One-Pot Synthesis of Pt-Pd Nanospheres Anchored in 2D-Reduced Graphene Oxide Sheets for Electrocatalytic Methanol Oxidation

Abstract

Recently, direct methanol fuel cells (DMFCs) have been identified as suitable alternatives for efficient energy conversion and pollution-free technology. This study reports the preparation of binary platinumpalladium (Pt-Pd) nanospheres anchored on reduced graphene oxide (rGO) sheets (Pt-Pd/rGO sheets) using a wet chemical technique. The structural and morphological features were analyzed using X-ray powder diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), Raman microscope and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy. The homogeneous anchored Pt-Pd nanospheres with an average size of 3.85 nm were deposited on to the surface of rGO sheets. Methanol oxidation studies were analyzed through a simple drop coating method using a glassy carbon electrode (GCE). The methanol oxidation performance of the Pt-Pd/rGO nanospheres coated GCE was higher than that of the rGO sheets coated with a single metal (Pt or Pd). The concordant integration of the Pt and Pd nanospheres/rGO-interface improved performance.