Durability of different carbon nanomaterial supports with PtRu catalyst in a direct methanol fuel cell

PtRu catalysts with similar particle size and composition were deposited on three different carbon supports: Vulcan, graphitized carbon nanofibers (GNF) and few-walled carbon nanotubes (FWCNT) and their performance for methanol oxidation was studied in an electrochemical cell and in a single cell DMFC. The electrochemical results indicate that with PtRu/GNF and PtRu/FWCNT higher current densities are obtained and oxidation intermediates deactivate the surface less compared to the same catalyst on Vulcan support. Conversely, PtRu/Vulcan provided the highest open circuit voltage OCV and current densities in DMFC experiments due to a well-optimized electrode layer structure. Because stability is a key requirement for fuel cell commercialization, 6-day-long fuel cell stability tests were carried out, showing that PtRu/Vulcan degraded significantly. This was due to the collapse of the secondary structure of the electrode layer revealed by post characterization of the membrane electrode assembly (MEA) with SEM and TEM. PtRu/GNF exhibited slightly poorer initial performance but better stability because the structure of the anode layer was maintained. PtRu/FWCNT showed the worst initial performance and long-term stability. The good stability of non-optimized PtRu/GNF MEAs shows the potential of these novel nanocarbon supported catalysts as stable fuel cell components after proper MEA optimization.

► Comparison of PtRu on 3 different carbon supports FWCNT, GNF and Vulcan. ► PtRu/GNF provided the highest current density of all materials with RDE. ► PtRu/FWCNT was least poisoned by methanol oxidation intermediates. ► PtRu/GNF showed amazing stability in DMFC after 6 day in constant potential. ► Analysis of MEAs after DMFC tests revealed causes for the power loss.