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Pulsed laser deposition (PLD) was used to prepare Pt nanoparticles on gas diffusion electrode by varying the Argon pressure in the deposition chamber. X-ray diffraction analysis and electrocatalytic activity of Pt nanoparticle indicate that the Argon pressure of 800 mTorr is the best operating point. The PLD catalysts was used at anode side of a polymer electrolyte membrane (PEM) fuel cell. With a Pt loading of only 25 μg-Pt/cm², current density of the cell reaches 1366 mA/cm² at 0.6 V, approximately equal to that of a cell using commercial Pt/C of much higher Pt loading (200 μg-Pt/cm²). The mass specific power density (MSPD) of PLD catalysts is about ten times as compared with commercial Pt/C. Even with lower Pt loading of 13 μg-Pt/cm², the current density still have 1032 mA/cm² .The MSPD is 47.6 kW/g. The primary reason that PLD catalysts show higher MSPD may be ascribed to reduced occurrence of island formation, which is common for traditional Pt/C catalysts. TEM images indicate that the Pt nanoparticles have good dispersion. The size of the Pt nanoparticle is approximately 2-3 nm. Higher Pt loading causes Pt particles to aggregate. This is the main reason that MSPD decreases with increasing Pt loading. Electrochemical analysis found electrochemical active surface area decreases with increasing platinum loading, due to Pt particle size increase and particle aggregation. The electrochemical characteristic results agree well with the fuel cell performance measurements.

Pulsed laser deposition; PEM fuel cell; catalysts; Mass specific power density