Cheap nanocomposite with electrocatalytic application in fuel cells

Iranian researchers succeeded in the production of a nanocatalyst that is proper to be used in fuel cells.

The nanocatalyst has been produced from cheap and available materials, and it will be considered as a good replacement for the expensive platinum catalysts.

Methanol is an appropriate fuel in fuel cell systems. Since platinum is very expensive to be used as a catalyst in the oxidation of methanol, many studies have recently been carried out on the application of the cheap nickel as the catalyst of the reaction.

Nickel nanocomposite was used in this research to produce a catalyst with reasonable price. Materials can have appropriate modified properties in composite structure. Therefore, an appropriate conductive polymer containing carbon nanotubes was used in the production of the catalyst as a bed for nickel.

Nickel is one of the elements used in the production of a variety of electrodes that have application as catalysts in fuel cells. Therefore, the results of the research can be used in industries related to emerging energies, such as fuel cell systems. This catalyst can also be used in electrocatalytic processes to characterize the biological and medical samples.

Materials used in the synthesis of this nanocomposite are available and cheap in comparison with similar catalysts, and they can be easily synthesized through electrochemical method. Therefore, the electrocatalyst produced from these materials is considered as a good replacement for catalysts containing platinum, which are very expensive.

The application of this nanocomposite is very important to extend the use of non-fossil and green energy (fuel cell) systems.

Results of the research have been published in ELECTROCHIMICA ACTA, vol. 159, issue 1, 2015, pp. 140-148.