Ultrafine TaOx/CB Oxygen Reduction Electrocatalyst Operating in Both Acidic and Alkaline Media

Abstract

The high activity of non-platinum electrocatalysts for oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) in alkaline media is necessary for applications in energy conversion devices such as fuel cells and metal-air batteries. Herein, we present the electrocatalytic activity of TaOx/carbon black (CB) nanoparticles for the ORR in an alkaline atmosphere as well as in an acidic electrolyte. Ultrafine TaOx nanoparticles 1–2 nm in size and uniformly dispersed on CB supports were prepared by potentiostatic electrodeposition in a nonaqueous electrolyte and subsequent annealing treatment in an H2 flow. The TaOx/CB nanoparticles largely catalyzed the ORR with an onset potential of 1.03 VRHE in an O2-saturated 0.1 M KOH solution comparable to that of a commercial Pt/CB catalyst. ORR activity was also observed in 0.1 M H2SO4 solution. According to the rotating ring disk electrode measurement results, the oxide nanoparticles partly produced H2O2 during the ORR in 0.1 M KOH, and the ORR process was dominated by both the two- and four-electron reductions of oxygen in a diffusion-limited potential region. The Tafel slope of −120 mV dec−1 in low and high current densities revealed the surface stability of the oxide nanoparticles during the ORR. Therefore, these results demonstrated that the TaOx/CB nanoparticles were electroactive for the ORR in both acidic and alkaline electrolytes.