Facile synthesis of flower-like Pd catalyst for direct ethanol solid oxide fuel cell

A flower-like Pd layer was synthesized through galvanic displacement reaction on Ni-YSZ (yttria-stabilized zirconia) anode at room temperature. The morphology of as-prepared Pd catalyst was characterized by various techniques. It was shown that three-dimensional Pd nanoflowers were formed via nanorods on the Ni-YSZ anode. With Pd nanoflowers as a functional layer of the Ni-YSZ anode, the cell exhibited much higher peak power density and better operation stability in ethanol than that made with conventional Ni-YSZ anode. This study demonstrated that galvanic displacement reaction is a promising way to prepare nanostructured metal catalyst as a result of depressing the carbon deposition in Ni-based anode and improving its output in alcohol fuels.