Volume production of high loading Pt/C catalyst with high performance via a microwave-assisted organic colloid route

A scale-up preparation of high-loading Pt/C (40 wt%) to 3 g per pot has been achieved with a microwave-assisted organic colloid method, followed by appropriate heat treatment in alternating atmospheres (nitrogen, oxygen, and hydrogen). The catalysts prepared in this work were characterized by thermogravimetric analysis, X-ray diffraction analysis, and transmission electron microscopy etc., and were found to be competitive with state-of-the-art HiSPEC 4100 Pt/C catalyst in terms of their activities towards the anodic oxidation of methanol and the cathodic reduction of oxygen. They also displayed better cathodic activity and stability in a hydrogen/air single-cell test. The particle size was as small as 2.3 nm, which is smaller than HiSPEC 4100 Pt/C catalyst. The scale-up work reported in this paper provides a practicable method to achieve the volume production of a high-loading Pt/C catalyst for fuel cell applications. (C) 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.