Influence of Heat Treatment on Electrocatalytic Properties of Pt Nanowires

Pt nanowires (NWs) catalyst was fabricated by electrodepositing with anodic aluminum oxide (AAO) as a template, followed by heat treatment. The crystal structure, morphology and electrocatalytic performance of the as-deposited platinum nanowires catalyst were characterized by X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and electrochemical measurements. As a comparison, commercial Pt/C was tested using the same method. The SEM images show that the surface of platinum nanowires is rough. The cyclic voltammetry (CV) and Chronoamperograms reveal that the Pt NWs catalyst possesses a better catalytic capability for methanol oxidation and catalytic durability than Pt/C. The half wave potential in the oxygen reduction reaction curves of the Pt NWs catalyst is more positive than that of Pt/C. Moreover, Pt NWs catalyst gives higher limiting diffusion current from the rotating disk electrode (RDE) measurement, which is helpful for oxygen reduction reaction.