Facile one-pot hydrothermal synthesis of Pt nanoparticles and their electrocatalytic performance

•Pt nanoparticles are synthesized by a facile one-pot hydrothermal synthesis for the first time.•The size of the Pt nanoparticles can be well controlled.•The Pt nanoparticles show a better electrochemical performance than commercial Pt/C catalyst.

Pt nanoparticles are synthesized by a facile one-pot hydrothermal synthesis using one kind triblock Pluronic copolymers as reducer and stabilizer for the first time. The size of the Pt nanoparticles can be controlled through simply varying the reaction conditions. The morphology and structure of the Pt nanoparticles were well characterized by different techniques. The electrocatalytic test indicated that the obtained Pt nanoparticles exhibit a better electrocatalytic performance for methanol oxidation in acidic media compared to the commercial Pt/C catalyst. The results of this paper provide a promising approach to prepare Pt-based nanocatalysts for direct alcohols fuel cells (DAFCs).