Access

Letter

Nature Materials 8, 325–330 (1 April 2009) | doi:10.1038/nmat2359

Ternary Pt/Rh/SnO2 electrocatalysts for oxidizing ethanol to CO2

A. Kowal , M. Li , M. Shao , K. Sasaki , M. B. Vukmirovic , J. Zhang , N. S. Marinkovic , P. Liu , A. I. Frenkel & R. R. Adzic

Ethanol, with its high energy density, likely production from renewable sources and ease of storage and transportation, is almost the ideal combustible for fuel cells wherein its chemical energy can be converted directly into electrical energy. However, commercialization of direct ethanol fuel cells has been impeded by ethanol|[rsquo]|s slow, inefficient oxidation even at the best electrocatalysts.