Efficient Methanol Oxidation Catalysis by PtNi Nanowires with Controllable Element Distribution

Pt-based alloys with precisely controllable element distribution are highly sought after in catalysis. This study focuses on optimizing elemental distribution and alloying in PtNi alloy nanowires (NWs) through high-temperature heat treatment. The resulting PtNi alloy NWs with uniform elemental distribution (U-PtNi NWs) demonstrate exceptional stability, attributed to facilitated electron transfer and a denser Pt shell, in stark contrast to untreated NWs that suffer from elemental segregation and subsequent performance degradation during electrochemical testing. In methanol oxidation reaction tests, U-PtNi NWs demonstrated exceptional mass activity (1562.0 mA mg–1) and specific activity (5.38 mA cm–2), with minimal activity loss after 1000 cycles. This work emphasizes the significance of precise component control in developing high-performance catalysts and presents a strategy to enhance fuel cell performance through one-dimensional nanocomponent adjustment.