Ultra-low casting of Pt based nano-ink for electrooxidation of glycerol and ethylene glycol fuels in alkaline medium

Abstract

For the first time we present an ultra-low casting of Pt based nano-ink on carbon paste electrodes (CPEs) for electrooxidation of glycerol and ethylene glycol fuels in alkaline medium. The platinum loaded carbon nanotube (Pt-CNT) synthesized by a microwave induced reaction has been extensively characterized by microscopic, spectroscopic and thermal gravimetric techniques. Pt-CNT has shown 6 and 33 fold improved activity for the Glycerol electrooxidation reaction (GOR) and ethylene glycol electrooxidation reaction (EGOR) vis-à-vis the commercial Johnson Matthey Pt-C. The low onset potentials and high current densities achieved using this novel nano ink is indicative of its plausible role in fuel cell applications.