Fabrication of Pt, Pt-Cu, and Pt-Sn nanofibers for direct ethanol protonic ceramic fuel cell application

Poly(vinyl pyrrolidone) with a M (w) of 1.3 x 10(6) g/mol (PVP) or 4 x 10(4) g/mol (PVPLow) was used as a polymer to fabricate PVP-Pt, PVP-Pt-Cu, and PVPLow-Pt-Sn composite fibers by electrospinning. The effect of varying the electrospinning conditions on the fiber morphology was investigated, and the solution composition and electrospinning parameters were optimized to obtain composite fibers with a minimal bead formation. Pt, Pt-Cu, and Pt-Sn metal nanofibers were then obtained by heat treatment of the respective PVP-metal or PVPLow-metal composite fibers at 300, 350, and 450 A degrees C, respectively, in air for 5 h. Single cells of a direct ethanol protonic ceramic fuel cell were subsequently fabricated by applying the metal nanofibers, or a commercial Pt paste, as the anode on the surfaces of BaY0.2Zr0.8O3-delta pellets and Pt paste as the cathode. The I-V polarization results showed that the metal nanofiber-based anode single cells provided higher maximum power densities than that of the Pt paste anode, with the Pt nanofiber-based anode single cell producing the highest maximum power density of 0.58 mW/cm(2) at 550 A degrees C.