Enhancement of Pt and Pt-alloy fuel cell catalyst activity and durability via nitrogen-modified carbon supports

Insufficient catalytic activity and durability are key barriers to the commercial deployment of low temperature polymer electrolyte membrane (PEM) and direct-methanol fuel cells (DMFCs). Recent observations suggest that carbon-based catalyst support materials can be systematically doped with nitrogen to create strong, beneficial catalyst-support interactions which substantially enhance catalyst activity and stability. Data suggest that nitrogen functional groups introduced into a carbon support appear to influence at least three aspects of the catalyst/support system: 1) modified nucleation and growth kinetics during catalyst nanoparticle deposition, which results in smaller catalyst particle size and…

• UD
  U.S. Department of Energy
• AR
  Army Research Office