Energy efficiency enhancement of ethanol electrooxidation on Pd-CeO(2)/C in passive and active polymer electrolyte-membrane fuel cells.

Pd nanoparticles have been generated by performing an electroless procedure on a mixed ceria (CeO(2))/carbon black (Vulcan XC-72) support. The resulting material, Pd-CeO(2)/C, has been characterized by means of transmission electron microscopy (TEM), inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectroscopy (ICP-AES), and X-ray diffraction (XRD) techniques. Electrodes coated with Pd-CeO(2)/C have been scrutinized for the oxidation of ethanol in alkaline media in half cells as well as in passive and active direct ethanol fuel cells (DEFCs). Membrane electrode assemblies have been fabricated using Pd-CeO(2)/C anodes, proprietary Fe-Co cathodes, and Tokuyama anion-exchange membranes. The monoplanar passive and active DEFCs have been fed with aqueous solutions of 10 wt% ethanol and 2 M KOH, supplying power densities as high as 66 mW cm(-2) at 25 °C and 140 mW cm(-2) at 80 °C. A comparison with a standard anode electrocatalyst containing Pd nanoparticles (Pd/C) has shown that, at even metal loading and experimental conditions, the energy released by the cells with the Pd-CeO(2)/C electrocatalyst is twice as much as that supplied by the cells with the Pd/C electrocatalyst. A cyclic voltammetry study has shown that the co-support ceria contributes to the remarkable decrease of the onset oxidation potential of ethanol. It is proposed that ceria promotes the formation at low potentials of species adsorbed on Pd, Pd(I)-OH(ads), that are responsible for ethanol oxidation.

Self-sustainable production of hydrogen, chemicals, and energy from renewable alcohols by electrocatalysis.

The selective and simultaneous production of hydrogen and chemicals from renewable alcohols, such as ethanol, glycerol, and ethylene glycol, can be accomplished by means of electrolyzers in which the anode electrocatalyst is appropriately designed to promote the partial and selective oxidation of the alcohol. In the electrolyzers described herein, the production of 1 kg of hydrogen from aqueous ethanol occurs with one-third the amount of energy required by a traditional H(2)/O(2) electrolyzer, by virtue of the much lower oxidation potential of ethanol to acetate vs. water to oxygen in alkaline media (E(0)=0.10 V vs. 1.23 V). The self-sustainability of H(2) production is ensured by the simultaneous production of 25 kg of potassium acetate for every kg of H(2), if the promoting co-electrolyte is KOH.

Ethanol oxidation on electrocatalysts obtained by spontaneous deposition of palladium onto nickel-zinc materials.

Ni-Zn and Ni-Zn-P alloys supported on Vulcan XC-72 are effective materials for the spontaneous deposition of palladium through redox transmetalation with Pd(IV) salts. The materials obtained, Pd-(Ni-Zn)/C and Pd-(Ni-Zn-P)/C, have been characterized by a variety of techniques. The analytical and spectroscopic data show that the surface of Pd-(Ni-Zn)/C and Pd-(Ni-Zn-P)/C contain very small, highly dispersed, and highly crystalline palladium clusters as well as single palladium sites, likely stabilized by interaction with oxygen atoms from Ni--O moieties. As a reference material, a nanostructured Pd/C material was prepared by reduction of an aqueous solution of PdCl(2)/HCl with ethylene glycol in the presence of Vulcan XC-72. In Pd/C, the Pd particles are larger, less dispersed, and much less crystalline. Glassy carbon electrodes coated with the Pd-(Ni-Zn)/C and Pd-(Ni-Zn-P)/C materials, containing very low Pd loadings (22-25 microg cm(-2)), were studied for the oxidation of ethanol in alkaline media in half cells and provided excellent results in terms of both specific current (as high as 3600 A g(Pd)(-1) at room temperature) and onset potential (as low as -0.6 V vs Ag/AgCl/KCl(sat)).

Polyamine-polycarboxylate metal complexes with different biological effectiveness as nitric oxide scavengers. Clues for drug design.

The synthesis of the Fe(III), Co(II), Mn(II), and Ru(III) complexes with two polyamine-polycarboxylate ligands, N-(2-hydroxyethyl)ethylenediamine-N, N', N'-triacetic acid (H3L1) and ethylene bisglycol tetraacetic acid (H4L2) is reported. Potentiometric studies showed that these ligands form stable complexes in aqueous solution and no metal release occurs, thus accounting for their low toxicity in cultured RAW 264.7 macrophages. X-ray characterization of the [Co(L1)](-) complex showed that binding sites are available at the metal for NO binding. Efficiency of these compounds to bind NO was studied by UV-vis spectrophotometry. Then their NO-scavenging properties were assayed in a cell-free system under physiological conditions, using S-nitroso-N-acetyl-D,L-penicillamine (SNAP) as NO source. The L1 complexes caused the most effective reduction of free NO, [Mn(L1)](-) being the most efficient. Conversely, in NOS II induced RAW 264.7 macrophages, the Ru(III) and Co(II) complexes with L2 were the most effective compounds. [Ru(L2)](-) also afforded significant protection against lipopolysaccharide-induced endotoxic shock in the mouse in vivo.