Synthesis and Advanced Electrochemical Characterization of Multifunctional Electrocatalytic Composite for Unitized Regenerative Fuel Cell

Léonard Jean Moriau,Nejc Hodnik,Francisco Ruiz-Zepeda,Urša Petek,Miran Gaberšček,Martin Šala,Alen Vižintin,Primož Jovanovič,Marjan Bele

doi:10.1021/acscatal.9b03385

Léonard Jean Moriau, Nejc Hodnik + Show 7 more

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https://doi.org/10.1021/acscatal.9b03385

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Abstract

A multifunctional electrocatalytic composite was synthesized for use as a generic catalytic material in the polymer electrolyte membrane (PEM) type reactors, working in either fuel cell, direct met...

Highlights

Electrochemistry is an important part of society and industry with multiple applications, and in recent decades, the field has grown with the increasing interest in new storage and conversion devices such as batteries, fuel cells, and electrolyzers.[1−5] The major challenge is to switch from fossil fuels to sun-based sustainable energy
An URFC can operate in two different modes: the fuel cell mode, where electrical energy is produced; and the electrolyzer mode, where water is split.[8−10] in addition to the same issues that are present in monofunctional catalyst devices, namely, sluggish oxygen reduction (ORR) and oxygen evolution (OER) reactions, respectively, URFC catalysts suffer from significant stability problems.[7,8,11]
We present the synthesis and advanced electrochemical characterization of multifunctional nanocomposite materials that effectively catalyze all of the mentioned reactions

Summary

Introduction

Electrochemistry is an important part of society and industry with multiple applications, and in recent decades, the field has grown with the increasing interest in new storage and conversion devices such as batteries, fuel cells, and electrolyzers.[1−5] The major challenge is to switch from fossil fuels to sun-based sustainable energy. Because of the intermittency of these renewable energy sources, either from wind farms or solar panels, effective energy storage and efficient conversion processes must be developed and optimized.[6,7] An electrolyzer is a practical way to split water into hydrogen and oxygen when there is a surplus of energy. The first point can be addressed by dispersing noble metals in the form of nanoparticles on high-surface-area electrically conductive support.[28,29] In addition to the effective dispersion, a synergy

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