Synthesis and Characterization of Pd Catalysts Supported on Carbon Microspheres for Formic Acid Oxidation

A facile preparation of Pd catalyst using carbon microspheres as support was introduced in this paper. The carbon microspheres were prepared with a simple method from dextrose via hydrothermal process and used as catalysts support for formic acid electrooxidation. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) analyses revealed that the as-prepared face-centered cubic crystal Pd nanoparticles were well-dispersed on the surface of the carbon microspheres, and the mean diameter of the nanoparticles was 8.8 nm. The effect of the support on the catalyst performance for formic acid electrooxidation was studied. The as-prepared catalyst showed the enhanced electrochemical surface active area and the higher electrocatalytic activity towards formic acid oxidation compared with Pd/CNTs and Pd/XC-72 catalysts prepared at room temperature. Electrochemical analysis suggested that the carbon microspheres might be good candidates to be used as the supports of catalyst for formic acid electrochemical oxidation.