Deposition of PdPtAu Nanoparticles on Hollow Nanospheres of Fe3O4 as a New Catalyst for Methanol Electrooxidation: Application in Direct Methanol Fuel Cell

In this study, immobilized hollow nanospheres of Fe3O4 with Palladium, Platinum and Gold nanoparticles (Fe3O4HNS-PdPtAuNPs) was synthesized by hydrothermal and chemical reduction methods and characterized by various techniques such as field emission scanning electron microscopy, energy dispersive analysis of X-rays and elemental mapping images. The electrocatalytic activity of the modified glassy carbon electrode (GCE) with Fe3O4HNS-PdPtAuNPs (GCE/Fe3O4HNS-PdPtAuNPs) toward methanol electrooxidation was investigated by cyclic voltammetry and chronoamperometry in 1M NaOH solution. According to the results, Fe3O4HNS-PdPtAuNPs catalyst demonstrated the highest efficiency for methanol electrooxidation in comparison with Fe3O4HNS-PdNPs, Fe3O4HNS-PtNPs, Fe3O4HNS-PdAuNPs, Fe3O4HNS-PtAuNPs and Fe3O4HNS-PdPtNPs. The value of electron transfer coefficient () and the ratio of current densities (I-f/I-b) for methanol oxidation on the Fe3O4HNS-PdPtAuNPs/GC catalyst were calculated 0.61 and 5.13, respectively. The reaction order was discovered to be 0.98 for CH3OH. A direct methanol fuel cell was developed with the suggested catalyst under several conditions.