title: Enhanced electrocatalytic activity of Pt nanoparticles supported on functionalized graphene for methanol oxidation and oxygen reduction.
abstract: Reduced graphene oxide (RGO) is modified with 1,1'-dimethyl-4,4'-bipyridinium dichloride (methyl viologen, i.e. MV) by a π-π interaction, and further used as support for immobilization of Pt nanoparticles to prepare a Pt/MV-RGO catalyst for direct methanol fuel cells. Transmission electron microscopy, X-ray powder diffraction, Raman spectroscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy are used to characterize the morphology and microstructure of the prepared catalyst. Electrocatalytic performance of the as-prepared Pt/MV-RGO hybrid is investigated by cyclic voltammetry, linear scan voltammetry, COads stripping voltammetry and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. The Pt/MV-RGO hybrid exhibits much higher catalytic activities than Pt/RGO toward both methanol oxidation and oxygen reduction, suggesting that Pt/MV-RGO hybrid could be a promising electrocatalyst for high-performance direct methanol fuel cells applications.
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory of Advanced Functional Materials, Autonomous Region, Institute of Applied Chemistry, Xinjiang University, Urumqi 830046, People's Republic of China; College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Xinjiang University, Urumqi 830046, People's Republic of China. Electronic address: junhong@xju.edu.cn.
authors.forename: Junhong
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Ma
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory of Advanced Functional Materials, Autonomous Region, Institute of Applied Chemistry, Xinjiang University, Urumqi 830046, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Li
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory of Advanced Functional Materials, Autonomous Region, Institute of Applied Chemistry, Xinjiang University, Urumqi 830046, People's Republic of China; College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Xinjiang University, Urumqi 830046, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Xue
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Mu
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory of Advanced Functional Materials, Autonomous Region, Institute of Applied Chemistry, Xinjiang University, Urumqi 830046, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Yali
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Cao
keywords: 1,1′-Dimethyl-4,4′-bipyridinium dichloride; Direct methanol fuel cells; Non-covalent functionalized graphene; Pt electrocatalyst