Electrochemical study, design and realization of modified substrate of energy interest with low enviromental impact

The present thesis work focuses principally on the analysis of new electrocatalysts in the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) in an alkaline environment, for a future use in fuel cells and in electricity storage systems. We work also in the fields of electrodeposition and surface analysis. Different materials and modified surfaces with a low environmental impact have been studied. Specifically, the catalytic efficiency of carbons obtained from microwave oven-mediated pyrolysis of end-of-life tires and functionalized carbonaceous nanotubes with organic-Pd complexes (Single ion site) was evaluated. The study of the catalysts was carried out with electroanalytical techniques such as cyclic voltammetry (CV), Rotating Disk Electrode (RDE) and Rotating Ring and Disc Electrode (RRDE). Through a punctual and focused characterization with different investigation techniques, such as: SEM / TEM, XRF, XRD, µ-Tomography, XPS besides the use of BET, it was possible to determine which chemical-physical contributions are responsible for the excellent electrocatalytic performance of the samples object of study in half-cell conditions. The samples under study that showed the best performance in half cells were tested as cathodes in a fuel cell, obtaining comforting power values. In the last part of the thesis further on-line publications are reported with the research project “Electrochemical study, design and realization of modified substrates of energy interested in environmental impacts”