Why Chalcogenides

Partial or complete replacement of platinum for ORR has attracted a lot of interest in order to enhance electrocatalytic activity and reduce materials costs. Therefore, some non-platinmn promising electrocatalysts for ORR have been developed, i.e., using car-bides, nitrides,macroeycle materials, and other preeious metals, such as Pd or Ru-based materials, as well as non-precious metal chalcogenides.  

The generation of metal nanoparticles is based on the use of M-CO complexes. This approach has been successfully used in generating ruthenium cluster-like, as well as platinum cluster-like compounds. The chemistry seems simple, since it is like a pyrolysis process made in a solvent in mild conditions. This latter can be acpieous or a partially aqueous one. The reaction can be summarized as follows  

The high nuclearity complex is, actually, found in the intermediate species [M-X-CO] formed during the reaction process. This latter is considered as the materials chemistiy engineering to tailor novel nanomaterials. Several examples found in the Uterature are briefly discnssed below, as well as the data generated in onr group. 

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