@article {48779, title = {Alloying with Mn enhances the activity and durability of the CoPt catalyst toward the methanol oxidation reaction}, journal = {ACS Applied Materials \& Interfaces}, volume = {15}, year = {2023}, month = {MAY}, pages = {26554-26562}, type = {Article}, abstract = {

To improve the catalytic performance and durability ofPt catalystsused for the methanol oxidation reaction (MOR) in direct methanolfuel cells (DMFCs), alloying of Pt with other transition metals suchas Ru, Co, Ni, and Fe is considered an effective approach. Despitethe significant progress made in the preparation of bimetallic alloysand their utilization for MOR, improving the activity and durabilityof the catalysts to make them commercially viable remains a stiffchallenge. In this work, trimetallic Pt100-x (MnCo)( x ) (16 \< x \< 41) catalysts were successfully synthesized via borohydridereduction followed by hydrothermal treatment at 150 \& DEG;C. The electrocatalyticperformance of the synthesized trimetallic Pt100-x (MnCo)( x ) (16 \< x \< 41) catalysts toward MOR was studied using cyclicvoltammetry and chronoamperometry. The results affirm that all Pt100-x (MnCo)( x ) (16 \< x \< 41) alloys have superior MOR activityand durability as compared to bimetallic PtCo alloys and commerciallyavailable Pt/C (comm. Pt/C) catalysts. Among all the compositionsstudied, the Pt60Mn1.7Co38.3/C catalystexhibited superior mass activity (1.3 and 1.9 times higher than thoseof Pt81Co19/C and comm. Pt/C, respectively)toward MOR. Furthermore, all the newly synthesized Pt100-x (MnCo)( x )/C (16 \< x \< 41) catalysts showed better CO tolerance when comparedwith comm. Pt/C. This improved performance of the Pt100-x (MnCo)( x )/C (16 \< x \< 41) catalyst can be attributed to the synergisticeffect of Co and Mn on the Pt lattice.

}, keywords = {CO tolerance, direct methanol fuel cells, electrocatalysis, methanol oxidation reaction(MOR), trimetallic alloy catalysts}, issn = {1944-8244}, doi = {10.1021/acsami.3c01140}, author = {Deshpande, Pooja and Prasad, Bhagavatula L. V.} } @article {48979, title = {Electrodeposited Co-Mn-Sn multicomponent alloy as an efficient electrocatalyst for hydrogen evolution reaction}, journal = {International Journal of Hydrogen Energy}, volume = {49}, year = {2024}, month = {JAN }, pages = {658-667}, type = {Article}, abstract = {

Despite having exciting material characteristics, the potential of multi-component alloys (MCAs) as electrocatalysts has not been fully realized. In this work, efficient binary and ternary MCA electrocatalysts containing inexpensive metals like Co, Mn and Sn have been prepared via the electrodeposition process. When tested for hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) in an alkaline medium, ternary Co-Mn-Sn alloy displayed enhanced activity with the lowest overpotential of 136 mV, a Tafel slope of 111 mV dec 1 and a very low charge transfer resistance, making it superior to the binary alloys (Co-Mn and Co-Sn), or the single metal catalysts (Co, Mn and Sn). The ternary alloy also displayed high electro-chemical and structural stability, making it a viable electrocatalyst for the hydrogen economy.(c) 2023 Hydrogen Energy Publications LLC. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

}, keywords = {Clean energy, electrocatalysis, Electrodeposition, hydrogen evolution reaction, Multi-component alloy, Non-platinum group metals}, issn = {0360-3199}, doi = {10.1016/j.ijhydene.2023.07.064}, author = {Chandran, M. Athira and Karumuthil, Subash Cherumannil and Singh, Ashutosh K. and Prasad, Bhagavatula L. V.} } @article {49377, title = {Establishing a new efficiency descriptor for methanol oxidation reaction and its validation with commercially available Pt-based catalysts}, journal = {Fuel Cells}, volume = {24}, year = {2024}, month = {JUN}, type = {Article}, abstract = {

Direct methanol fuel cells (DMFCs) have received a lot of attention in recent years as promising technology for generating clean and efficient energy. In DMFC, the anode catalyst is a vital component because it is involved in the oxidation of methanol, which produces electrons that can be used as an energy source. Cyclic voltammetry (CV) is commonly used to test the characteristics of the electrode materials before they are employed in the actual fuel cell. Interestingly in the case of DMFCs CV also is a useful technique to obtain vital information about the performance and expected efficiency of the electrodes. In general, the CV of methanol electrooxidation for Pt-based catalysts has two peaks, If in the forward scan (anodic scan) and Ib in the backward scan (cathodic scan). The ratio of these two peaks (If/Ib) is the most commonly used criterion for investigating CO poisoning in catalysts. However, there is a great deal of ambiguity surrounding this criterion, owing to the genesis of Ib. Addressing this we present here a new criterion to evaluate the efficiency of the catalyst using the same CV technique. We validate this newly proposed criterion with commercial Pt/C (comm. Pt/C) and other commercially available alloy catalysts.

}, keywords = {catalyst poisoning, CO tolerance, direct methanol fuel cells, electrocatalysis, Methanol oxidation reaction}, issn = {1615-6846}, doi = {10.1002/fuce.202300199}, author = {Deshpande, Pooja S. and Radhakrishnan, Thulasi and Prasad, Bhagavatula L. V.} }