Use of Electrochemical Methods for Evaluation of Components for Liquid Fuel Cells

Abstract

An electrochemical study aimed at understanding the kinetic properties of oxidation of liquid organic fuels on a Pt disk was performed using cyclic voltammetry and rotating disk electrode techniques. Carbocyclic organic compounds and N-containing heterocyclic compounds were investigated as fuels. N-containing heterocyclic fuels were oxidized at lower potentials compared to carbocyclic fuels and the RDE behavior of the N-containing heterocycles indicated that the nitrogen atom in the cyclic ring favors proton release. For N-containing heterocyclic fuels having a conjugated ring, the position of the N-atom also impacted the reaction rate due to the resonance effect of the conjugated ring on the N atom.