Preparation, characterization, and high performance of RuSe/C for direct methanol fuel cells

RuSe/C catalysts prepared by different methods have been tested for oxygen reduction and the results analyzed based on the active species and particle size distribution. Inorganic precursor methods exhibit higher catalytic performance than the carbonyl method. Selenious acid is an excellent inorganic precursor. X-ray photoelectron spectra indicate that selenium in a high oxidation state is more active than that with zero valence. The effect of operating conditions is analyzed for catalysts prepared by the inorganic precursor method. The optimum heat-treatment temperature for both active phase formation and particle size distribution is 300 °C. A performance of 62 mW cm−2 at 80 °C is obtained using 80 wt.% RuSe/C in the cathode.