N-doped carbon confined ternary Pt2 NiCo intermetallics for efficient oxygen reduction reaction

Developing high performance electrocatalysts for the cathodic oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) is essential for the widespread application of fuel cells. Herein, a promising Pt2 NiCo atomic ordered ternary intermetallic compound with N-doped carbon layer coating ( o -Pt2 NiCo@NC) has been synthesized via a facile method and applied in acidic ORR. The confinement effect provided by the carbon layer not only inhibits the agglomeration and sintering of intermetallic nanoparticles during high temperature process but also provides adequate protection for the nanoparticles, mitigating the aggregation, detachment and poisoning of nanoparticles during the electrochemical process. As a result, the o -Pt2 NiCo@NC demonstrates a mass activity (MA) and specific activity (SA) of 0.65 A/mgPt and 1.41 mA/cmPt 2 in 0.1 mol/L HClO4 , respectively. In addition, after 30,0 0 0 potential cycles from 0.6 V to 1.0 V, the MA of o -Pt2 NiCo@NC shows much lower decrease than the disordered Pt2 NiCo alloy and Pt/C. Even cycling at high potential cycles of 1.5 V for 10,0 0 0 cycles, the MA still retains similar to 70 %, demonstrating superior long-term durability. Furthermore, the o -Pt2 NiCo@NC also exhibits strong tolerance to CO, SOx , and POx molecules in toxicity tolerance tests. The strategy in this work provides a novel insight for the development of ORR catalysts with high catalytic activity, durability and toxicity tolerance. (c) 2025 Published by Elsevier B.V. on behalf of Chinese Chemical Society and Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences.