Manganese Dioxide Coated Graphene Nanoribbons Supported Palladium Nanoparticles as an Efficient Catalyst for Ethanol Electrooxidation in Alkaline Media

Design of appropriate supporting materials is an alternative route to yield efficient Pt-free catalysts for ethanol oxidation reaction, which in practice may determine the conversion efficiency of direct alkaline ethanol fuel cells. In this work, graphene nanoribbons (GNRs) coated with MnO2 are used as a unique supporting material for loading and dispersing Pd nanoparticles. XRD, TEM and XPS are applied to characterize the structure of as-synthesized Pd/MnO2/GNRs nanocomposite catalyst, revealing a good dispersion as well as a modification of electronic property of Pd nanoparticles. Electrochemical measurements demonstrate that the as-synthesized nanocomposite displays largely enhanced electrocatalytic activity and durability toward ethanol oxidation in alkaline media as compared to the other tested Pd-based catalysts with various supports.