Boosting Alcohol Oxidation Electrocatalysis with Multifactorial Engineered Pd1/Pt Single-Atom Alloy-BiOx Adatoms Surface

Engineering nanomaterials at single-atomic sites could enable unprecedented catalytic properties for broad applications, yet it remains challenging to do so on the surface of multimetallic nanocrystals. Herein, we present the multifactorial engineering (size, shape, phase, and composition) of the fully ordered PtBi nanoplates at atomic level, achieving a unique catalyst surface where the face-centered cubic (fcc) Pt edges are modified by the isolated Pd atoms and BiO_x adatoms. This Pd₁/Pt-BiO_x electrocatalyst exhibits an ultrahigh mass activity of 16.01 A mg^-1_Pt+Pd toward ethanol oxidation in alkaline electrolyte and enables a direct ethanol fuel cell of peak power density of 56.7 mW cm^-2. The surrounding BiO_x adatoms are critical for mitigating CO-poisoning on the Pt surface, and the Pd₁/Pt single-atom alloy further facilitates the electrooxidation of CH₃CH₂OH. This work offers new insights into the rational design and construction of sophisticated catalyst surface at single-atomic sites for highly efficient electrocatalysis.