Non –Pt nanoparticle s as catho de for passive dire ct methanol fuel cells

Direct methanol f uel cells (D MFCs) offer a lot of promise as the next-generation power source for portable devices [۱]. In p articular, a passive air-b reathing D MFC system consisting of an anode that absorbs methanol from the built-in reservo ir and a cat hode that “breathes” from the ambient atmosphere works without any au xiliary devices such as heat exchangers, humidifiers, fuel pumps, gas blowers/compressors, etc . [۲]. Meth anol is an attractive fuel because, Firstly, methanol is a li quid, and t herefore it can be easily transported and stored, and c an be dispen sed within the current fuel network. Secondly, methanol is cheap and plentiful [۳]. However, further development of the D MFC is still facing so me technical issues, among which are the most significant obstacle for DMFC de velopment is methanol crossover.However, the per meation of m ethanol thr ough the membrane produces a loss of efficiency and a decrease of the fuel cell voltage due to parasitic m ethanol oxidation at the cathode, which remai n as one of the major problems for the perfor mance of th e DMFC [۱ ۶-۱۹]. In D MFCs when Pt is used as the cathode catalyst the problems are exacerbated by the methanol crossover from the anode that results in mixed pote ntial at the cathode [۲۰,۲۱]. Therefore, a non-Pt catalyst with high activ ity and selectivity towards ORR is urgently required.

کلیدواژه ها:

Alloy electrocatalyst ، Metha nol crossover ، Passive DMFC