Preparation of highly dispersed and ultrafine Pd/C catalyst and its electrocatalytic performance for hydrazine electrooxidation

Abstract The highly dispersed and ultrafine carbon supported Pd nanoparticles (Pd/C) catalyst was synthesized by NaBH 4 reduction method in the presence of ethylenediamine-tetramethylene phosphonic acid (EDTMP) ligand. The formation of the ultrafine Pd nanoparticles can be attributed to the avoidance of Pd(OH) 2 precipitation and the decrease in the reduction potential of Pd II species in EDTMP–Pd II complex during the preparation of Pd/C catalyst. Electrochemical measurements indicated the resulting Pd/C catalyst possessed a significant electrocatalytic performance for hydrazine oxidation under the strong acidic conditions, indicating that the Pd/C catalyst has potential application in fabrication of acidic direct hydrazine fuel cell.