Chinese Journal of Catalysis

Chinese Journal of Catalysis ›› 2011, Vol. 32 ›› Issue (4): 599-605.DOI: 10.1016/S1872-2067(10)60213-6

• Research papers • Previous Articles     Next Articles

Effect of Microwave Power and Irradiation Time on the Performance of Pt/C Catalysts Synthesized by Pulse-Microwave Assisted Chemical Reduction

WANG Xizhao1,2, ZHENG Junsheng1,2,a, FU Rong1,3, MA Jianxin1,2,b   

  1. 1Clean Energy Automotive Engineering Center, Tongji University, Shanghai 201804, China;  2School of Automotive Studies, Tongji University, Shanghai 201804, China;  3School of Resource and Environment Engineering, East China University of Science and Technology, Shanghai 200237, China
  • Received:2010-12-07 Revised:2011-01-25 Online:2011-04-18 Published:2014-08-30

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Abstract: Pt/C catalysts for polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells were synthesized by pulse-microwave assisted chemical reduction. X-ray diffraction (XRD) and high resolution transmission electron microscope (HRTEM) were used to investigate the microstructure and morphology of the as-prepared catalysts. The electrochemical surface area (ESA) was studied by cyclic voltammetry (CV). Membrane electrode assemblies were fabricated and the as-prepared catalysts were evaluated. The particle size and distribution of Pt nanoparticles on the carbon support greatly depended on the microwave power and irradiation time. XRD and HRTEM showed that the Pt/C catalysts possessed the smallest mean Pt particle size (1.9 nm) and the most uniform distribution among all the synthesized catalysts when the microwave was on for 12 s and off for 180 s, and this was repeated 6 times at a microwave power of 2 kW. A CV revealed that the ESA of the catalyst was 72.3 m2/g and the corresponding maximum power density was 0.572 W/cm2.

Key words: pulse-microwave, microwave power, irradiation time, platinum, carbon, supported catalyst, fuel cell