Methanol Electrooxidation Study on Mesoporous Silica Supported Pt-Co Direct Methanol Fuel Cell Anode

At present, Pt was impregnated by incipient wetness impregnation method on Co-doped SBA-15 catalysts prepared by sol-gel method at different weight percentages of Co to investigate the effect of Pt: Co ratio on methanol electrooxidation reaction (MOR). Cyclic voltammetry (CV), chronoamperometry (CA), and linear sweep voltammetry (LSV) techniques were employed to examine the MOR activities, poisoning capacity, and stability of these Pt/SBA-15 and Pt-Co/SBA-15 catalysts. Co presence in the platinum structure enhances the electrocatalytic activity of MOR, due to oxidation of Co at relatively low positive potentials. CV and CA measurements indicated that the most active catalyst was Pt-Co (86:14)/SBA-15 catalyst for MOR. Stability and poisoning measurements revealed that Co presence in the catalyst increases CO poisoning resistance and its stability, in agreement with CV and CA measurements.