Enhanced Methanol Electro-oxidation on Pt-Ru Decorated Self-Assembled TiO2-Carbon Hybrid Nanostructure

Porous titanium oxide-carbon hybrid nanostructure (TiO2-C) is directly synthesized via supramolecular self-assembly with in situ crystallization process. TiO2-C supported Pt-Ru electrocatalyst (Pt-Ru/TiO2-C) is synthesized and investigated as an alternative anode catalyst for direct methanol fuel cells (DMFCs). TiO2-C with a specific surface area of 350m(2)/g and an average pore radius of 21.8 angstrom has been synthesized. X-ray diffraction, Raman spectroscopy and Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) have been employed to evaluate the crystalline nature and the structural properties of TiO2-C. TEM images reveal uniform distribution of Pt-Ru nanoparticles (d(Pt-Ru) = 1.5-3.5 nm) on TiO2-C. The methanol oxidation and accelerated durability (ADT) studies for Pt-Ru/TiO2-C show enhanced catalytic activity and durability, respectively compared to that for carbon supported Pt-Ru. DMFC employing Pt-Ru/TiO2-C as an anode catalyst delivers a peak-power density of 91mW/cm(2) at 65 degrees C as compared to the peak-power density of 60mW/cm(2) obtained with carbon supported Pt-Ru catalyst under similar conditions