Surface engineering of hierarchical platinum-cobalt nanowires for efficient electrocatalysis

Despite intense research in past decades, the lack of high-performance catalysts for fuel cell reactions remains a challenge in realizing fuel cell technologies for transportation applications. Here we report a facile strategy for synthesizing hierarchical platinum-cobalt nanowires with high-index, platinum-rich facets and ordered intermetallic structure. These structural features enable unprecedented performance for the oxygen reduction and alcohol oxidation reactions. The specific/mass activities of the platinum-cobalt nanowires for oxygen reduction reaction are 39.6/33.7 times higher than commercial Pt/C catalyst, respectively. Density functional theory simulations reveal that the active threefold hollow…

• UD
  U.S. Department of Energy

  Awards: No. DE-SC0012704, SC0012704
• NN
  National Natural Science Foundation of China

  Awards: 21571135, DE-SC0012704
• SU
  Soochow University

  Award: 21571135
• PU
  Peking University
• PA
  Priority Academic Program Development of Jiangsu Higher Education Institutions

  Award: 21571135
• MU
  Multidisciplinary University Research Initiative

  Award: W911NF-11-1-0353
• NK
  National Key Research and Development Program of China

  Award: DE-SC0012704
• BE
  Basic Energy Sciences

  Awards: Contract No. DE-SC0012704, DE-SC0012704, No. DE-SC0012704, SC0012704
• AR
  Army Research Office

  Awards: W911NF, W911NF-11-1-0353, W911NF-11
• BN
  Brookhaven National Laboratory

  Awards: SC0012704, No. DE-SC0012704, Contract No. DE-SC0012704