Rapid synthesis of a Pt1Ru1/carbon nanocomposite using microwave irradiation:: A DMFC anode catalyst of high relative performance

Thermal treatment of (eta -C2H4)(Cl)Pt(mu -Cl)(2)Ru(Cl) (eta (3):eta (3)-2,7- dimethyloctadienediyl) (1)/ Vulcan carbon composites under appropriate oxidizing and reducing conditions using microwave dielectric loss heating affords PtRu/Vulcan carbon nanocomposites consisting of PtRu alloy nanoparticles highly dispersed on a powdered carbon support. Two such nanocomposites containing 16 or 50 wt % total metal and alloy nanoclusters of 3.4- or 5.4nm average diameter are formed within only 100 or 300 s of total microwave heating. XRD and on-particle EDS analyses reveal that complex 1 serves as a reliable single-source molecular precursor for the formation of PtRu nanoparticles having a nearly 1:1 metal alloy stoichiometry. Preliminary measurements of the catalytic activity of these nanocomposites as supported direct methanol fuel cell (DMFC) anode catalysts indicate that the 50 wt % nanocomposite has a performance superior to that of a 60 wt % commercial catalyst and a normalized performance equivalent to that of a proprietary unsupported Pt1Ru1 catalyst.