Platinum is the gold standard for fuel-cell catalysts, but its price and scarcity are among the biggest obstacles to making hydrogen power practical. A new materials design from researchers at Washington University in St. Louis could change that.
The team engineered a nanostructured carbon support that holds fuel-cell catalysts together far more effectively than conventional materials, allowing the catalysts to use tiny amounts of platinum while remaining remarkably stable and efficient over time. In fuel cells, catalyst particles often degrade because the carbon supports they sit on corrode — nanoparticles can dissolve, migrate and clump together, robbing the cell of its performance. The new design, reported this week, appears to suppress that degradation.
The advance matters beyond the lab: hydrogen fuel cells are being eyed as a cleaner way to power everything from vehicles to data centers, where they could one day replace diesel generators as backup power. Cheaper, longer-lasting catalysts address the cost barrier that has kept fuel cells from scaling up.
The results point toward fuel cells that use a fraction of the platinum — and last longer — bringing hydrogen power a step closer to commercial reality.
