Performance enhancement for direct borohydride fuel cells through ternary Ru–Co–B oxide catalyst

Abstract

Dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) plasma is used to prepare ternary heterostructured Ru–Co–B oxide catalyst with considerable RuO2/CoO/B20H26O interface and oxygen vacancy (Ov) for enhanced borohydride oxidation reaction. the Ru–Co–B catalyst displayed remarkable electrocatalytic activity and long-term stability Due to the difference in energy band structure at the interface where the charge distribution is not homogeneous, the heterogeneous structure will spontaneously generate a built-in electric field which prompts the interfacial charge transfer. The production of Ov increases its active site and promotes its catalytic activity. While it is used in membrane-less direct borohydride fuel cells (DBFCs), it showed a peak power density of 206 mW cm−2 at room temperature and a remarkable stability of 270 h at a constant current of 20 mA that is superior to commercial Pt/C.