Electro-Oxidation of Formic Acid, Methanol, and Ethanol on Electrodeposited Pd-Polyaniline Nanofiber Films in Acidic and Alkaline Medium

Abstract

We present here a simple and direct electrochemical method of depositing a porous Palladium-Polyaniline (Pd-PANI) nanofiber film on conducting surfaces. The one step method consists of the in situ polymerization of aniline in the solution and simultaneous formation of a film of Pd-PANI. The scanning electron microscopy (SEM) images show a dendritic structure and energy dispersive X-ray analysis (EDAX) and XPS confirm the presence of Pd in the nanofiber film. The cyclic voltammetric studies in acid media show a large electroactive surface area and high hydrogen absorption capacity of the porous film. The excellent electrocatalytic activity of Pd-PANI nanofiber film has been confirmed from the electro-oxidation reaction of formic acid in acidic media and alcohols (ethanol and methanol) in alkaline medium, making it a potential candidate for direct fuel cells (DFCs) in both acidic and alkaline media.

Recent Development of Pd-Based Electrocatalysts for Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cells

“…Bai et al [110] supported Pd nanoparticles on polypyrrole-modified fullerene and the Pd/ppy-C60 catalyst showed a good electrocatalytic activity and stability for the oxidation of formic acid. Pd on polyaniline (Pd-PANI) nanofiber film [56], on polypyrrole (PPy) film [111] and PMo12 [112] showed excellent catalytic activity in the oxidation reaction of formic acid in acidic media. Qin et al [113] synthesized highly dispersed and active Pd/carbon nanofiber (Pd/CNF) catalyst which exhibited good catalytic activity and stability for the oxidation of formic acid.…”

“…Pandey et al [56] deposited a porous Pd-polyaniline (Pd-PANI) nanofiber film on conducting surfaces and the Pd-PANI showed excellent electrocatalytic activity towards the oxidation of ethanol. Su et al [143] prepared Pd/polyamide 6 (Pd/PA6) nanofibers with high surface area using a simple electroless plating method.…”

Electro-oxidation of ethylene glycol and glycerol at palladium-decorated FeCo@Fe core–shell nanocatalysts for alkaline direct alcohol fuel cells: functionalized MWCNT supports and impact on product selectivity

“…Palladium (Pd)-based catalysts are attracting major attention as the most viable materials for ADAFCs. [13][14][15][16] The interest in Pd stems from its natural abundance and low-cost compared to Pt (Pd currently sells at half the price of Pt), [17][18][19][20][21][22][23] and enhanced electrochemical kinetics in alkaline media and ADAFCs than Pt catalysts.…”

Nanoporous PdNi Bimetallic Catalyst with Enhanced Electrocatalytic Performances for Electro-oxidation and Oxygen Reduction Reactions

“…[ 3 ] It has been demonstrated that palladium exhibit higher electrocatalytic activity than platinum for formic acid electro-oxidation by direction oxidation without adsorbed CO as poisoning species. [ 4 ] Moreover, palladium bimetallic alloys, instead of pure palladium, possess enhanced electrochemical activities because the bimetallic alloys can facilitate desorption of molecule species and result in more surface site availability and thus higher catalytic activity. [ 5 ] For examples, PdSn, Pd 50 Co 50 and PdAu bimetallic catalysts exhibit much higher catalytic activity and stability for electrooxidation of formic acid and ethanol than commercial Pd/C catalyst; [6][7][8][9] and PdFe and PdCu alloys possess enhanced performances in oxygen reduction reaction (ORR).…”