The method allows to produce catalysts with nanoparticles of platinum and its alloys with metals of a given composition, with high values of catalytic activity in an oxygen electroreduction reaction, and with predetermined values of structural characteristics. The method comprises preparation of a solution of chloroplatinic acid or a mixture of chloroplatinic acid with metal salts, mixing thereof with dispersed carbon or non-carbon carriers, their mixtures and compositions with specific surface area of more than 60 m.sup.2/g, dispersion of the obtained mixture, chemical reduction of compounds of platinum and a metal salt with subsequent deposition of nanoparticles of metallic platinum or its alloys on a dispersed carrier being carried out by purging gases selected from: nitrogen oxides (N.sub.2O, NO, NO.sub.2), carbon oxides (CO, CO.sub.2), sulfur oxide (SO.sub.2), ammonia (NH.sub.3) or their mixtures through the solution at a temperature of the solution in the range from 5 to 98 C.

A proton conductor contains a metal oxide that has a perovskite structure and that is represented by formula (1): A.sub.xB.sub.1-yM.sub.yO.sub.3-, where an element A is at least one element selected from the group consisting of Ba, Ca, and Sr, an element B is at least one element selected from the group consisting of Ce and Zr, an element M is at least one element selected from the group consisting of Y, Yb, Er, Ho, Tm, Gd, In, and Sc, indicates an oxygen deficiency amount, and 0.95x1 and 0<y0.5 are satisfied.

A method for preparing a carbon-supported, platinum-cobalt alloy, nanoparticle catalyst includes mixing a solution containing, in combination, a platinum precursor, a transition metal precursor consisting of a transition metal that is cobalt, carbon, a stabilizer that is oleyl amine, and a reducing agent that is sodium borohydride to provide carbon-supported, platinum-cobalt alloy nanoparticles, and washing the carbon-supported, platinum-cobalt alloy, nanoparticles using ethanol and distilled water individually or in combination followed by drying at room temperature to obtain dried carbon-supported, platinum-cobalt alloy, nanoparticles; treating the dried carbon-supported, platinum-cobalt alloy, nanoparticles with an acetic acid solution having a concentration ranging from 1-16M to provide acetic acid-treated nanoparticles, and washing the acetic acid-treated nanoparticles using distilled water followed by drying at room temperature to obtain dried acetic acid-treated nanoparticles; and heat treating the dried acetic acid-treated nanoparticles at a temperature ranging from 600 to 1000 C. under a hydrogen-containing atmosphere.

A process for preparing a catalyst material, said catalyst material comprising a support material, a first metal and one or more second metals, wherein the first metal and the second metal(s) are alloyed and wherein the first metal is a platinum group metal and the second metal(s) is selected from the group of transition metals and tin provided the second metal(s) is different to the first metal is disclosed. The process comprises depositing a silicon oxide before or after deposition of the second metal(s), alloying the first and second metals and subsequently removing silicon oxide. A catalyst material prepared by this process is also disclosed.

The present disclosure is directed to compositions and structures of supported metal catalysts for use in applications such as direct methanol fuel cells. Generally, implementations include supported metal catalysts that include Pt active sites that have been modified by addition or co-localization of a second metal such as Cu, Co, Ni, and/or other base metals to lower the inhibiting effect of strongly-adsorbed CO, an intermediate of methanol oxidation. An example aspect of the present disclosure includes catalyst compositions where the exterior metal sites in the supported catalyst include at least two metals: Pt and a competitive binder (e.g., a second metal).

A lithium-air battery is provided. The lithium-air battery includes a negative electrode including lithium, a positive electrode including catalyst particles for controlling whether to generate LiO2 as a discharge product and for controlling a generation amount of LiO2, the positive electrode using oxygen as a positive electrode active material, and an electrolyte and a separator which are disposed between the negative electrode and the positive electrode.

The invention includes a method of making a catalytic electrode for a metal-air cell in which a carbon-catalyst composite is produced by heating a manganese compound in the presence of a particulate carbon material to form manganese oxide catalyst on the surfaces of the particulate carbon, and then adding virgin particulate carbon material to the carbon-catalyst composite to produce a catalytic mixture that is formed into a catalytic layer. A current collector and an air diffusion layer are added to the catalytic layer to produce the catalytic electrode. The catalytic electrode can be combined with a separator and a negative electrode in a cell housing including an air entry port through which air from outside the container can reach the catalytic electrode.

[Object] Provided is a catalyst having a high catalytic activity. [Solving Means] Disclosed is a catalyst comprising a catalyst support and a catalyst metal supported on the catalyst support, wherein the catalyst support includes pores having a radius of less than 1 nm and pores having a radius of 1 nm or more, a surface area formed by the pores having a radius of less than 1 nm is equal to or larger than a surface area formed by the pores having a radius of 1 nm or more, and an average particle diameter of the catalyst metal is 2.8 nm or more.

Disclosed is a biphasic electrically conductive perovskite-based mixed oxide of the structure ABO.sub.3 with A=Ba, and B=Co, comprising additionally 5-45 at %, preferably 15 to 30 at %, particularly preferably 25 at % Co.sub.3O.sub.4 (at % Co based on the total number of Co atoms in the perovskite ABO.sub.3 and 0.5 to 3 at %, preferably 1 to 2.5 at %, particularly preferably 2 at % (wherein the at % are referred to the total number of B cations in the perovskite ABO.sub.3) Ti as dopant. Preferably, the mixed oxide has the stoichiometric formula BaCo.sub.1xTi.sub.xO.sub.3:Co.sub.3O.sub.4 with x=0.005 to 0.03, preferably x=0.01 to 0.025, particularly preferably x=0.02, wherein defines the vacancies in the perovskite structure and is in the range of about 0.1 to 0.8, preferably 0.3 to 0.7, particularly preferably about 0.5 to 0.6. Further disclosed are a catalyst and an anode comprising the mixed oxide, the use of the catalyst in alkaline water electrolysis or in metal-air batteries, the use of the mixed oxide for the preparation of an anode for alkaline water electrolysis or metal-air batteries. Further, manufacturing processes for a precursor solution for the mixed oxide and for the inventive anode are disclosed, as well as an amorphous mixed oxide having a Co:Ba ratio of about 2:1 and a TTB (Tetragonal Tungsten-Bronze)-like near structure obtainable by using the mixed oxide according to the invention as catalyst in the oxygen evolution reaction of alkaline water electrolysis, whereby said amorphous product is formed by leaching out Ba.

The invention includes a method of making a catalytic electrode for a metal-air cell in which a carbon-catalyst composite is produced by heating a manganese compound in the presence of a particulate carbon material to form manganese oxide catalyst on the surfaces of the particulate carbon, and then adding virgin particulate carbon material to the carbon-catalyst composite to produce a catalytic mixture that is formed into a catalytic layer. A current collector and an air diffusion layer are added to the catalytic layer to produce the catalytic electrode. The catalytic electrode can be combined with a separator and a negative electrode in a cell housing including an air entry port through which air from outside the container can reach the catalytic electrode.