Pt(3)Sn nanoparticles enriched with SnO(2)/Pt(3)Sn interfaces for highly efficient alcohol electrooxidation

Pt(3)Sn nanoparticles (NPs) enriched with Pt(3)Sn/ultra-small SnO(2) interfaces (Pt(3)Sn@u-SnO(2)/NG) were synthesized through a thermal treatment of Pt(2)Sn/NG in a H(2) atmosphere, followed by annealing under H(2) and air conditions. The unique structure of Pt(3)Sn NPs enriched with Pt(3)Sn/SnO(2) interfaces was observed on the Pt(3)Sn@u-SnO(2)/NG catalyst based on HRTEM. The optimized Pt(3)Sn@u-SnO(2)/NG catalyst achieves high catalytic activity with an ethanol oxidation reaction (EOR) activity of 366 mA mg(Pt)(−1) and a methanol oxidation reaction (MOR) activity of 503 mA mg(Pt)(−1) at the potential of 0.7 V, which are eight-fold and five-fold higher than those for the commercial Pt/C catalyst (44 and 99 mA mg(Pt)(−1), respectively). The Pt(3)Sn@u-SnO(2)/NG catalyst is found to be 3 times more stable and have higher CO tolerance than Pt/C. The outstanding performance of the Pt(3)Sn@u-SnO(2)/NG catalyst should be ascribed to the synergetic effect induced by the unique structure of Pt(3)Sn NPs enriched with Pt(3)Sn/SnO(2) interfaces. The synergetic effect between Pt(3)Sn NPs and ultra-small SnO(2) increases the performance for alcohol oxidation because the Sn in both Pt(3)Sn and SnO(2) favors the removal of CO(ads) on the nearby Pt by providing OH(ads) species at low potentials. The present work suggests that the Pt(3)Sn@u-SnO(2) is indeed a unique kind of efficient electrocatalyst for alcohol electrooxidation.