Interfacial metal–coordinated bifunctional PtCo for practical fuel cells
Zhongliang Huang, Qi Xiao, Tianyi Ding, Jing Xia, Changhong Zhan, Xiangmin Meng, Chih‐Wen Pao, Zhiwei Hu, Wei‐Hsiang Huang, Yingru Wang, Nanjun Chen, Liang Cao, Xiaoqing Huang
Abstract
Platinum (Pt) has been documented as the top-tier fuel cell catalyst, yet it faces a notable challenge regarding its poor CO tolerance and sluggish oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) in proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs), particularly when using CO-contaminated blue and gray H 2 . Here, we present an interfacial metal coordination strategy to design a bifunctional platinum-cobalt (PtCo) intermetallic catalyst integrated with a tin-nitrogen-carbon (Sn–N–C) support, which forms Pt–Sn–N bonds that substantially boost both ORR activity and CO tolerance. The PtCo/Sn–N–C-made fuel cell achieves a topmost peak power density of 2.11 watts per square centimeter in 100 parts per million (ppm) of CO-containing H 2 , surpassing all previously reported PEMFCs. In addition, it operates stably at a rated voltage for over 710 hours in 100 ppm of CO/H 2 -air. This work demonstrates the feasibility of fuel cells directly using CO-contaminated gray & blue H 2 , paving the way for PEMFC-driven energy vehicles.