Tailoring the electron density of Pd nanoparticles through electronic metal-support interaction for accelerating electrocatalysis of formic acid

Abstract The electronic interaction between metal and supports can regulate the activity of heterogeneous nanomaterials. We designed four supported Pd catalysts (Pd/ZnO, Pd/TiO2, Pd/Al2O3 and Pd/SiO2) for the electrocatalytic activity toward the formic acid oxidation reaction (FAOR). The electrochemical results demonstrate that Pd/ZnO exhibits superior electrocatalytic activity toward FAOR, which can be attributed to the decreased electron density of ZnO-supported Pd nanoparticles, as further confirmed by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopic characterization and CO stripping electrochemical measurement. This study provides an effective method for the design of high-efficiency electrocatalysts, which could be also useful for studying the surface electronics of supported metal-nanoparticle.