We present here a critical review of several technologically important electrocatalytic systems operating in alkaline electrolytes. These include the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) occurring on catalysts containing Pt, Pd, Ir, Ru, or Ag, the methanol oxidation reaction (MOR) occurring on Pt-containing catalysts, and the ethanol oxidation reaction (EOR) occurring on Ni-Co-Fe alloy catalysts. Ea...

Materials chemistry and electrochemistry have long been very active elds of research accelerated by chance discoveries, societal needs, and the ever expanding constituency of researchers around the globe. Advances in synthesis, characterisation techniques, and interdisciplinary research have caused an almost exponential growth in research where applications have been driving the focus – especi...

In the highly competitive market of fuel cells, solid alkaline fuel cells using liquid fuel (such as cheap, non-toxic and non-valorized glycerol) and not requiring noble metal as catalyst seem quite promising. One of the main hurdles for emergence of such a technology is the development of a hydroxide-conducting membrane characterized by both high conductivity and low fuel permeability. Plasma ...

Recently, increasingly attentions have been paid to the electro-oxidation of ethanol in alkaline media in the context of using ethanol as a fuel in anion-exchange membrane fuel cell. Alkaline media presents several advantages compared to acidic media. It has been found that the electrocatalytic activity for etanol oxidation in alkaline media is much higher than that in acidic media [1]. Further...

In this work we evaluated the potentiality of a poly(imide) (PI)/organically-modified montmorillonite (O-MMT) nanocomposite membrane for the use in alkaline fuel cells. Both X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy revealed a good dispersion of O-MMT into the PI matrix and preservation of the O-MMT layered structure. When compared to the pure PI, the addition of O-MMT improved thermal...

To produce an anion-conductive and durable polymer electrolyte for alkaline fuel cell applications, a series of quaternized poly(2,6-dimethyl phenylene oxide)s containing long alkyl side chains pendant to the nitrogen-centered cation were synthesized using a Menshutkin reaction to form comb-shaped structures. The pendant alkyl chains were responsible for the development of highly conductive ion...

We report a specially designed alkaline polymer electrolyte (APE) with extraordinary stability in both physical and chemical properties, which enables applications of fuel cells and electrolysis at elevated temperatures.