Three-dimensional ordered macroporous platinum-based electrode for methanol oxidation

In this paper, three-dimensional ordered macroporous platinum catalysts with high real sur- face area were synthesized using the inverted col- loidal crystals template technique and have been employed for the electrooxidation of methanol. The morphology and electrocatalytic behavior of the po- rous Pt electrodes were investigated with atomic force microscopy and electrochemical techniques. For the same amount of Pt deposited, the real sur- face areas of the electrodes are 9.16 and 8.00 cm2 for the porous electrodes with pore size of 320 and 500 nm respectively, which are more than 5 times larger than the directly deposited Pt electrode (1.4 cm2). The pore size effect on the methanol elec- trooxidation was investigated by testing low concen- tration solution of methanol and porous materials with different pore sizes. The synthesized macroporous Pt electrode shows high stability toward the electrooxi- dation of methanol and is promising for the direct methanol fuel cell.