| abstract |
Provided are a nanoporous tungsten carbide catalyst that can be used as an electrode of a fuel cell and a preparation method thereof. The nanoporous tungsten carbide catalyst includes tungsten carbide crystalline particles and has nanopores of a mean pore diameter ranging from 2 nm to 5 nm and a nanopore volume of 0.08 to 0.25 cm 3 per gram of the catalyst. The nanoporous tungsten carbide catalyst or the nanoporous tungsten carbide catalyst supported with a metallic active component has high electrochemical activity and enhanced resistance to poisoning by carbon monoxide (CO). Therefore, even after use for an extended period of time, the nanoporous tungsten carbide catalyst of the present invention can maintain a long-term high catalytic activity. In addition, since the nanoporous tungsten carbide catalyst of the present invention has small pore sizes and a large pore volume, which are advantageous for dispersing metallic active components, much higher catalytic activity can be demonstrated only with a small amount of the metallic active component. Accordingly, an electrode for use in a fuel cell and a fuel cell employing the electrode can be fabricated in a cost-effective manner, compared to the prior art in which a considerable amount of expensive, precious metal catalysts are used. |