The
intermediate toxic species COads produced by electrocatalytic
oxidation of methanol have a high adsorption energy on the surface
of Pt active sites and are difficult to convert, which is the main
reason for the poisoning and deactivation of Pt electrocatalysts in
direct methanol fuel cells. In this study, a series of PtSn/CeO2-CNTs alloy catalysts were prepared by an ethylene glycol
hydrothermal reduction method using CeO2-modified carbon
nanotubes (CNTs) as the support. The electrochemical properties of
a series of PtSn alloy catalysts were measured by using a methanol
oxidation reaction (MOR) as a probe reaction. The results show that
the excellent electrochemical performance is mainly attributed to
the introduction of CeO2 and the synergistic effect among
the Sn and Pt intermetallic nanoparticles. An in situ transient analysis platform investigated the electrocatalytic oxidation
path of methanol molecules at the surface and interface of Pt100-CNTs and Pt42Sn58/CeO2-CNTs catalysts. It was clear that methanol was converted by the
CO path, and the introduction of Sn and CeO2 synergistically
promoted the rapid conversion of intermediate toxic species COads, which effectively improved the activity and stability
of Pt catalysts and accelerated the MOR rate. It provides a new idea
and basis for the rational design and optimization of Pt electrocatalysts.