Preparation of Pt/poly(2-Methoxyaniline)/multi-walled carbon nanotube nanocomposite and its application for electrocatalytic oxidation of methanol

Abstract

In this work, a Pt-based nanocomposite has been fabricated by electrodeposition of Pt nanoparticles (about 80nm) on a porous poly(2-Methoxyaniline)/multi-walled carbon nanotube (P2MA/MWCNT) film which was prepared via electropolymerization method. The electrochemical response of the P2MA/MWCNT film was, at least, 8 times higher than that of the film in the absence of MWCNT. After preparation of the P2MA/MWCNT matrix, electrodeposition at a fixed potential (−0.20V vs. Ag|AgCl|KCl (3M)) in 0.5M H2SO4 solution containing 5.0mM H2PtCl6 was employed for dispersion of the Pt nanoparticles. The as-formed nanocomposite was characterized by scanning electron microscopy, energy dispersive spectroscopy and electrochemical methods. Methanol oxidation reaction (MOR) has been studied on the prepared catalyst by using various electrochemical techniques. The results demonstrated that the Pt/P2MA/MWCNT nanocomposite acts as a more efficient electrocatalyst for MOR. Ability of the modified electrode towards electrocatalytic oxidation of formaldehyde as an intermediate in the MOR has also been investigated.