title: Facile synthesis of flower-like platinum nanostructures as an efficient electrocatalyst for methanol electro-oxidation.
abstract: This paper presents a facile approach for the synthesis of a novel Pt/graphene-nickel foam (Pt/GNF) electrode composed of flower-like Pt nanoparticles (NPs) and 3D graphene. The fabrication process involved the chemical vapor deposition of graphene onto Ni foam as a substrate and the subsequent growth of Pt NPs via a galvanic replacement reaction without using any seed and organic solvent. The surface morphology and composition of the prepared materials were characterized. Meanwhile, cyclic voltammetry and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy were employed to confirm their typical electrochemical characteristics. The as-prepared nanocomposites displayed enhanced catalytic activity and kinetics toward methanol electro-oxidation. Such an excellent performance can be ascribed to the high dispersion of flower-like Pt NPs and to the exposure of more sites provided by the flower-like structure. The improved stability, decreased charge transfer resistance, and enhanced reaction rate of the nanocomposites promise new opportunities for the development of direct methanol fuel cells.
authors.affiliation: College of Materials Science and Engineering, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610065, China.
authors.forename: Jie
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: College of Materials Science and Engineering, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610065, China. Electronic address: jwchen@scu.edu.cn.
authors.forename: Jinwei
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: College of Materials Science and Engineering, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610065, China.
authors.forename: Yiwu
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Jiang
authors.affiliation: College of Materials Science and Engineering, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610065, China.
authors.forename: Feilong
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Zhou
authors.affiliation: College of Materials Science and Engineering, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610065, China.
authors.forename: Jing
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Zhong
authors.affiliation: College of Materials Science and Engineering, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610065, China.
authors.forename: Gang
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: College of Materials Science and Engineering, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610065, China.
authors.forename: Maryam
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kiani
authors.affiliation: College of Materials Science and Engineering, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610065, China. Electronic address: rl.wang@scu.edu.cn.
authors.forename: Ruilin
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Wang
keywords: Electrocatalyst; Flower-like Pt nanoparticle; Graphene; Methanol oxidation; Nickel foam