Development and activity enhancement of zirconium/vanadium oxides as micro-heterogeneous ceramic electrocatalyst for ORR in low temperature fuel cell

A porous nano-metal oxide composite consisting of zirconium oxide and vanadium oxide (ZrVNPs) was prepared using precipitation hydrothermal technique, followed by microwave sintering process in order to enhance the catalytic activity toward oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) which is a key reaction in the development of low-temperature fuel cell technology. Microwave sintering process conditions were optimized using response surface methodology models (RSM) and the optimized produced material was called ZrV-T. The physiochemical and electrochemical activities of the fabricated materials were investigated and the results elucidated that, the catalytic efficiency of prepared samples is influenced by morphology, lattice structure, and porosity, as well as metal–support interactions and interfacial structural changes that affect oxygen molecules adsorption and activation. The thermally treated composite (ZrV-T) exhibits higher oxygen reduction performance than the non-sintered material (ZrVNPs). Both materials have different half-wave potentials (E1/2 = ?0.36 V) and (E1/2 = ?0.29 V) for ZrVNPs and ZrV-T respectively. In addition, ZrV-T has a higher stability than the Pt/C catalyst in 0.1 M KOH solution by 4% after 120 min. Using ZrV-T is likely to reduce costs in FCs and promote the use of electrochemical energy devices and it may also be beneficial in other systems that promote catalytic activity.