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Ternary PtSnRh–SnO₂ nanoclusters: synthesis and electroactivity for ethanol oxidation fuel cell reaction

W. Du, Q. Wang, C. A. LaScala, L. Zhang, D. Su, A. I. Frenkel, V. K. Mathur and X. Teng, J. Mater. Chem., 2011, 21, 8887 DOI: 10.1039/C0JM04358C

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