Preparation and Characterization of Platinum Supported on Carbon Nanotubes with Different Tube Diameter for Cathode Catalystsof Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cells

Platinum supported on carbon nanotubes (CNTs) with different tube diameters <10, 10-20, 40-60 and 60-100 nm were prepared. The catalysts were characterized by transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD). The metal particle size for 40 wt pct Pt catalysts were 2-5 nm. Self-prepared Pt/CNTs catalysts and purchased Pt/XC-72 were studied by polarization curves, and it was found that in the H2/O2 fuel cell system, Pt supported on Vulcan XC-72 (Pt/XC-72) possessed higher catalytic activity than Pt/CNTs. But in H2/air system, Pt supported on CNTs with diameter 10-20 nm (Pt/CNT1020) possessed higher activity than other Pt/C catalysts.