A key limitation to catalysts today arises from reliance on carbon black (CB) supports that serve to disperse the precious metal catalyst nanoparticles, but which corrode under certain operating conditions. Carbon support modifications that rely on "top-down" graphitization of CB supports have so far improved resistance to carbon corrosion, but at the cost of reduced stabilization of precious metal dissolution.

Pajarito Powder developed a "bottom-up" approach where Engineered Carbon Supports (ECSs) made using the VariPore^TM manufacturing platform, which is cased on technologies licensed from the University of New Mexico, Northeastern University, and Los Alamos National Laboratory. This method allows manufacture of highly graphitic carbonaceous powders with excellent pore size and particle roughness control, and produces highly tailorable carbon support with great corrosion resistance.

Pt/C electro-catalysts made using these Engineered Carbon Supports maintain performance under carbon corrosion test protocols and thus demonstrate their utility in achieving the performance/price balance needed for commercializing PEMFCs. The catalyst characteristics and performance, as well as economics of this approach will be presented and discussed.