title: Catalyst supports for polymer electrolyte fuel cells.
abstract: A major challenge in obtaining long-term durability in fuel cells is to discover catalyst supports that do not corrode, or corrode much more slowly than the current carbon blacks used in today's polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells. Such materials must be sufficiently stable at low pH (acidic conditions) and high potential, in contact with the polymer membrane and under exposure to hydrogen gas and oxygen at temperatures up to perhaps 120 degrees C. Here, we report the initial discovery of a promising class of doped oxide materials for this purpose: Ti(1-x)M(x)O(2), where M=a variety of transition metals. Specifically, we show that Ti(0.7)W(0.3)O(2) is electrochemically inert over the appropriate potential range. Although the process is not yet optimized, when Pt nanoparticles are deposited on this oxide, electrochemical experiments show that hydrogen is oxidized and oxygen reduced at rates comparable to those seen using a commercial Pt on carbon black support.
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Cornell University, , Ithaca, NY 14853, USA.
authors.forename: Chinmayee
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Subban
authors.forename: Qin
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Zhou
authors.forename: Brian
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Leonard
authors.forename: Chinmoy
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Ranjan
authors.forename: Heather M
authors.initials: HM
authors.lastname: Edvenson
authors.forename: F J
authors.initials: FJ
authors.lastname: Disalvo
authors.forename: Semeret
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Munie
authors.forename: Janet
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Hunting
mesh_terms: D056804:Biofuels; D003247:Conservation of Natural Resources; D011211:Electric Power Supplies; D004560:Electricity; D004563:Electrochemistry / Q000379:methods; D004566:Electrodes; D004736:Energy-Generating Resources; D006863:Hydrogen-Ion Concentration; D008422:Materials Testing; D053758:Nanoparticles / Q000737:chemistry; D036103:Nanotechnology / Q000379:methods; D010984:Platinum / Q000737:chemistry; D011108:Polymers / Q000737:chemistry*; D014025:Titanium / Q000737:chemistry; D014961:X-Ray Diffraction
chemical_list: D056804:Biofuels; D011108:Polymers; C009495:titanium dioxide; D010984:Platinum; D014025:Titanium