Selective Glycerol‐to‐glycerate Electro‐oxidation on Cerium‐modified Pt/C Nanocatalyst in an Alkaline Direct Alcohol Fuel Cell: Cogeneration of Energy and Value‐added Products

Abstract

Glycerol electro‐oxidation reaction was performed in an alkaline environment with an anion exchange membrane fuel cell (AEMFC) operating in bath mode at low Pt‐loadings. BAE‐synthesized Pt/C and PtCe/C nanostructured catalysts were used as anode materials during 4‐hour operation to selectively obtain 65 % and 41 % of glycerate as main product, respectively. The modification of Pt with Ce improved the catalytic activity of the Pt/C catalyst generating 30 % more energy density after 4‐hour operation by achieving a higher degree of glycerol oxidation in cogeneration with added‐value products confirmed by spectroelectrochemical (in situ FTIR) and liquid chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (LC–MS) analyses. The bifunctional mechanism generated by the presence of Ce is used to explain the improvement in the catalytic activity of Pt/C, due to the properties of this rare earth element to adsorb oxygenated species (OH−) and promote oxidation. The cathode material was a polyol‐synthesized PdFe/C electro‐catalyst for ORR that presented impressive stability and tolerance to glycerol.

Regulating the Mesoporous Structure of Carbon Nanospheres by a Local Ablation Method for High-Performance PEMFC Catalysts

“…As promising clean energy sources, proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs) present enormous potential to replace the traditional internal combustion engines as zero-emission power sources for vehicles in the future. − However, the commercialization of fuel cell electric vehicles (FCEVs) still faces three major challenges: performance improvements, cost reduction, and life development. − The most crucial part of this process is to reduce costs without sacrificing performance. ,, Therefore, high-performance PEMFCs with low Pt usage are a research hotspot. , However, there is insufficient utilization of Pt, sometimes even as low as 10% . Especially under the condition of low Pt loading, a slight decrease in Pt utilization leads to great performance losses. , Improving Pt utilization has become a prerequisite for realizing high-performance PEMFCs with low amounts of Pt.…”