Effects of the Synthesis Method and Promoter Content on Bismuth‐Modified Platinum Catalysts in the Electro‐oxidation of Glycerol and Formic Acid

Abstract Bismuth has an important promotion effect on the catalytic performance of Pt‐catalyzed oxidation reactions. Herein, the catalyst structure, Bi content, and catalytic performance of Bi‐modified Pt catalysts in the electro‐oxidation of glycerol and formic acid were researched to unravel the essential promotion role of Bi. The Bi‐modification methods included the loading, adsorption, and electrodeposition of Bi on Pt. The electrodeposited Bi‐modified Pt had the best performance among the three methods. In a certain range, the lower electrodeposition potential of Bi resulted in a higher Bi content on the Pt catalyst and better performance. The activity of the Pt catalyst with Bi deposited at −0.15 V was 8.5 times and 27 times that of the monometallic Pt catalyst in the electro‐oxidation of glycerol and formic acid, respectively. The selective distribution of Bi adjacent to Pt and a higher percentage of Bi hydroxide were favorable for the catalytic performance.