Size and Content Effects of Copper Nanoparticles in the Ion-Exchange Matrix for Intense Steady-State Electroreduction of Oxygen Dissolved in Water

The behavior of copper ion-exchange composites with metal particles of various sizes and contents in the electroreduction of oxygen dissolved in water have been studied. The primary size effect is significant for samples with low metal capacity: the smaller the metal particle size, the higher the process rate. At the same time, for samples with high metal capacity, the process occurs at approximately the same rate on copper particles obtained using different reducing agents due to the comparable size. A secondary size effect is observed due to the collective interaction of metal particles. The size effect was taken into account along with the effect of the content of metal particles using the proposed nanosized complex, which represents the ratio of capacity and size. At the level of electronic conductivity percolation, the nanosized complex reaches the limiting value corresponding to the highest degree of development of the reaction surface, which makes it possible to increase the current to the maximum current capacity. The reduction of oxygen occurs along several routes: electroreduction on copper particles, mainly on the surface of nanocomposite grains; and autocatalytic chemical reaction with electroregenerated metal nanoparticles in the nanocomposite grains. The electroreduction of oxygen generally reaches an intense steady-state mode.