Blue Pigment Catalysts Set Record in Fuel Cells, Cutting Platinum Dependence

Researchers at Tohoku University, Technion, and Hokkaido University have developed carbon-supported blue pigment catalysts for anion-exchange membrane fuel cells. These catalysts, based on iron tetra-azaphthalocyanines, achieved a peak power density of 902 milliwatts per square centimeter, the highest reported for this material class, without any platinum. The work, published in ACS Catalysis, shows that molecular design can close the performance gap between platinum and platinum-free catalysts. By optimizing the nitrogen-rich structure of the pigment molecules, the team strengthened the iron active site's oxygen binding, which translated into better fuel cell performance. The best catalyst also ran for 35 hours at a high load with low decay. This development could lower the cost of fuel cells for clean energy applications, especially in transportation and stationary power, by reducing reliance on expensive and scarce platinum.