v
Preface
Electrochemistry, and fuel cell electrocatalysis in particular, has undergone exceptional progress in the last 20 years. This has been facilitated by the development of
several experimental techniques that can characterize electrochemical systems in
situ with an atomic level resolution and molecular specificity. A number of surface
science techniques applied ex situ provided additional structural characterization.
These techniques have enabled the exploration of the role of surface structure in
determining reaction kinetics using well-ordered single crystal surfaces and wellcharacterized nanoparticle catalysts. This work established the importance of surface crystallography on reaction kinetics, provided novel information on the
structure of active sites, and elucidated the structure of adlayers and adsorbatesubstrate interactions. In parallel to these advances in research, strong theoretical
developments helped in understanding the new information and providing guidelines for further work.
In this book, we describe the creation of platinum monolayer electrocatalysts
which constitute an extraordinary breakthrough that will profoundly impact the science and technology of electrocatalysis. They promise to decrease the platinum
content in catalysts to the ultimately low levels of a single atomic layer on a suitable
core and to maximize platinum utilization to close to one hundred percent. We discuss how platinum activity and stability can be increased and controlled by the tuning of catalyst properties, which can be effectuated by the supporting core-platinum
shell interaction.
In the introductory part of the book, we discuss basic notions of the science of
electrocatalysis: the formation of the electrical double layer, the potential distribution at the electrode–electrolyte interface, and the charge transfer in electrode reactions. The electrode potential, charge transfer reactions, and current–potential
curves and basic formal electrode kinetics are presented. The differences between
catalytic and non-catalytic reactions are explained. The role of electrocatalysis in
Preface
Electrochemistry, and fuel cell electrocatalysis in particular, has undergone exceptional progress in the last 20 years. This has been facilitated by the development of
several experimental techniques that can characterize electrochemical systems in
situ with an atomic level resolution and molecular specificity. A number of surface
science techniques applied ex situ provided additional structural characterization.
These techniques have enabled the exploration of the role of surface structure in
determining reaction kinetics using well-ordered single crystal surfaces and wellcharacterized nanoparticle catalysts. This work established the importance of surface crystallography on reaction kinetics, provided novel information on the
structure of active sites, and elucidated the structure of adlayers and adsorbatesubstrate interactions. In parallel to these advances in research, strong theoretical
developments helped in understanding the new information and providing guidelines for further work.
In this book, we describe the creation of platinum monolayer electrocatalysts
which constitute an extraordinary breakthrough that will profoundly impact the science and technology of electrocatalysis. They promise to decrease the platinum
content in catalysts to the ultimately low levels of a single atomic layer on a suitable
core and to maximize platinum utilization to close to one hundred percent. We discuss how platinum activity and stability can be increased and controlled by the tuning of catalyst properties, which can be effectuated by the supporting core-platinum
shell interaction.
In the introductory part of the book, we discuss basic notions of the science of
electrocatalysis: the formation of the electrical double layer, the potential distribution at the electrode–electrolyte interface, and the charge transfer in electrode reactions. The electrode potential, charge transfer reactions, and current–potential
curves and basic formal electrode kinetics are presented. The differences between
catalytic and non-catalytic reactions are explained. The role of electrocatalysis in