Electrooxidation of Several Organic Compounds on Simply Prepared Metallic Nanoparticles: A Comparative Study

The electrooxidation of several fuel compounds was studied using metallic nanoparticles of Au, Pd, Pt, AuPd and AuPt synthesized by direct electrodeposition by applying a constant potential of -200 mV (vs. Ag/AgCl) to pencil graphite in an acidic medium. Scanning electron microscope (SEM) images and X-ray diffraction (XRD) data show that monometallic (Au, Pd and Pt) and alloys of bimetallic nanoparticles of AuPd and AuPt have been formed. The catalytic performance of the prepared electrodes was investigated in a neutral medium (100 mM phosphate buffer, pH 7) by cyclic voltammetry. Amongst all fuels, the highest current densities were obtained by the electrooxidation of formic acid (ca. 9.8 mA cm(-2)) and formaldehyde (ca. 9.7 mA cm(-2)) on the AuPt catalyst.