Summary
Cutting the amount of platinum in fuel-cell electrodes while keeping high activity is a central challenge for proton-exchange-membrane fuel cells (PEMFC). This work proposes using electrospun nickel nanofibres as a one-dimensional support onto which only a thin platinum layer is added. Nickel nanofibres were first produced by electrospinning and converted to metal through tailored thermal treatments; platinum was then introduced by galvanic displacement, exchanging surface nickel atoms for platinum. The authors describe a notably faster, microwave-assisted version of this displacement step. The resulting Pt/Ni fibrous electrocatalysts were characterised for their oxygen-reduction activity with a view to PEMFC electrodes, illustrating how electrospun metal nanofibres can serve as efficient, low-platinum supports for fuel-cell catalysts.