Origins of Nanoalloy Catalysts Degradation during Membrane Electrode Assembly Fabrication
Despite extensive efforts to reduce the costs of high-performance electrochemical devices, incorporating catalyst materials frequently falls short of achieving performance targets. Platinum alloys, known for their high oxygen reduction activity, exemplify this challenge due to integration difficulties. Here, we introduce an in situ X-ray diffraction approach to investigate structural changes in PtCo and PtNi catalysts during ink preparation. Contrary to previous assumptions that acidity is the main factor driving catalyst dissolution, our findings demonstrate that temperature plays a more critical role. Additionally, we observe rapid structural degradation during the hot-pressing of catalyst-coated membranes (CCMs), a critical yet often unavoidable processing step. These results indicate that significant catalyst deactivation can occur before operation, emphasizing the need for optimized fabrication processes. This study highlights the importance of refining ink formulation and processing protocols to fully leverage advanced materials in CCM-based energy conversion systems.
Authors
- Peter Kúš (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2246-4426)
- Michal Ronovský (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8702-6056)
- Peter Strasser (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3884-436X)
- Francisco Ruiz‐Zepeda (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2637-3433)
- Enrico A. Petrucco (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1710-2869)
- Olivia Dunseath
- Nejc Hodnik (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7113-9769)
- Jakub Drnec (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9520-1555)
- Andrea Sartori (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0740-8423)
- Matija Gatalo (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5041-7280)
- Tomáš Hrbek (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6041-2125)
- Alex Martinez Bonastre
- Daniel C. G. Götz
- Shlomi Polani (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5961-0661)
- Hridya Nedumkulam
- Jan Kubát
Institutions
- Charles University (CZ)
- European Synchrotron Radiation Facility (FR)
- Johnson Matthey (United Kingdom) (GB)
- National Institute of Chemistry (SI)
- Slovenska Industrija Jekla (Slovenia) (SI)
- Technische Universität Berlin (DE)
Publication Details
- Journal
- ACS Energy Letters
- Published
- 2024-10-03
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1021/acsenergylett.4c02350
- Citations
- 15
- Primary Topic
- Electrocatalysts for Energy Conversion
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 1.54
Funders
- Javna Agencija za Raziskovalno Dejavnost RS
- European Research Council
- H2020 Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions
- HORIZON EUROPE European Innovation Council