Improved hydrogen evolution on glassy carbon electrode modified with novel Pt/cetyltrimethylammonium bromide nanoscale aggregates

A novel, cost-effective, and simple electrocatalyst based on a Pt-modified glassy carbon electrode (GCE), using cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) as a cationic surfactant, is reported. Amphiphilic CTAB molecules were adsorbed on GCE by immersion in a CTAB solution. The positively charged hydrophilic layer, which consisted of small aggregates of average size less than 100 nm, was used for accumulation and complexation of [PtCl6](2-) anions by immersing the electrode in K2PtCl6 solution. The modified electrode was characterized using scanning electron microscopy, energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, impedance spectroscopy, and electrochemical methods. The electrocatalytic activity of the Pt particles in the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) was investigated. The results show that the CTAB surfactant enhances the electrocatalytic activity of the Pt particles in the HER in acidic solution. (C) 2015, Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.