ZB 23 - Modified electrodes for potential application in sensors and cells (M.Opallo)

Nanostructured metallic catalysts for electrochemical power sources fabricated by scanning electrochemical microscopy

Consumption of fossil fuels such as coal, oil and natural gas grows continuously causing (apart from a hypothetic influence on climate change) depletion of their easily accessible sources. This results in a need for renewable energy carriers.

One of the most interesting fuel for alternative power sources is ethanol which can be oxidized in direct ethanol fuel cells (DEFCs). Both electrooxidation of ethanol and oxygen reduction require efficient catalysts. One of the big challenges in DEFCs technology is to reduce the cost of catalyst material. The major contributor to the high cost is the platinum based catalyst. The development of efficient, low-cost, and stable catalysts as well as the improvement of kinetic properties under moderate conditions is very important. Therefore, exploration of non-noble catalysts is currently very active.

We developed a fast and reliable methodology for SECM preparation of nanostructured metallic catalysts and evaluation of their efficiency, selectivity, and specificity of various processes catalyzed by these nanostructures, especially catalytic processes occurring in alkaline fuel cells.