In situ ETEM study of composition redistribution in Pt-Ni octahedral catalysts for electrochemical reduction of oxygen

Transformation of carbon-supported Pt-Ni octahedral electrocatalysts into cubes: toward stable electrocatalysis

Octahedral Pt-Ni catalyst nanoparticles (NPs) are predicted to exhibit high activity for the oxygen reduction reaction. However, until now this class of catalysts has been limited by its long-term performance, as a result of compositional and morphological instabilities of the NPs. In situ transmission electron microscopy (TEM) is a powerful technique for understanding morphological and compositional evolution under controlled conditions. It is of great importance to study the evolution of the morphology and elemental distribution in bimetallic NPs and their interaction with the support in reducing and oxidizing treatments at the atomic scale for the rational design of catalysts. Here, we use in situ TEM to follow dynamic changes in the NP morphology, faceting and elemental segregation under working conditions in previously unreported Pt-Ni core-shell octahedral structures. We follow changes in the Pt-Ni catalyst from a segregated structure to an alloyed shell configuration and then a more spherical structure as a function of temperature under reducing conditions. Exposure to an oxidizing environment then leads to oxidation of the C support, while the spherical NPs undergo a cycle of transformations into cubic NPs followed by the reaction to spherical NPs. The formation of the cubic NPs results from CO formation during C oxidation, before it is finally oxidized to CO₂. Our observations may pave the way towards the design of optimized structure-stability electrocatalysts and highlight the importance of TEM visualization of degradation and transformation pathways in bimetallic Pt-Ni NPs under reducing and oxidizing conditions.

Shape Stability of Octahedral PtNi Nanocatalysts for Electrochemical Oxygen Reduction Reaction Studied by in situ Transmission Electron Microscopy

Octahedral faceted nanoparticles are highly attractive fuel cell catalysts as a result of their activity for the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR). However, their surface compositional and morphological stability currently limits their long-term performance in real membrane electrode assemblies. Here, we perform in situ heating of compositionally segregated PtNi_1.5 octahedral nanoparticles inside a transmission electron microscope, in order to study their compositional and morphological changes. The starting PtNi_1.5 octahedra have Pt-rich edges and concave Ni-rich {111} facets. We reveal a morphological evolution sequence, which involves transformation from concave octahedra to particles with atomically flat {100} and {111} facets, ideally representing truncated octahedra or cuboctahedra. The flat {100} and {111} facets are thought to comprise a thin Pt layer with a Ni-rich subsurface, which may boost catalytic activity. However, the transformation to truncated octahedra/cuboctahedra also decreases the area of the highly active {111} facets. The morphological and surface compositional evolution, therefore, results in a compromise between catalytic activity and morphological stability. Our findings are important for the design of more stable faceted PtNi nanoparticles with high activities for the ORR.

Structural Evolution of Sub-10 nm Octahedral Platinum-Nickel Bimetallic Nanocrystals

Octahedral Pt alloy nanocrystals (NCs) have shown excellent activities as electrocatalysts toward oxygen reduction reaction (ORR). As the activity and stability of NCs are highly dependent on their structure and the elemental distribution, it is of great importance to understand the formation mechanism of octahedral NCs and to rationally synthesize shape-controlled alloy catalysts with optimized ORR activity and stability. However, the factors controlling the structural and compositional evolution during the synthesis have not been well understood yet. Here, we systematically investigated the structure and composition evolution pathways of Pt-Ni octahedra synthesized with the assistance of W(CO)₆ and revealed a unique core-shell structure consisting of a Pt core and a Pt-Ni alloy shell. Below 140 °C, sphere-like pure Pt NCs with the diameter of 3-4 nm first nucleated, followed by the isotropic growth of Pt-Ni alloy on the seeds at temperatures between 170 and 230 °C forming Pt@Pt-Ni core-shell octahedra with {111} facets. Owing to its unique structure, the Pt@Pt-Ni octahedra show an unparalleled stability during potential cycling, that is, no activity drop after 10 000 cycles between 0.6 and 1.0 V. This work proposes the Pt@Pt-Ni octahedra as a high profile electrocatalyst for ORR and reveals the structural and composition evolution pathways of Pt-based bimetallic NCs.

Regioselective Atomic Rearrangement of Ag-Pt Octahedral Catalysts by Chemical Vapor-Assisted Treatment

Thermal annealing is a common, and often much-needed, process to optimize the surface structure and composition of bimetallic nanoparticles for high catalytic performance. Such thermal treatment is often carried out either in air or under an inert atmosphere by a trial-and-error approach. Herewith, we present a new chemical vapor-assisted treatment, which can preserve the octahedral morphology of Ag-Pt nanoparticles while modifying the surface into preferred composition arrangements with site-selectivity for high catalytic activity. In situ environmental transmission electron microscope (ETEM) study reveals a relatively homogeneous distribution of Ag and Pt is generated on the surface of Ag-Pt nanoparticles upon exposure to carbon monoxide (CO), whereas Pt atoms preferably segregate to the edge regions when the gas atmosphere is switched to argon. Density functional theory (DFT) calculations suggest stabilization of Pt atoms is energetically favored in the form of mixed surface alloys when CO vapor is present. Without CO, Ag and Pt phase separate under the similar mild treatment condition. There exists a close correlation between the tunable surface structures and the catalytic activities of Ag-Pt octahedral nanoparticles.

Continuous Production of Carbon-Supported Cubic and Octahedral Platinum-Based Catalysts Using Conveyor Transport System

A conveyor transport system is developed for the continuous production of carbon-supported uniform Pt nanocubes, and Pt₃ Ni nanocubes and octahedra in a single-reaction system under hot carbon monoxide environment. Oleylamine is critical for the high loading and even the dispersion of Pt nanocubes on a carbon support. The metal catalyst shows high performance in electrocatalytic oxidation of methanol.

Control of the composition of Pt-Ni electrocatalysts in surfactant-free synthesis using neat N-formylpiperidine

This paper describes the facile and surfactant-free synthesis of faceted Pt-Ni alloy nanoparticle electrocatalysts using neat N-formylpiperidine as a new type of solvent. Unlike the widely-used colloidal synthesis based on long-carbon chain surfactants, nanoparticles made in neat N-formylpiperidine possess a directly accessible surface for electrocatalytic reactions, making it a very attractive alternative solvent. The area-specific oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) activity is much higher than the commercial Pt/C catalyst reference and reaches a maximum of 1.12 mA cm(-2) for the Pt-Ni alloy nanoparticles. We observed that the freshly formed Pt-Ni alloy could have controllable bulk and near surface compositions under the same initial reaction conditions and precursor ratio. The change in the composition could be attributed to the effect of CO on the formation of uniform nuclei at the initial stage, and a different deposition rate between Pt and Ni metals during the growth. The well-defined Pt-Ni nanoparticle catalysts show strong composition-dependent catalytic behavior in ORR, highlighting the important role of controlling the growth kinetics in the preparation of active Pt-Ni ORR catalysts.