Pt-Decorated TiO2 Materials Supported on Carbon: Increasing Activities and Stabilities toward the ORR by Tuning the Pt Loading

Author(s)

Barbosa, Eduardo C. M. ^[1] ; Parreira, Luanna S. ^[1] ; de Freitas, Isabel C. ^[1] ; Aveiro, Luci R. ^[2] ; de Oliveira, Daniela C. ^[3] ; dos Santos, Mauro C. ^[2] ; Camargo, Pedro H. C. ^{[1, 4]}

Affiliation

^[1] Univ Sao Paulo, Inst Quim, Dept Quim Fundamental, Av Prof Lineu Prestes 748, BR-05508000 Sao Paulo, SP - Brazil

^[2] Univ Fed ABC, Ctr Ciencias Nat & Humanas, Lab Eletroquim & Mat Nanostruturados, Rua Santa Adelia 166, BR-09210170 Santo Andre, SP - Brazil

^[3] Ctr Nacl Pesquisa Energia & Mat, Lab Nacl Luz Sincrotron, BR-13083970 Campinas, SP - Brazil

^[4] Univ Helsinki, Dept Chem, AI Virtasen Aukio 1, FIN-00014 Helsinki - Finland

• Document type: Journal article
• Source: ACS APPLIED ENERGY MATERIALS; v. 2, n. 8, p. 5759-5768, AUG 2019.
• Web of Science Citations: 0

Abstract

Pt nanoparticles (Pt NPs) supported on carbon have been widely employed as electrocatalysts toward oxygen reduction reaction. The development of more efficient electrocatalysts that enable one to reduce or even not require the use of Pt is a central challenge. In addition to the control over the physical and chemical features of Pt NPs, metal support interactions can be employed to enhance activities via the generation and exposure of surface-active sites. In this context, we report herein the development of electrocatalysts composed of Pt NPs supported on TiO2 microspheres, that were subsequently impregnated onto carbon. We have found that, by optimizing the loading of Pt at the TiO2 surface, the electrocatalytic activity toward the ORR could be improved compared to that of the commercial Pt/C (E-TEK) material, even at lower Pt loadings. The enhancement in activities could be assigned to the balance between Pt loading and generation of reactive surface sites, such as adsorbed oxygenated species. Moreover, the utilization of TiO2 as support enabled improved stabilities relative to Pt/C (E-TEK). We believe that the results described herein may inspire the development of electrocatalysts for the ORR with improved activities and stabilities. (AU)

• FAPESP's process: 15/21366-9 - HYBRID MATERIALS CONTAINING METAL NANOPARTICLES FOR CATALYTIC APPLICATIONS
• Grantee: Pedro Henrique Cury Camargo
• Support Opportunities: Regular Research Grants
• FAPESP's process: 15/26308-7 - Optimization of the physicochemical properties of nano -structured materials for applications in molecular recognition, catalysis and energy conversion/storage
• Grantee: Roberto Manuel Torresi
• Support Opportunities: Research Projects - Thematic Grants
• FAPESP's process: 16/00819-8 - Controlled Synthesis of Nanomaterials based on Pd and Pt: Electrocatalytic Activity and Stability
• Grantee: Luanna Silveira Parreira
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Post-Doctoral
• FAPESP's process: 15/11452-5 - Hybrid materials composed of oxides and metallic nanoparticles for catalytic and photocatalytic applications
• Grantee: Eduardo César Melo Barbosa
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Doctorate (Direct)
• FAPESP's process: 17/21846-6 - Nanostructures for environmental remediation and power generation from renewable sources
• Grantee: Mauro Coelho dos Santos
• Support Opportunities: Program for Research on Bioenergy (BIOEN) - Regular Program Grants