Polymeric aluminum porphyrin: Controllable synthesis of ultra-low molecular weight CO2-based polyols

Carbon dioxide-based polyols with ultra-low molecular weight (ULMW, M_n < 1000 g/mol) are emergent polyurethane precursors with economic and environmental benefits. However, the lack of effective proton-tolerant catalytic systems limits the development of this field. In this work, the polymeric aluminum porphyrin catalyst (PAPC) system was applied to the copolymerization of CO₂ and propylene oxide, where sebacic acid, bisphenol A, poly(ethylene glycol), and water were used as chain transfer agents to achieve the controlled synthesis of CO₂-polyols. The molecular weight of the resulting CO₂-polyols could be facilely regulated in the range of 400–930 g/mol at low catalyst loadings, fully demonstrating its catalytic advantages of high activity, high product selectivity, and excellent proton tolerance of PAPC. Meanwhile, the catalytic efficiency of PAPC could reach up to 2.1–5.2 kg/g under organic CTA conditions, even reaching 1.9 kg/g using water as the CTA. The cPC content could be controlled within 1.0 wt% under the optimized conditions, indicating the excellent controllability of the PAPC system. ULMW CO₂-polyols combines the advantages of low viscosity (∼3000 mPa s at 25 °C), low glass transition temperature (∼−73 °C), and high carbonate unit content (∼40%), which is important for the development of high-performance polyurethanes.     

Visible‐Light‐Driven CO2 Reduction by Mesoporous Carbon Nitride Modified with Polymeric Cobalt Phthalocyanine

The integration of molecular catalysts with low‐cost, solid light absorbers presents a promising strategy to construct catalysts for the generation of solar fuels. Here, we report a photocatalyst for CO₂ reduction that consists of a polymeric cobalt phthalocyanine catalyst (CoPPc) coupled with mesoporous carbon nitride (mpg‐CN_x) as the photosensitizer. This precious‐metal‐free hybrid catalyst selectively converts CO₂ to CO in organic solvents under UV/Vis light (AM 1.5G, 100 mW cm^?2, λ>300 nm) with a cobalt‐based turnover number of 90 for CO after 60 h. Notably, the photocatalyst retains 60 % CO evolution activity under visible light irradiation (λ>400 nm) and displays moderate water tolerance. The in situ polymerization of the phthalocyanine allows control of catalyst loading and is key for achieving photocatalytic CO₂ conversion.     

Oxidative dehydrogenation of ethylbenzene to styrene with CO2 over Al-MCM-41-supported vanadia catalysts

Catalytic performance of Al-MCM-41-supported vanadia catalysts (V/Al-MCM-41) with different V loading was investigated for oxidative dehydrogenation of ethylbenzene to styrene (ST) with CO₂ (CO₂-ODEB). For comparison, pure silica MCM-41 was also used as support for vanadia catalyst. The catalysts were characterized by N₂ adsorption, X-ray diffraction (XRD) pyridine-Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy, H₂-temperature-programmed reduction, thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), UV-Raman, and diffuse reflectance (DR) UV–vis spectroscopy. The results indicate that the catalytic behavior and the nature of V species depend strongly on the V loading and the support properties. Compared with the MCM-41-supported catalyst, the Al-MCM-41-supported vanadia catalyst exhibits much higher catalytic activity and stability along with a high ST selectivity (>98%). The superior catalytic performance of the present V/Al-MCM-41 catalyst can be attributed to the Al-MCM-41 support being more favorable for the high dispersion of V species and the stabilization of active V⁵⁺ species. Together with the characterization results of XRD, TGA, and DR UV–Vis spectroscopy, the deep reduction of V⁵⁺ into V³⁺ during CO₂-ODEB is the main reason for the deactivation of the supported vanadia catalyst, while the coke deposition has a less important impact on the catalyst stability.     

助剂对NiMgAl催化剂的结构和甲烷二氧化碳重整反应性能的影响(英文)

向担载镍基催化剂NiMgAl中添加助剂(Co,Ir或Pt)制备了三种助剂促进型催化剂,通过氢气程序升温还原(H2-TPR),CO2/CH4程序升温表面反应(CO2/CH4-TPSR)和CO2程序升温脱附(CO2-TPD)等方法对催化剂进行表征.助剂对催化剂性能的影响通过甲烷干重整实验进行评价.添加少量的Pt或Ir助剂可以降低Ni活性组分的还原温度和提高反应性能.添加助剂的样品与原始NiMgAl催化剂相比能够降低反应的活化能,添加Co或Ir助剂的催化剂与NiMgAl催化剂相比活化能有了明显的降低.NiMgAl催化剂的活化能为51.8 kJ·mol-1,添加Pt助剂的NiPtMgAl催化剂活化能降至26.4 kJ·mol-1.NiMgAl催化剂中添加Pt助剂制备的催化剂具有较好的催化活性和较低的活化能.CH4-TPSR和CO2-TPSR结果表明添加Pt助剂可以在更低的温度下(与NiMgAl催化剂相比)提高CH4的活化能力,并在催化剂表面形成更多的碳物种.CO2-TPD结果显示,添加助剂的催化剂与NiMgAl样品相比在反应温度区间内增加了CO2的吸附/脱附量.     

Enhancing photocatalytic performance of metal-organic frameworks for CO2 reduction by a bimetallic strategy

Metal-organic frameworks（MOFs） as a type of crystalline heterogeneous catalysts have shown potential application in photocatalytic CO₂ reduction.However,MOF catalysts with high efficiency and selectivity are still in pursuit.Herein,by a bimetallic strategy,the catalytic performance of a Co-MOF for photocatalytic CO₂ reduction was enhanced.Specifically,the Co-MOF based on 4,5-dicarboxylic acid（H₃ IDC） and4,4’-bipydine（4,4’-bpy） can catalyze CO₂ reductio...     

Achieving High Single-Pass Carbon Conversion Efficiencies in Durable CO2 Electroreduction in Strong Acids via Electrode Structure Engineering

Acidic CO₂ reduction (CO₂R) holds promise for the synthesis of low-carbon-footprint chemicals using renewable electricity. However, the corrosion of catalysts in strong acids causes severe hydrogen evolution and rapid deterioration of CO₂R performance. Here, by coating catalysts with an electrically nonconductive nanoporous SiC-Nafion^TM layer, a near-neutral pH was stabilized on catalyst surfaces, thereby protecting the catalysts against corrosion for durable CO₂R in strong acids. Electrode microstructures played a critical role in regulating ion diffusion and stabilizing electrohydrodynamic flows near catalyst surfaces. This surface-coating strategy was applied to three catalysts, SnBi, Ag, and Cu, and they exhibited high activity over extended CO₂R operation in strong acids. Using a stratified SiC-Nafion^TM/SnBi/polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) electrode, constant production of formic acid was achieved with a single-pass carbon efficiency of >75 % and Faradaic efficiency of >90 % at 100 mA cm⁻² over 125 h at pH 1.     

Thiol‐Assisted Synthesis of Carbon‐Supported Metal Nanoparticles for Efficient Electrocatalytic CO2 Reduction

The typical preparation route of carbon‐supported metallic catalyst is complex and uneconomical. Herein, we reported a thiol‐assisted one‐pot method by using 3‐mercaptopropionic acid (MPA) to synthesize carbon‐supported metal nanoparticles catalysts for efficient electrocatalytic reduction of carbon dioxide (CO₂RR). We found that the synthesized Au?MPA/C catalyst achieves a maximum CO faradaic efficiency (FE) of 96.2% with its partial current density of ?11.4 mA/cm², which is much higher than that over Au foil or MPA‐free carbon‐supported Au (Au/C). The performance improvement in CO₂RR over the catalyst is probably derived from the good dispersion of Au nanoparticles and the surface modification of the catalyst caused by the specific interaction between Au nanoparticles and MPA. This thiol‐assisted method can be also extended to synthesize Ag?MPA/C with enhanced CO₂RR performance.     

Design of a Single-Atom Indiumδ+–N4 Interface for Efficient Electroreduction of CO2 to Formate

Main-group element indium (In) is a promising electrocatalyst which triggers CO₂ reduction to formate, while the high overpotential and low Faradaic efficiency (FE) hinder its practical application. Herein, we rationally design a new In single-atom catalyst containing exclusive isolated In^δ+–N₄ atomic interface sites for CO₂ electroreduction to formate with high efficiency. This catalyst exhibits an extremely large turnover frequency (TOF) up to 12500 h⁻¹ at −0.95 V versus the reversible hydrogen electrode (RHE), with a FE for formate of 96 % and current density of 8.87 mA cm⁻² at low potential of −0.65 V versus RHE. Our findings present a feasible strategy for the accurate regulation of main-group indium catalysts for CO₂ reduction at atomic scale.     

Electrocatalytic CO2 Reduction with a Half‐Sandwich Cobalt Catalyst: Selectivity towards CO

We present herein a Cp*Co(III)‐half‐sandwich catalyst system for electrocatalytic CO₂ reduction in aqueous acetonitrile solution. In addition to an electron‐donating Cp* ligand (Cp*=pentamethylcyclopentadienyl), the catalyst featured a proton‐responsive pyridyl‐benzimidazole‐based N,N‐bidentate ligand. Owing to the presence of a relatively electron‐rich Co center, the reduced Co(I)‐state was made prone to activate the electrophilic carbon center of CO₂. At the same time, the proton‐responsive benzimidazole scaffold was susceptible to facilitate proton‐transfer during the subsequent reduction of CO₂. The above factors rendered the present catalyst active toward producing CO as the major product over the other potential 2e/2H⁺ reduced product HCOOH, in contrast to the only known similar half‐sandwich CpCo(III)‐based CO₂‐reduction catalysts which produced HCOOH selectively. The system exhibited a Faradaic efficiency (FE) of about 70% while the overpotential for CO production was found to be 0.78 V, as determined by controlled‐potential electrolysis.     

Covalently Grafting Graphene onto Si Photocathode to Expedite Aqueous Photoelectrochemical CO2 Reduction

Silicon semiconductor functionalized with molecular catalysts emerges as a promising cathode for photoelectrochemical (PEC) CO₂ reduction reaction (CO₂RR). However, the limited kinetics and stabilities remains a major hurdle for the development of such composites. We herein report an assembling strategy of silicon photocathodes via chemically grafting a conductive graphene layer onto the surface of n⁺-p Si followed by catalyst immobilization. The covalently-linked graphene layer effectively enhances the photogenerated carriers transfer between the cathode and the reduction catalyst, and improves the operating stability of the electrode. Strikingly, we demonstrate that altering the stacking configuration of the immobilized cobalt tetraphenylporphyrin (CoTPP) catalyst through calcination can further enhance the electron transfer rate and the PEC performance. At the end, the graphene-coated Si cathode immobilized with CoTPP catalyst managed to sustain a stable 1-Sun photocurrent of −1.65 mA cm⁻² over 16 h for CO production in water at a near neutral potential of −0.1 V vs. reversible hydrogen electrode. This represents a remarkable improvement of PEC CO₂RR performance in contrast to the reported photocathodes functionalized with molecular catalysts.     

A Molecular Cobalt Hydrogen Evolution Catalyst Showing High Activity and Outstanding Tolerance to CO and O2

There is a demand to develop molecular catalysts promoting the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) with a high catalytic rate and a high tolerance to various inhibitors, such as CO and O₂. Herein we report a cobalt catalyst with a penta‐dentate macrocyclic ligand ( 1‐Co ), which exhibits a fast catalytic rate (TOF=2210 s^?1) in aqueous pH 7.0 phosphate buffer solution, in which proton transfer from a dihydrogen phosphate anion (H₂PO₄^?) plays a key role in catalytic enhancement. The electrocatalyst exhibits a high tolerance to inhibitors, displaying over 90 % retention of its activity under either CO or air atmosphere. Its high tolerance to CO is concluded to arise from the kinetically labile character of undesirable CO‐bound species due to the geometrical frustration posed by the ligand, which prevents an ideal trigonal bipyramid being established.     

An Efficient RuTe2/Graphene Catalyst for Electrochemical Hydrogen Evolution Reaction in Acid Electrolyte

Developing efficient powder catalysts for hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) in the acidic electrolyte is significant for hydrogen generation in the proton exchange membrane (PEM) water electrolysis technique. Herein, we demonstrated an efficient catalyst for HER in the acid media based on the graphene supported ruthenium telluride nanoparticles (RuTe₂/Gr). The catalysts were easily fabricated by a facile microwave irradiation/thermal annealing approach, and orthorhombic RuTe₂ crystals were found anchored over the graphene surface. The defective structure was demonstrated in the aberration‐corrected transmission electron microscopy images for RuTe₂ crystals and graphene support. This catalyst required an overpotential of 72 mV to drive 10 mA cm^?2 for HER when loading on the inert glass carbon electrode; Excellent catalytic stability in acidic media was also observed to offer 10 mA cm^?2 for 10 hours. The Volmer‐Tafel mechanism was indicated on RuTe₂/Gr catalyst by Tafel slope of 33 mV dec^?1, similar to that of Pt/C catalysts. The high catalytic performance of RuTe₂/Gr could be attributed to its high dispersion on the graphene surface, high electrical conductivity and low charge transfer resistance. This powder catalyst has potential application in the PEM water electrolysis technique because of its low cost and high stability.     

Influence of Pd-Ce interaction and chlorine ion on hydrodesulfurization reaction: The activity and sulfur tolerance of the Pd-Ceo2/Al2O3 catalyst

CeO₂ promoted palladium catalysts supported on Al₂O₃ were prepared using the impregnation (IM) and the deposition-precipitation (DP) methods. The activities and sulfur tolerance of the catalysts for hydrodesulfurization (HDS) were detected with thiophene HDS as probe reaction. H₂ adsorption, XRD, FTIR, NH₃-TPD, XPS were used to characterize the catalysts. The Pd-CeO₂/Al₂O₃ (IM) catalyst was highly active for the HDS reaction, and it had much stronger sulfur tolerance than the Pd/Al₂O₃ catalyst. Pd-CeO₂/Al₂O₃ (DP) showed excellent sulfur tolerance while its initial activity decreased. It was observed that with the chlorine bridge, the interfacial structure of Pd-Cl⁻¹-Ce³⁺ was responsible for the high activity of the Pd-CeO₂/Al₂O₃ (IM) catalyst, at the same time the interaction of Pd with Ce was weakened by Cl₋₁ ions. The enhanced sulfur tolerance over the Pd-CeO₂/Al₂O₃ (IM) catalyst was attributed to the weakened Pd-S bond caused by the competitive adsorption of H₂S on Ce³⁺ ions. As to the Pd-CeO₂/Al₂O₃ (DP) catalyst, a strong interaction of Pd with Ce put Pd at an electron-deficient state, the creation of sulfided palladium was therefore inhibited.     

High-Curvature Transition-Metal Chalcogenide Nanostructures with a Pronounced Proximity Effect Enable Fast and Selective CO2 Electroreduction

A considerable challenge in the conversion of carbon dioxide into useful fuels comes from the activation of CO₂ to CO₂^.− or other intermediates, which often requires precious-metal catalysts, high overpotentials, and/or electrolyte additives (e.g., ionic liquids). We report a microwave heating strategy for synthesizing a transition-metal chalcogenide nanostructure that efficiently catalyzes CO₂ electroreduction to carbon monoxide (CO). We found that the cadmium sulfide (CdS) nanoneedle arrays exhibit an unprecedented current density of 212 mA cm⁻² with 95.5±4.0 % CO Faraday efficiency at −1.2 V versus a reversible hydrogen electrode (RHE; without iR correction). Experimental and computational studies show that the high-curvature CdS nanostructured catalyst has a pronounced proximity effect which gives rise to large electric field enhancement, which can concentrate alkali-metal cations resulting in the enhanced CO₂ electroreduction efficiency.     

High‐Curvature Transition‐Metal Chalcogenide Nanostructures with a Pronounced Proximity Effect Enable Fast and Selective CO2 Electroreduction

A considerable challenge in the conversion of carbon dioxide into useful fuels comes from the activation of CO₂ to CO₂^.? or other intermediates, which often requires precious‐metal catalysts, high overpotentials, and/or electrolyte additives (e.g., ionic liquids). We report a microwave heating strategy for synthesizing a transition‐metal chalcogenide nanostructure that efficiently catalyzes CO₂ electroreduction to carbon monoxide (CO). We found that the cadmium sulfide (CdS) nanoneedle arrays exhibit an unprecedented current density of 212 mA cm^?2 with 95.5±4.0 % CO Faraday efficiency at ?1.2 V versus a reversible hydrogen electrode (RHE; without iR correction). Experimental and computational studies show that the high‐curvature CdS nanostructured catalyst has a pronounced proximity effect which gives rise to large electric field enhancement, which can concentrate alkali‐metal cations resulting in the enhanced CO₂ electroreduction efficiency.     

Directly Knitted Hierarchical Porous Organometallic Polymer-Based Self-Supported Single-Site Catalyst for CO2 Hydrogenation in Water

In recent times, heterogenization of homogeneous molecular catalysts onto various porous solid support structures has attracted significant research focus as a method for combining the advantages of both homogeneous as well as heterogeneous catalysis. The design of highly efficient, structurally robust and reusable heterogenized single-site catalysts for the CO₂ hydrogenation reaction is a critical challenge that needs to be accomplished to implement a sustainable and practical CO₂-looped renewable energy cycle. This study demonstrated a heterogenized catalyst [Ir-HCP-(B/TPM)] containing a molecular Ir-abnormal N-heterocyclic carbene (Ir-aNHC) catalyst self-supported by hierarchical porous hyper-crosslinked polymer (HCP), in catalytic hydrogenation of CO₂ to inorganic formate (HCO₂⁻) salt that is a prospective candidate for direct formate fuel cells (DFFC). By employing this unique and first approach of utilizing a directly knitted HCP-based organometallic single-site catalyst for CO₂-to-HCO₂⁻ in aqueous medium, extremely high activity with a single-run turnover number (TON) up to 50816 was achieved which is the highest so far considering all the heterogeneous catalysts for this reaction in water. Additionally, the catalyst featured excellent reusability furnishing a cumulative TON of 285400 in 10 cycles with just 1.6 % loss in activity per cycle. Overall, the new catalyst displayed attributes that are important for developing tangible catalysts for practical applications.     

Multidisciplinary green approaches (ultrasonic,co-precipitation,hydrothermal, and microwave) for fabrication and characterization of Erbium-promoted Ni-Al2O3 catalyst for CO2 methanation

The dispersion of nickel catalysts is crucial for the catalytic ability of CO₂ methanation, which can be influenced by the fabrication method and the operation process of the catalysts. Therefore, a series of fabrication methods, including ultrasonic, hydrothermal, microwave, and co-precipitation, have been applied to prepare 25Ni-5Er-Al₂O₃ catalysts. The fabrication method can partially influence the structural and catalytic activity of the nickel aluminate catalysts. Among the catalysts modified by Erbium prepared with various methods, the catalyst fabricated by ultrasonic pathway exhibited better catalytic performance and CH₄ selectivity especially, at a temperature (400 ℃). The impact of the temperature of the reaction (200–500 °C) was examined under a stoichiometric precursor ratio of (H₂:CO₂) = 4: 1, atmospheric pressure, and space velocity (GHSV) of 25000 mL/gcath. The results demonstrate that the ultrasonic method is strongly efficient for fabricating Ni-based catalysts with a high BET surface area of about 190.33 m²g^?1. The catalyst composed via the ultrasonic technique has 69.38 % carbon dioxide conversion and 100 % methane selectivity at 400 °C for excellent catalytic performance in CO₂ methanation reactions. The fabrication effect can be associated with its high surface area, which is achieved via the hot spot mechanism. Besides, the addition of Erbium promotes the Ni dispersion on the supports and stimulates the positive reaction because of the erbium oxygen vacancies.     

Production of Hydrogen from Methane by a CO2 Emission-Suppressed Process: Methane Decomposition and Gasification of Carbon Nanofibers

Catalytic methane decomposition into hydrogen and carbon nanofibers and the oxidations of carbon nanofibers with CO₂, H₂O and O₂ were overviewed. Supported Ni catalysts (Ni/SiO₂, Ni/TiO₂ and Ni/carbon nanofiber) were effective for the methane decomposition. The activity and life of the supported Ni catalysts for methane decomposition strongly depended on the particle size of Ni metal on the catalysts. The modification of the catalysts with Pd enhanced the catalytic activity and life for methane decomposition. In particular, the supported Ni catalysts modified with Pd showed high turnover number of hydrogen formation at temperatures higher than 973 K with a high one-pass methane conversion (>70%). However, sooner or later, every catalyst completely lost their catalytic activities due to the carbon layer formation on active metal surfaces. In order to utilize a large quantity of the carbon nanofibers formed during methane decomposition as a chemical feedstock or a powdered fuel for heat generation, they were oxidized with CO₂, H₂O and O₂ into CO, synthesis gas and CO₂, respectively. In every case, the conversion of carbon was greater than 95%. These oxidations of carbon nanofibers recovered or enhanced the initial activities of the supported Ni catalysts for methane decomposition.     

Selective CO2 Reduction to Ethylene Mediated by Adaptive Small-molecule Engineering of Copper-based Electrocatalysts

Electrochemical CO₂ reduction reaction (CO₂RR) over Cu catalysts exhibits enormous potential for efficiently converting CO₂ to ethylene (C₂H₄). However, achieving high C₂H₄ selectivity remains a considerable challenge due to the propensity of Cu catalysts to undergo structural reconstruction during CO₂RR. Herein, we report an in situ molecule modification strategy that involves tannic acid (TA) molecules adaptive regulating the reconstruction of a Cu-based material to a pathway that facilitates CO₂ reduction to C₂H₄ products. An excellent Faraday efficiency (FE) of 63.6 % on C₂H₄ with a current density of 497.2 mA cm⁻² in flow cell was achieved, about 6.5 times higher than the pristine Cu catalyst which mainly produce CH₄. The in situ X-ray absorption spectroscopy and Raman studies reveal that the hydroxyl group in TA stabilizes Cu^δ+ during the CO₂RR. Furthermore, theoretical calculations demonstrate that the Cu^δ+/Cu⁰ interfaces lower the activation energy barrier for *CO dimerization, and hydroxyl species stabilize the *COH intermediate via hydrogen bonding, thereby promoting C₂H₄ production. Such molecule engineering modulated electronic structure provides a promising strategy to achieve highly selective CO₂ reduction to value-added chemicals.     

Development of Proton‐Responsive Catalysts

A changeable ligand, which involves in activation of a catalyst or assists a reaction, draws an increasing attention, in contrast to a classical ligand as spectator. Proton‐responsive catalysts, which are capable of undergoing changes of properties on gaining/losing one or more protons, provides interesting features as follows: (i) catalyst activation by electronic effect, (ii) pH‐tuning of water‐solubility, and (iii) second‐coordination‐sphere interaction. On the basis of this catalyst design concept, we developed several highly efficient proton‐responsive catalysts for CO₂ hydrogenation as H₂ storage, formic acid (FA) dehydrogenation as H₂ production, and transfer hydrogenation. The transformable ligands of proton‐responsive catalysts in promoting effective catalysis have aroused our interest. In this account, we summarize our efforts for the development and application of proton‐responsive catalysts. Specifically, the important role of pH‐dependent proton‐responsive complexes will be discussed.