Improvement of the Electrocatalytic Properties for the Methanol Oxidation Reaction (MOR) of the CoPt Alloy

Abstract

The commercialization of the Direct Methanol Fuel Cell (DMFC) is limited due to the high cost and low efficiency of the electrocatalysts. In this context, the development of new electrocatalysts able to efficiently oxidize the methanol and to have at the same time low price and high stability is one of the researcher’s milestones. In this work, CoPt alloys with different Pt content were prepared, and the efficiency of the alloys to be used as electrocatalysts for the methanol oxidation reaction (MOR) was investigated. Our data show that the electrocatalytic performance of the CoPt electrodeposited alloys is strongly influenced by the synthesis conditions, mainly by the potential applied during the synthesis. The best electrocatalytic activity was obtained for the samples prepared at −0.8 V/SCE.