Behind the buzz and beyond the hype: Our Nanowerk-exclusive
feature articles Posted: Oct 6th, 2006 A new promising class of
non-precious metal catalysts for fuel cells (Nanowerk Spotlight)
Fuel cells are electrochemical energy conversion devices for the
direct conversion of the chemical energy of a fuel into
electricity. They are among the key enabling technologies for
the transition to a hydrogen-based economy. Of several different
types of fuel cells under development today, polymer electrolyte
fuel cells (PEFCs) have been recognized as a potential future
power source for zero emission vehicles. However, to become
commercially viable, PEFCs have to overcome the barrier of high
catalyst cost caused by the exclusive use of platinum and
platinum-based catalysts in the fuel-cell electrodes.
Researchers at Los Alamos National Laboratory now demonstrate a
new class of low cost (non-precious metal/heteroatomic polymer)
nanocomposite catalysts for the PEFC cathode, capable of
combining high oxygen-reduction activit