Boosting Pt oxygen reduction reaction activity by tuning the tin oxide support

- SnO2 doping significantly influences the ORR activity of supported Pt.
- Pt supported on Nb- and W-doped SnO2 shows higher ORR activity than Pt on carbon.
- No correlation between support conductivity and Pt ORR activity is found.
- Metal-support interactions could play a role in Pt ORR activity.

The influence of the dopant element on the physicochemical properties of the SnO2 support and on the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) activity of the supported Pt nanoparticles was systematically studied. The dopant element and concentration significantly influence the SnO2 crystal structure and the electrical conductivity, as well as the ORR activity in 0.1 M HClO4 of the supported Pt catalysts. ORR activities significantly exceeding that of Pt deposited on carbon were observed for Pt nanoparticles supported on Nb- and W-doped SnO2. No linear correlation between the support conductivity and the ORR activity was observed, suggesting that other factors, such as (electronic) metal-support interactions, could play a role in the ORR activity of Pt catalysts supported on metal oxides.

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