Hybrid palladium nanoparticles and nickel single atom catalyst for efficient electrocatalytic ethanol oxidation

The electrocatalytic ethanol oxidation reaction (EOR) is a critical component for direct ethanol fuel cells, while its reactivity, stability, and selectivity toward C1 products are severely hindered by the poisoning effect of CO species on the surface of noble-metal catalysts. In this work, we developed a hybrid material of palladium nanoparticles and nickel single-atom catalyst (Pd NPs@Ni SAC) for efficient EOR. The Pd nanoparticles catalyzed the breaking of carbon-carbon bonds of ethanol, while the adsorbed CO intermediates were removed by the Ni single-atom catalyst. The Pd NPs@Ni SAC structure exhibited outstanding EOR performances, including a high mass activity, good selectivities of C1 products, and a high electrocatalytic stability. Our work suggests an attractive perspective of utilizing single-atom electrocatalysts for ethanol oxidation.