A new electrocatalyst manufacturing method reduces the amount of platinum to one hundredth the amount generally required for commercial products. This advance could mean a significant cost savings for electrolysers, which are central to growth of renewable energy.
Electrolysers store electric energy in hydrogen bonds. They are often used to store fluctuating energy, such as that generated by a wind turbine.
Platinum price and availability are two limiting factors for electrolyser manufacturing. The European Union is working to reduce the use of this scarce resource within the Union; the new method would help achieve this goal.
A research team from Finland’s Aalto University, led by Tanja Kallio and Kari Laasonen, based the new technique on the special characteristics of carbon nanotubes. Kallio and her colleagues speculate that carbon atoms on the curves of a nanotube are in a “strained” state. The strained carbon atoms make electrodeposited platinum atoms form small and catalytically active particles. The smaller the nanotube, the greater the degree of strain, leading to better stabilized platinum particles.
Small-scale tests conducted at room temperature demonstrated the electrocatalyst’s stability and reusability. The team’s next step will be to increase production and test the catalyst in practical applications.
