Mixed-dimensional induced synergistic effect of PtCuCo high-efficiency electrocatalyst boosts liquid fuels electrooxidation

Constructing high-efficient electrocatalysts for ethylene glycol electrooxidation reaction (EGOR) is of practical importance for direct alcohol fuel cells. Herein, the mixed-dimensional nanostructure PtCuCo_x catalysts with the 1D nanowires and 0D nanoparticles merits are fabricated through a solvothermal method to optimize and enhance the electrocatalytic properties towards EGOR. Benefiting from the synergistic effects of multiple components, PtCuCo_1.8 catalyst achieves high specific activity of 2.68 mA/cm² and mass activity of 936.8 mA/mg_Pt towards EGOR, which is about 5.1 times and 2.5 times higher than the state-of-the-art Pt/C catalyst. Meanwhile, density functional theory (DFT) simulations reveal the upshift of the Pt D‐band center in PtCuCo catalyst, suggesting that the optimized electronic structure balances the adsorption of adsorbed OH (OH_ads) and adsorbed CO (CO_ads) intermediates, thereby enhancing CO tolerance. Benefiting from the synergistic effect of multiple components, PtCuCo_1.8 catalyst demonstrates outstanding long-term durability and lower apparent activation energy. This study offers a promising strategy for the rational design of efficient Pt-based electrocatalysts that combine multiple structural and electronic advantages for fuel cell applications.