Electrocatalytic Materials for Fuel Cell Technologies

Electrocatalytic materials lie at the heart of fuel cell performance, durability and cost-effectiveness. Among the most studied systems are platinum and other noble metals dispersed as nanoparticles on conductive supports such as carbon, metal oxides or emerging two-dimensional materials. The activity of these catalysts is governed by their surface structure, electronic properties and interaction with the support, which together determine the kinetics of the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) at the cathode and hydrogen oxidation at the anode. Advances in support design—from graphitised carbon to oxides like tin dioxide and niobium-doped tin oxide—aim to suppress carbon corrosion, enhance catalyst dispersion and tune the metal d-band centre for improved ORR kinetics. Recent emphasis has been placed on strong metal-support interactions (SMSI) that promote stability under the cyclic potentials experienced during start-stop or high-load operation. Control of electrochemically active surface area (ECSA) through precise nanoparticle size and distribution remains a key strategy for maximising performance while minimising precious metal content. Collectively, these developments are steering fuel cell technologies towards lower cost, higher durability and broader commercial deployment.

Research from Nature Portfolio

Recent studies have employed aberration-corrected scanning transmission electron microscopy coupled with geometric phase analysis to visualise lattice strain within platinum nanoparticles on carbon and tin dioxide supports. These investigations reveal that substrate-induced strain is more pronounced on tin dioxide, particularly at atomic steps, and that such strain correlates with enhanced oxygen reduction activity. Density functional theory simulations corroborate the experimental observations, demonstrating how strain engineering and strong metal-support interactions can be harnessed to tune the catalytic properties of nanoparticles at the atomic scale.

Electrocatalytic Materials for Fuel Cell Technologies publication trend

The graph below shows the total number of articles in electrocatalytic materials for fuel cell technologies across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).

Technical terms

Proton-exchange membrane fuel cell (PEMFC): A device that converts chemical energy into electricity using a polymer membrane as the electrolyte, operating typically below 100 °C.

Oxygen reduction reaction (ORR): The electrochemical process at the cathode in which molecular oxygen is reduced to water, often the rate-limiting step in fuel cell operation.

Electrochemically active surface area (ECSA): The accessible surface area of a catalyst available for electrochemical reactions; directly influences catalytic activity and efficiency.

Strong metal-support interaction (SMSI): The electronic and structural coupling between metal nanoparticles and their support material, which can enhance catalyst stability and modify activity by altering metal electronic states.

References

1. Enhanced Durability and Catalytic Performance of Pt–SnO2/Multi‐Walled Carbon Nanotube with Shifted d‐Band Center for Proton‐Exchange Membrane Fuel Cells. Small Structures (2023).
2. Lattice Strain Mapping of Platinum Nanoparticles on Carbon and SnO2 Supports. Scientific Reports (2015).
3. Reduced Graphene Oxide-Supported Pt-Based Catalysts for PEM Fuel Cells with Enhanced Activity and Stability. Catalysts (2021).
4. Temperature Dependence of Oxygen Reduction Activity at Pt/Nb-Doped SnO2 Catalysts with Varied Pt Loading. ACS Catalysis (2021).