Catalytic enhancement of formic acid electro-oxidation through surface modifications with gold on supported Pt nanoparticles

Abstract

The Formic Acid Electro-oxidation (FAEO) on Pt/Au Nanoparticles (PtAu NP) supported on Hierarchical Porous Carbon (HPC), was studied by cyclic voltammetry and chronoamperometry. The supported HPC-Pt nanoparticles were surface modified by Au spontaneous deposits. The morphological and compositional characterization was performed by Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) coupled with Electron Dispersive Spectroscopy (EDS). A significant increase of the current densities for FAEO in the potential region 0.1?0.75 V RHE was observed on HPC-PtAu catalysts. The comparison with HPC-Pt electrodes results show that Au atoms presence on Pt nanoparticles is a key factor to improve the catalysts performance. Based on our results, a clear change in FAEO mechanism on HPC-PtAu catalysts with respect to HPC-Pt was evidenced.