Efficient and durable gas diffusion electrode for proton exchange membrane fuel cell via in-situ growth of Pt nanowires on dual microporous layer

Catalyst layer (CL) is the key factor of affecting the performance of proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs). Herein, a facile and universal strategy is proposed to in situ grow Pt nanowires (Pt-NWs) on a dual microporous layer (MPL) as a novel CL for PEMFCs application. The dual MPL is composed of hydrophobic layer and hydrophilic layer, where the former facilitates mass transport and the latter favors the in-situ growth of Pt-NWs. During the whole preparation, only formic acid is used as reducing agent, no surfactants or templates are involved. The as-prepared Pt-NWs are uniformly grown on the surface of carbon particles to form a unique CL. The effect of dual MPL structure on PEMFCs performance is investigated, by which an optimal carbon powder content ratio (4:1) between hydrophobic layer and hydrophilic layer is determined. The single cell tests reveal that the Pt-specific power of the resultant MEA with 0.108 mg cm−2 Pt-NWs is up to 7.23 W mg−1, about twice higher than that for commercial Pt/C MEA with 0.2 mg cm−2 Pt loading. Furthermore, the resulted GDE shows enhanced durability compared to commercial one, indicating the good potential of in-situ prepared Pt-NWs electrode for practical PEMFC applications.