Electrocatalytic abilities of hydrogen storage alloy as anode electrocatalyst of alkaline fuel cell

The electrocatalytic abilities of hydrogen storage alloy (HSA) MlNi 3.65 Co 0.85 Al 0.3 Mn 0.3 (Ml: La-rich mischmetal) as the anode electrocatalyst of an alkaline fuel cell were studied. To improve the electrocatalytic activity of the alloy, modifications including ball-milling, surface treatment and chemical coating with Pd were employed. The electrocatalytic ability of the optimized HSA anode was found to be reasonably good, with a current density of 50 mA/cm 2 at 0.866 V and 196.2 mA/cm 2 at 0.5 V (versus Hg/HgO). The temperature was also found to be important for the electrocatalytic behavior of HSA anode.