Methanolysis and electrooxidation of sodium borohydride on CNT supported Pd and Au bimetallic catalysts

Abstract

In this study, carbon nanotube (CNT) supported bimetallic PdAu catalysts are synthesized by sodium borohydride reduction method at different atomic molar ratios. X-ray diffraction (XRD), high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HR-TEM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and scanning electron microscopy and energy-dispersive X-ray (SEM-EDX) analytical techniques have been applied for characterization of the synthesized catalysts. Sodium borohydride electrooxidation activities of PdAu/CNT catalysts and hydrogen generation performances by sodium borohydride methanolysis are researched. The electrocatalytic activities of the catalysts are assigned by electrochemical methods such as cyclic voltammetry (CV), chronoamperometry (CA), and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS). PdAu(50:50)/CNT catalyst exhibits the highest catalytic activity as 39.624 mA/cm2 with long-term stability and low resistance. The initial hydrogen generation rate of PdAu (50:50)/CNT catalyst is obtained as 61840.0 mL/min.gcat under optimum conditions. As a result, PdAu(50:50)/ CNT catalyst is promising both as an anode electrode material and as a catalyst for sodium borohydride methanolysis.