Catalytical activity of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) and Vulcan XC-72(VCB) carbon supported Ni catalysts for direct methanol fuel cells

Abstract

Ni catalysts for direct methanol fuel cells (DMFCs) based on carbon nanotube and Vulcan XC-72 carbon black (VCB) were prepared and their catalytical activity was investigated for DMFCs. The deposition was used to prepare Ni/CNTs and Ni/VCB composites. The morphology of the nanocomposites was tested by XRD and TEM analyses. The XRD pattern clearly showed that the peaks of the Ni catalysts appeared separately for each catalyst, and the TEM analysis confirmed that the particle sizes of Ni were between 2 nm to 4 nm. The electrochemical analyses were carried out by cyclic voltammetry (CV) to find the catalytic activities of these two types of carbon-supported Ni catalysts.