Supportless PdFe nanorods as highly active electrocatalyst for proton exchange membrane fuel cell

The PdFe nanorods (PdFe-NRs) with tunable length were synthesized by an organic phase reaction of [Pd(acac)2] and thermal decomposition of [Fe(CO)5] in a mixture of oleyamine and octadecene at 160 °C. They show a better proton exchange membrane fuel cell (PEMFC) performance than commercial Pt/C in working voltage region of 0.80–0.65 V, due to their high intrinsic activity to oxygen reduction reaction (ORR), reduced cell inner resistance, and improved mass transport.