Microfluidic direct methanol fuel cell by electrophoretic deposition of platinum/carbon nanotubes on electrode surface

Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) supported platinum (Pt) nanoparticles prepared via electrophoretic deposition are used as catalyst layer of a microfluidic direct methanol fuel cell (DMFC), to study the influence of catalyst layer materials and deposition methods on the cell performance. A Y-shaped channel is designed and microfabricated. It is verified by cyclic voltammetric measurements that shows ca. 317.7% increase in the electrochemical active surface area for the electrode with CNTs over that without CNT. Scanning electron microscopy observations indicate the network formation within the electrode because of a 3-D structure of CNTs, which could be beneficial to the increasing electrode kinetics and to the improvement in fuel utilization. Comparison between the DMFCs with and without CNTs as support shows that the proof-of-concept microfluidic DMFC with Pt/CNTs electrode is able to reach a maximum power density of 5.70mWcm^-2 at 25°C, while the DMFC with plain Pt electrode only has a maximum power density of 2.75mWcm^-2.