A novel TiO2 nanofiber supported PdAg catalyst for methanol electro-oxidation

A novel PdAg/TiO2 nanofiber electrocatalyst for methanol oxidation was fabricated by using TiO2 nanofiber as support. The structural and electrochemical properties of the PdAg/TiO2 nanofiber catalyst were characterized by XRD (X-ray diffraction), TEM (the transmission electron microscopy) and electrochemical analysis. The experiment results showed that the large surface area and porous structure of TiO2 nanofiber were preferable to the dispersion of nanosized PdAg alloy on the surface of TiO2 nanofiber support. The electrocatalytic activity for methanol oxidation of the PdAg/TiO2 nanofiber catalyst has shown promising electrocatalytic and anti-poisoning capabilities. The methanol oxidation mechanism of the PdAg/TiO2 nanofiber catalyst was mainly resulted from the photocatalytic function of the composite TiO2 material that had high catalytic activity without UV light illumination. The PdAg/TiO2 catalyst might become a promising candidate for direct methanol fuel cell.