Uniform Nafion® coated HRA anode for high performance micro DMFC

This paper proposes a high reaction area (HRA) electrode with finely dispersed electrocatalysts supported on carbon nanotubes (CNTs) for high performance micro direct methanol fuel cell (μDMFC). Ionomer Nafion^® loading by spin-coating on the catalysts was in-detail investigated for performance enhancement in anodic half-cell. In terms of electrochemical surface area (ESA) and charge transfer resistance (RCT), the ionomer-coated Pt/CNTs/Si-based plate electrode at 4000rpm (ESA: 32.37m²/gPt, RCT: 19Ωcm²) is demonstrated superior than the best performed electrocatalysts in previous studies (ESA: 25~35m²/gPt, RCT: 35~60Ωcm²), providing enhanced catalytic activity and much faster charge transfer rate during the methanol electro-oxidation.