Making an Anode of a Hydrogen–Air Fuel Cell More Tolerant to CO: PtRuCo/C Catalyst and Synergistic Effect of PtRu/C and Oxygen Additives

Methods for making platinum-based catalytic systems (Pt/C, PtRu/С) in an anode for a low-temperature hydrogen–air fuel cell with a Nafion membrane more tolerant to CO were suggested and implemented. A PtRuCo/C trimetallic catalyst was synthesized, and the influence of the modification of the binary catalyst with cobalt on the current characteristics of the fuel cell was evaluated in a model of a hydrogen–air fuel cell. The fuel cell models had higher operation characteristics in oxidation of pure and technical-grade hydrogen, compared to those with the monoplatinum and binary catalysts. The influence of the air injection into hydrogen containing CO impurities was analyzed. The contribution of the air injection is manifested more strongly for the binary system than for the monoplatinum system. The trimetallic catalyst in combination with the air injection into hydrogen fuel can be used for optimizing the operation of the membrane–electrode unit of a fuel cell operating on technical-grade hydrogen.