Surfactant-Free Platinum Catalysts for Enhanced Stability and Efficiency in Electrochemical Toluene Hydrogenation

초록

Liquid organic hydrogen carriers are promising materials for hydrogen storage and transportation, crucial for advancing renewable energy systems. These carriers enable hydrogen storage and release through hydrogenation and dehydrogenation processes, respectively. This study investigated the electrochemical hydrogenation of toluene to methylcyclohexane using various Pt/C catalysts. Despite the well-established effectiveness of commercial Pt/C (cPt/C) as an electrochemical catalyst in aqueous systems, it showed an unexpected decline in catalytic activity for toluene hydrogenation. To address this, Pt/C catalysts were synthesized with and without trisodium citrate (TSC). The catalyst without TSC (sPt/C (w/o TSC)) exhibited better stability and Faradaic efficiency with minimal nanoparticle aggregation. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) analysis confirmed the presence and change of organic compounds on the catalyst surface that promote Pt nanoparticle aggregation. These findings underscore the need to consider surfactant effects when developing electrocatalysts for organic solvents, emphasizing the importance of surface chemistry in optimizing the stability of Pt/C catalysts.

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