Co2+-P(W3O10)43− modified activated carbon as an efficient anode catalyst for direct glucose alkaline fuel cell

Highly efficient and economical electrocatalysts is crucial to the large-scale application of direct glucose alkaline fuel cells (DGAFC). Here, we present a DGAFC with excellent performance by using a Lewis-acidic POM (Co2+-P(W3O10)43−) modified activated carbon (AC) as anode catalyst. Three kinds of Lewis-acidic cations (Ni2+, Co2+, Fe3+) were introduced into polyoxometalates (POMs) and the obtained Lewis-acidic POMs were immobilized on AC anode via a simple doping and rolling method. Our results demonstrated that the catalytic activities of POMs for glucose oxidation can be remarkably improved by the introduction of Lewis acidity. The maximum power density of the DGAFC reached 35.78 W m−2 at ambient temperature, which is almost 1.64 times higher than the bare AC control (21.88 W m−2), considerably outperforming the performance of previously published low-temperature DGAFCs. The catalytic enhancement by the Lewis-acidic POMs is speculatively attributed to the synergic effect between two redox couples (Co2+/Co3+ and [(PW)12]Re/[(PW)12]Ox) on glucose oxidation. Our study will help develop cost-effective, high-performance and environmentally benign catalyst for glucose oxidation and electricity generation.