An interconnected-graphene enveloped titanium dioxide flower as a robust support for proton exchange membrane fuel cells

Abstract

Support corrosion is a traditional intractable problem for oxygen electrodes of fuel cells, so developing anti-corrosion supports is highly desirable. Herein, we fabricate a three-dimensional (3D) interconnected-graphene enveloped titanium dioxide flower (TiO₂@RGO) as a robust support for the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR). Benefiting from the unique 3D architecture, the TiO₂@RGO composite possesses both a large surface area of 174 m² g⁻¹ and a superior electrical conductivity of 0.19 S cm⁻¹, enabling an electron highway for efficient simultaneous mass transfer of reactants. After loading Pt nanoparticles, the Pt–TiO₂@RGO catalyst exhibits a similar catalytic activity to the commercial Pt/C catalyst, while superior stability under the accelerated degradation protocols for both catalysts (0.6–1.0V_RHE) and supports (1.0–1.5V_RHE), due to the strong metal–support interaction (SMSI) of Pt nanoparticles and the TiO₂@RGO composite support. The PEMFC with the Pt–TiO₂@RGO cathode delivers a peak power density of 901 mW cm⁻², which is comparable to that with a Pt/C cathode. This work proposes a new strategy for designing robust catalyst supports for PEMFCs.