Nano-silicon carbide supported catalysts for PEM fuel cells with high electrochemical stability and improved performance by addition of carbon

摘要

Nano-silicon carbide was applied as a novel catalyst support in proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cells to improve catalyst stability, due to its excellent resistance to electrochemical oxidation. Homogeneously dispersed Pt nanoparticles were deposited on β-SiC (Pt/SiC) using an ethylene glycol reduction method. Furthermore, carbon was introduced into this Pt/SiC catalyst, (Pt/SiC/C), to improve its electro-catalytic performance by increasing the electrical conductivity. The electrochemical stability of SiC was investigated and showed almost no changes in the redox region after oxidation for 48 h at 1.20 V. Based on accelerated durability tests (ADT) and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), the electrochemical stability of Pt/SiC/C was remarkably enhanced compared with the Pt/C catalysts, which could be attributed to the excellent stability of the SiC support and the addition of high electrical conductivity carbon.