Development of novel nanosized electrocatalysts for direct bioethanol fuel cells

替代能源的开发已经成为研究和开发的关键问题。这一探索的主要目标之一是减少二氧化碳等温室气体的排放。燃料电池作为汽车、便携式或固定设备的电源似乎非常有前途。甲醇一直被认为是替代燃料领域的有力竞争者。然而，甲醇对人和动物的生命是一种有毒化合物。它也是一种污染物，因此由于对环境的危害，它的广泛使用是不可想象的。乙醇是一种很好的替代品，它具有非常积极的环境、健康和安全足迹，没有重大的不确定性或危险。从生物质中可以大量地获得乙醇。因此，生物乙醇具有吸引力，因为它不会改变大气中二氧化碳的自然平衡。乙醇的完全电氧化包括每个乙醇分子释放12个电子和C-C键的断裂。后者被认为在该机制中起着关键作用，并对燃料电池的效率和理论能量产率起着决定性的作用。因此，一个好的乙醇完全氧化的电催化剂必须激活C-C键的断裂，同时避免催化剂表面的CO物种中毒，就像甲醇氧化一样。该项目的最终目标是开发形状、尺寸和组成可控的新型纳米催化剂，具有良好的稳定性和增强对乙醇氧化的电催化活性。我们建议通过表征乙醇与几种铂基化合物的微观结构和物理性质，确定反应中间产物和毒物的特性，并将它们与电极的电化学性能联系起来，来研究乙醇与几种铂化合物的相互作用。该项目产生的新知识和高素质人员的培训将对刺激加拿大新一代技术部门的发展至关重要。

The development of alternative power sources has become a crucial issue of research and development. One of the main goals in this quest is the reduction of emission of greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide. Fuel cells appear to be very promising as power supplies for automotive, portable or stationary applications. Methanol has been considered a strong contender in the realm of alternative fuels. However, methanol is a toxic compound to human and animal life. It is also a pollutant, so that its extensive use is inconceivable because of environmental hazards. A good substitute is ethanol, which has a very positive environmental, health, and safety footprint with no major uncertainties or hazards. Ethanol can be obtained in great quantity from biomass. Bio-generated ethanol is thus attractive since it will not change the natural balance of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. The complete electro-oxidation of ethanol involves the release of 12 electrons per ethanol molecule and the cleavage of the C-C bond. The latter bond is believed to play a key role in the mechanism and has a determining effect on the fuel cell efficiency and the theoretical energy yield. Thus, a good electrocatalyst towards the complete oxidation of ethanol must activate the C-C bond breaking while avoiding the poisoning of the catalytic surface by CO species as it occurs with methanol oxidation. The ultimate goal of this project is to develop new catalyst nanoparticles of well-controlled shape, size, and composition with excellent stability and enhanced electrocatalytic activity towards the oxidation of ethanol. We propose to investigate the interaction of ethanol with several Pt-based compounds by characterizing the microstructure and physical properties, determining the identities of the reaction intermediates and poisons, and relating them to the electrochemical performance of the electrode. The new knowledge generated from this project and the training of highly qualified personnel will be critical in stimulating the development of Canadian novel next generation technology sectors.