To be Updated with new approved abstracts

Platinum nanoparticles are highly active electrocatalyst for the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR). We investigated different substrates (TiO2-C, Al2O3-TiO2-C, carbon black) as support of 10wt% metal Pt. Nanostructured base platinum electrocatalysts were synthesized via ultrasound method in absence of any special capping agent or thermal treatments to reduce cost. The catalysts were characterized by x-ray diffraction (XRD) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) techniques to investigate their structure and morphology. The electrochemical performance was evaluated using cyclic voltammetry and linear voltammetry techniques in presence and absence of methanol to analyze the tolerance to small organic molecules for the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) in direct methanol fuel cells (DMFC). The results obtained by these measurements were compared to those obtained with Pt/C commercial material. The crystalline structure of platinum was demonstrated by XRD. A poor distribution of platinum onto the substrates was observed by TEM images using ultrasound technique. However, the tolerance to methanol was improved by adding TiO2 to the conventional carbon support. A higher electrochemical activity for the ORR was obtained with Pt/TiO2-C material synthesized compared with the commercial sample and Pt/Al2O3-TiO2-C materials prepared. The electronic interaction of Pt with TiO2 caused a synergy effect that increases the electrochemical activity for ORR in presence of methanol.