The oxidation resistance of tungsten carbide as catalyst support for proton exchange membrane fuel cells

Electrochemical oxidation of carbon supports for Pt/C catalysts can cause degradation of proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs). To improve the oxidation resistance of the catalyst supports, tungsten carbide (WxCy) was investigated as a substitute for carbon supports in PEMFCs. The Pt/C and Pt/WxCy samples were oxidized using the chronoamperometry method. The electrochemical active area of the two samples was measured using cyclic voltammetry. Furthermore, the Pt/C and Pt/WxCy catalysts were applied to single cells to compare their performance degradation after oxidation. As a result, the single cell prepared with Pt/WxCy catalyst showed higher oxidation resistance than the contrastive cell prepared with Pt/C catalyst.