Pt nanoparticles synthesized with new surfactants: improvement in C1–C3 alcohol oxidation catalytic activity

• Published in: Journal of applied electrochemistry 2014, Vol.44 (1), p.199-207
• Main Authors: Şen, Fatih, Gökağaç, Gülsün
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Chemistry; Chemistry and Materials Science; Electrochemistry; Industrial Chemistry/Chemical Engineering; Physical Chemistry; Research Article
• ISSN: 0021-891X; 1572-8838
• DOI: 10.1007/s10800-013-0631-5

Platinum electrocatalysts were prepared using PtCl 4 as a starting material and 1-decylamine, N , N -dimethyldecylamine, 1-dodecylamine, N , N -dimethyldodecylamine, 1-hexadecylamine, and 1-octadecylamine as surfactants. These surfactants were used for the first time in this synthesis to determine whether the primary and/or tertiary structure and/or chain length of the surfactants, affects the size and/or activity of the catalysts in C 1 –C 3 alcohol electro-oxidation reactions. Electrochemical measurements (cyclic voltammetry and chronoamperometry) indicated that the highest electrocatalytic performance was observed for the Pt nanocatalysts that were stabilized by N , N -dimethyldecylamine, and this has a tertiary amine structure with a short chain length (R = C 10 H 21 ). The high performance may be due to the high electrochemical surface area, Pt(0)/Pt(IV) ratio, %Pt utility, and roughness factor ( R f ). X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, atomic force microscopy, and transmission electron microscopy were used to determine the parameters that affect the catalytic activities.