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US 8,709,127 B2Granted
Porous dendritic platinum tubes as fuel cell electrocatalysts
AssigneesGM Global Technology Operations LLC, The University of Western Ontario
InventorsMei Cai, Xueliang Sun, Gaixia Zhang, Shuhui Sun, Ruying Li
Life of this patent
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Abstract
Platinum particles have been formed as porous, hollow tubular dendrites by using silver dendrite particles in a galvanic replacement reaction conducted in an aqueous solution of a platinum compound. The dendritic platinum particles have been found useful as catalysts and particularly useful as a hydrogen-oxidation electrocatalyst and/or an oxygen-reduction catalyst in a polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cell.
Claims8
A method of making porous, dendritic, elemental platinum tubes, the method comprising:
- forming an aqueous solution of platinum cations, the solution being formed with an amount of the platinum cations and at a temperature;
- adding dendritic particles of an elemental second metal to the solution, the dendritic particles of the elemental second metal having a greater reduction potential than the platinum cations, the amount of platinum cations being such that dendritic particles of the elemental second metal are dissolved and a portion of the amount of platinum cations are precipitated as porous, hollow, dendritic tubes of elemental platinum;
- the temperature of the solution, the amount of platinum cations, and the selection of the second elemental metal producing the porous dendritic platinum tubes;
- and separating the porous dendritic platinum tubes from the solution.
1 more element
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.