Ternary PtRuTe alloy nanofibers as an efficient and durable electrocatalyst for hydrogen oxidation reaction in alkaline media

Abstract

Sluggish kinetics of anodic hydrogen oxidation reaction (HOR) in alkaline media, which arises from the two orders of magnitude lower HOR activity in alkali than that in acid media for platinum group metals, hinders the commercial implementation of anion exchange membrane fuel cells (AEMFCs). Consequently, the development of platinum-based catalysts combined with high efficiency and durability is urgently required. Herein, we report a facile route for the synthesis of ternary PtRuTe alloy nanofibers with Pt atomic ratio of only 11% via a simple galvanic replacement reaction. We optimize the adsorption strength of platinum and ruthenium towards hydrogen and hydroxyl species by regulating the electron donation from tellurium to platinum and ruthenium. Hence, the obtained trimetallic alloy catalyst exhibits an impressive kinetic current density of 30.6 mA cm−2geo at 50 mV and an exchange current density of 0.426 mA cm−2metal, which shows 3.0- and 2.5-fold enhancement compared with the commercial Pt/C in alkaline electrolyte, respectively. Moreover, the catalyst also demonstrates excellent stability with merely 5% activity attenuation after 2000 potential cycles. This work offers new pathways to boost alkaline HOR by rationally designing multicomponent alloys. [Figure not available: see fulltext.]