Herein, we report the preparation, characterisation and electrocatalysis of Pt/Cu bimetallic nanostructure
formed on Poly 3,4 ethylenedioxythiophene (PEDOT) modified glassy carbon electrode, Pt-Cu-PEDOT/GC.
A three-step procedure was adopted for the fabrication of the catalyst. Initially the glassy carbon electrode (GC) was modified by a uniform coating of PEDOT by potential cycling. Copper NPs were then
deposited on the PEDOT film by deposition from a 2 mM solution of CuSO4 in 0.1 M NaClO4 at a constant
potential of �0.477 V vs. SCE. Pt/Cu-PEDOT/GC catalyst was prepared by substitution of copper by
galvanic displacement with various concentrations of H2PtCl6. The electrode thus prepared displayed
very good electrocatalytic effect for methanol oxidation characterized by cyclic voltammetry. It was
found that the catalyst prepared with 2 mM H2PtCl6 exhibited the highest catalytic activity, with If/Ib
values of 1.80 and 1.38 for methanol concentrations of 1 M and 5 M, respectively. At a relatively low Pt
loading of 5.48 10�6
/cm2
, the Pt/Cu-PEDOT/GC should be a cost-effective alternative anode catalyst for
DMFC