The widespread application of direct methanol fuel cells (DMFCs) is limited by the sluggish kinetics of the anodic reaction, the high cost of catalysts, and their susceptibility to poisoning. Pd-based catalysts are among the most promising anode materials for DMFCs; however, their sluggish methanol oxidation reaction (MOR) kinetics and poisoning resistance require further enhancement to meet practical demands. In this study, we accurately regulate the electronic structure of Pd by synthesizing a series of Pd-Cu/C alloy catalysts with precisely controlled Pd/Cu atomic ratios, thereby realizing the efficient and poison-resistant electrocatalyst for MOR. Theoretical calculations reveal that the electronic structure of Pd is modulated by controlling the incorporation of Cu, which weakens CO* adsorption at Pd sites and enhances OH* affinity at Cu sites, accelerating the oxidation and removal of CO* on Pd sites, boosting the methanol oxidation performance of PdCu alloys. The PdCu/C catalyst (Pd:Cu = 1:1) exhibited a remarkable mass activity of 1276.82 mA·mgPd-1, 1.86 times higher than Pd/C (686.95 mA·mgPd-1), and retained 61.3% of its activity in durability tests, surpassing Pd/C (48.4%). CO stripping tests further confirmed its superior CO tolerance. This work provides a pathway for developing high-performance, CO-tolerant anode catalysts suitable for advanced fuel cells.
Ye et al. (2025) studied this question.