Building a better fuel cell begins with surface chemistry
Tuesday, February 12, 2019 - 07:50
in Physics & Chemistry
Fuel cells powered by electrocatalytic reactions have the potential to eliminate pollution caused by burning fossil fuels, if they could be made more efficient. Key to higher efficiency are the chemical reactions at the surfaces of the materials involved. An international team of scientists peered deep into the molecular reactions of ethanol on gold surfaces in alkaline environments typically seen in model fuel cells.