Preparation and characterization of Pt/TiO2 nanotubes catalyst for methanol electro-oxidation

Titanium dioxide nanotubes were prepared via a hydrothermal treatment of TiO2 powder (Degussa P25). Obtained samples were analyzed by various techniques, such as transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD), which revealed that the crystal structure of the obtained materials was similar to that of H2Ti2O5 center dot H2O nanotubes, and were about 50 nm in length and 20 nm in diameter. Nitrogen adsorption-desorption isotherms indicated that synthesized solids are mesoporous materials with a multi-walled nanotubular structure and high specific surface area. The methanol oxidation reaction was investigated on platinum nanoparticles supported TiO2 nanotubes (XC72). The electrocatalytic activity of the catalyst was measured by cyclic voltammetry. CO stripping voltammetry in acidic solutions was investigated to study the reaction of the catalysts towards poisoning by carbonyl compounds. The results demonstrated that Pt/TiO2 nanotubes catalyst exhibits the best activity for methanol oxidation and were favorable for improving the tolerance to poisoning species. (C) 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.