(702f) Nitrogen Substituted Carbon Nanotubes as An Electrode Support for Pt in Formic Acid Electrooxidation

Electrode supports play an important role in effective anchoring and dispersion of Pt metal in electrooxidation of fuels such as methanol and formic acid. The electrode supports reduces the sintering of Pt particles and show high influence in stable operation of fuel cells. At present, commercially Vulcan XC-72 carbon has been used as an electrode support due its properties such as high specific conductivity and low double layer charge compared to other carbon electrode supports. Recently, carbon in nanomaterials such nanotubes, nanofibres, and nanosheets have attracted great interest. Such electrode supports demonstrate different structural, physical, and electronic properties by the arrangement of carbon network. The surface properties of carbon nanotubes, for example, can be altered by chemical treatment or substitutional doping of heteroatoms. This work focuses on the effect of nitrogen substitution in carbon nanotubes (NCNT) as a support for Pt anchoring in formic acid electrooxidation. Synthesis of nitrogen containing carbon nanotubes and how they can help in anchoring Pt in preferential orientation is presented. The results of NCNTs for formic acid electrooxidation have been compared with the other commercial electro catalyst (HiSpec 3000) and commercial support Vulcan-XC 72. The results of this work play a significant role in the development of fuel cell electrodes.