Platinum Nanostructures by Template Wetting Nanofabrication and Their Use in a Miniature Fuel Cell Membrane Electrode Assembly

Template wetting nanofabrication was used to fabricate platinum nanotubes in a porous alumina template membrane. The resulting high surface area platinum nanostructures were characterized electrochemically using cyclic voltammetry and chronoamperometry for both methanol and formic acid oxidation reaction. Performance compared favorably to a commercial platinum black catalyst in terms of surface area and activity. Leaving the nanotubes partially imbedded in the alumina template allows for a convenient means of incorporating this catalyst into a membrane electrode assembly. A simple MEA was thus fabricated utilizing platinum nanotubes embedded in a porous alumina membrane as both the anode and cathode. This was utilized in a small direct methanol fuel cell and current voltage characteristic measured.