Catalytic activity of carbon-supported iridium oxide for oxygen reduction reaction as a Pt-free catalyst in polymer electrolyte fuel cell

Iridium oxide supported on Vulcan XC-72 carbon black (IrO2/C) as a cathode catalyst for polymer electrolyte fuel cell (PEFC) has been characterized by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) measurement. The IrO2 particles were 8–160 nm in diameter. The oxygen electroreduction activity was studied by cyclic voltammetry (CV). It was found that IrO2/C had high oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) activity. The performance of the membrane electrode assemble (MEA) was also tested in a single PEFC and showed that IrO2/C catalyst would be potential candidates for use as cathode catalyst in PEFC.