Characterization of nanomaterials in electrochemistry

Abstract

Establishing new protocol for nanomaterial characterization of functional materials is an important step in our knowledge for understanding the correlation between atomic changes and electrochemical performances. We propose a combination of different state-of-the-art techniques as a robust approach for nanomaterial characterization, which is suitable in structural refinements of nanocrystalline active systems. This technique of studying microscopic properties of nanomaterials includes XAS (X-ray absorption spectroscopy) ex situ and in situ, XRD (X-ray diffraction), high-resolution TEM (transmission electron microscopy), and XRF (X-ray fluorescence). In particular, we are using the site-selective XAS (performed at international synchrotron radiation facilities) that is sensible to the local structure (up to 5-10 Å around photoabsorbing sites) for characterization of the nanomaterials with singular accuracy. An investigation of the local structure and chemical disorder dynamics of a commercial Pt-Co alloy nanocatalyst, used as electrode material in proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFC), will be presented and discussed.