A novel catalyst Pt@NiPcTs/C: Synthesis, structural and electro-oxidation for methanol

A novel catalyst, a monolayer of nickel phthalocyanine-tetrasulfonic acid (NiPcTs) on platinum nanoparticles supported on carbon black (Pt@NiPcTs/C), was synthesized successfully and described in this paper. The catalyst was characterized by transmission electron microscopy, mass spectrometry, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and electrochemical method. These nanoparticles exhibit structural characteristics of fcc Pt nanocrystals, revealing NiPcTs on the surface of Pt particles. The molar ratio of Pt to Ni is 15.13:1, close to the theoretical value for a monolayer of NiPcTs cover on a 3.7 nm in diameter Pt particle. Electrochemical measurement shows that the Pt@NiPcTs/C exhibits excellent performance for methanol oxidation in comparison with the other catalysts.