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Influence of the Composition and Preparation of the Rotating Disk Electrode on the Performance of Mesoporous Electrocatalysts in the Alkaline Oxygen Reduction Reaction
Author(s) -
Daems Nick,
Breugelmans Tom,
Vankelecom Ivo F. J.,
Pescarmona Paolo P.
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
chemelectrochem
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.182
H-Index - 59
ISSN - 2196-0216
DOI - 10.1002/celc.201700907
Subject(s) - electrocatalyst , mesoporous material , selectivity , rotating disk electrode , nafion , electrode , rotating ring disk electrode , catalysis , chemistry , inorganic chemistry , chemical engineering , carbon fibers , mesoporous silica , materials science , electrochemistry , composite material , cyclic voltammetry , organic chemistry , composite number , engineering
We report a systematic study of the influence of the composition and preparation method of the electrocatalyst layer deposited on the rotating (ring) disk electrodes (RDE/RRDE) employed in the alkaline oxygen reduction reaction (ORR). To investigate and rationalize the generally underestimated role of these factors on the ORR performance of mesoporous electrocatalysts, we studied the activity and selectivity of nitrogen‐doped ordered mesoporous carbon as a function of the loading of electrocatalyst and of binder, of the type of binder, and of the addition order of the components onto the electrode. The use of an anion‐exchange polymer (Fumion FAA‐3®) as the binder instead of the commonly employed Nafion® increased the selectivity towards H 2 O 2 and led to a lower kinetic current density. In addition, higher selectivity towards H 2 O was observed when increasing the loading of the catalyst and of the binder, although the latter resulted in a decreased kinetic current density. These results prove the crucial effect of the composition and preparation method of the layer deposited on the electrode on the ORR performance of the mesoporous electrocatalyst and can provide useful guidelines in view of the translation of the results of RDE studies to an alkaline fuel‐cell setup.