A TiC@TiO2-C Support for Pt Catalysts to Boost the Oxygen Reduction Reaction

Abstract

The design of advanced supports to boost the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) in acidic media is of great significance for proton exchange membrane fuel cells. Herein, TiC@TiO2-C supports are prepared by the sol-gel method coupled with high-temperature annealing. The obtained Pt/TiC@TiO2-C catalyst exhibits outstanding ORR activity such as the half-wave potential of 0.84 V-RHE as well as strong electrochemical stability in 0.1 m HClO4 electrolyte, surpassing the Pt/TiO2-C and Pt/C catalyst. This result is attributed to the electron transfer from the support to Pt nanoparticles accelerated by the TiC core, which optimizes the electronic structure of Pt to boost the ORR.