Synergistic Effect of Simultaneous Doping of Ceria Nanorods with Cu and Cr on CO Oxidation and NO Reduction

Ceria particles play a key role in catalytic applications such as automotive three-way catalytic systems in which toxic CO and NO are oxidized and reduced to safe CO₂ and N₂, respectively. In this work, we explore the incorporation of Cu and Cr metals as dopants in the crystal structure of ceria nanorods prepared by a single-step hydrothermal synthesis. XRD, Raman and XPS confirm the incorporation of Cu and Cr in the ceria crystal lattices, offering ceria nanorods with a higher concentration of oxygen vacancies. XPS also confirms the presence of Cr and Cu surface species. H₂-TPR and XPS analysis show that the simultaneous Cu and Cr co-doping results in a catalyst with a higher surface Cu concentration and a much-enhanced surface reducibility, in comparison with either undoped or singly doped (Cu or Cr) ceria nanorods. While single Cu doping enhances catalytic CO oxidation and Cr doping improves catalytic NO reduction, co-doping with both Cu and Cr enhances the benefits of both dopants in a synergistic manner employing roughly a quarter of dopant weight.     

Optimization study by Box-Behnken design (BBD) and mechanistic insight of CO2 methanation over Ru-Fe-Ce/γ-Al2O3 catalyst by in-situ FTIR technique

The utilization of carbon dioxide for methanization reactions in the production of synthetic natural gas (SNG) is of increasing interest in energy-related issues. The use of CO₂ as a raw material in methanization reactions in the formation of SNG is of increasing concern associated with energy problems. The effect of three independent process parameters (calcination temperature, ceria loading and catalyst dosage) and their interactions in terms of conversion of CO₂ was considered by response surface methodology (RSM). Box-Behnken design (BBD) revealed that the optimized parameters were 1000 °C calcination temperature, 85%wt ceria loading and 10 g catalyst dosage, which resulted in 100% conversion of CO₂ and 93.5% of CH₄ formation. Reaction intermediate study by in situ FTIR showed that carboxylate species was the most active species on the catalyst surface. In-situ FTIR experiments revealed a weak CO₂ adsorption, that exist namely as carboxylate species over the trimetallic catalyst. As a result, dissociated hydrogen over ruthenium reacts with surface carbon, leading to *CH, which subsequently hydrogenated to produce *CH₂, *CH₃ and finally to the desired product methane. The use of in situ-FTIR study indicated that the CO₂ methanation mechanism does not involve CO as a reaction intermediate. The more detailed mechanism of CO₂ methanation pathways involved over Ru-Fe-Ce/γ-Al₂O₃ catalyst is discussed in accordance with IR-spectroscopic data. The better catalytic activity and stability over Ru-Fe-Ce (5:10:85)/γ-Al₂O₃ catalyst calcined at 1000 °C showed the presence of moderate basic sites for CO₂ adsorption.     

Low temperature carbon monoxide catalytic oxidation at the Pd/Ce–Zr–Al–Ox catalyst

The homogeneous chemical composition ceria–zirconia–alumina (Ce–Zr–Al–O_x) nano-alloy were successfully synthesized by surfactant-assisted parallel flow co-precipitation method and applied as supports for low temperature CO oxidation. The experiment conditions were studied in detailed. At 0.92 wt% Pd loading, 30,000 ppm CO could be completely oxidized to CO₂ at 30 °C at a WHSV of 4,380 ml g^?1 h^?1 over the Pd/Ce–Zr–Al–O_x (n_Ce:n_Zr = 3:1) catalyst. Pd/Ce–Zr–Al–O_x catalysts were systematical studied by mean of BET, XRD and TEM analysis. XRD characterization showed that zirconium element entered into cubic structure of ceria and leaded to structure distortion. Addition of aluminum increased specific surface area of ceria–zirconia solid solution substantially. The average pore diameter of Ce–Zr–Al–O_x support palladium catalysts were the key impact factor for CO oxidation. When the Pd/Ce–Zr–Al–O_x catalysts had highly dispersed palladium nanoparticles, large average pore diameter, suitable surface area and pore volume, the activity of CO oxidation was the best.     

Effect of surface ligands on gold nanocatalysts for CO2 reduction

Nanoparticle catalysts display optimal mass activity due to their high surface to volume ratio and tunable size and structure. However, control of nanoparticle size requires the presence of surface ligands, which significantly influence catalytic performance. In this work, we investigate the effect of dodecanethiol on the activity, selectivity, and stability of Au nanoparticles for electrochemical carbon dioxide reduction (CO₂R). Results show that dodecanethiol on Au nanoparticles significantly enhances selectivity and stability with minimal loss in activity by acting as a CO₂-permeable membrane, which blocks the deposition of metal ions that are otherwise responsible for rapid deactivation. Although dodecanethiol occupies 90% or more of the electrochemical active surface area, it has a negligible effect on the partial current density to CO, indicating that it specifically does not block the active sites responsible for CO₂R. Further, by preventing trace ion deposition, dodecanethiol stabilizes CO production on Au nanoparticles under conditions where CO₂R selectivity on polycrystalline Au rapidly decays to zero. Comparison with other surface ligands and nanoparticles shows that this effect is specific to both the chemical identity and the surface structure of the dodecanethiol monolayer. To demonstrate the potential of this catalyst, CO₂R was performed in electrolyte prepared from ambient river water, and dodecanethiol-capped Au nanoparticles produce more than 100 times higher CO yield compared to clean polycrystalline Au at identical potential and similar current.

Dodecanethiol on Au nanoparticles significantly enhances selectivity and stability with minimal loss in activity by acting as a CO₂-permeable membrane, which blocks the deposition of metal ions that are otherwise responsible for rapid deactivation.     

Infrared spectroscopic study on the reaction mechanism of CO hydrogenation over Pd/CeO2

In situ infrared spectroscopy was applied to elucidate the reaction mechanism of CO hydrogenation over Pd/CeO₂. Instead of direct dissociation of CO, a new reaction pathway is proposed for methane formation, involving geminal dicarbonyl intermediates and (HCO)₂(a) intermediates, which may be located on the surface of Pd covered with thin layers of reduced ceria (SMSI effect). Transformation of methane formation sites into methanol formation ones by the oxidation with water vapor formed during the CO?H₂ reaction is proposed, which may be located on the Pd (111) planes adjacent to ceria support.     

Ensemble effects in Cu/Au ultrasmall nanoparticles control the branching point for C1 selectivity during CO2 electroreduction

Bimetallic catalysts provide opportunities to overcome scaling laws governing selectivity of CO₂ reduction (CO₂R). Cu/Au nanoparticles show promise for CO₂R, but Au surface segregation on particles with sizes ≥7 nm prevent investigation of surface atom ensembles. Here we employ ultrasmall (2 nm) Cu/Au nanoparticles as catalysts for CO₂R. The high surface to volume ratio of ultrasmall particles inhibits formation of a Au shell, enabling the study of ensemble effects in Cu/Au nanoparticles with controllable composition and uniform size and shape. Electrokinetics show a nonmonotonic dependence of C1 selectivity between CO and HCOOH, with the 3Au:1Cu composition showing the highest HCOOH selectivity. Density functional theory identifies Cu₂/Au(211) ensembles as unique in their ability to synthesize HCOOH by stabilizing CHOO* while preventing H₂ evolution, making C1 product selectivity a sensitive function of Cu/Au surface ensemble distribution, consistent with experimental findings. These results yield important insights into C1 branching pathways and demonstrate how ultrasmall nanoparticles can circumvent traditional scaling laws to improve the selectivity of CO₂R.

Bimetallic catalysts provide opportunities to overcome scaling laws governing C1 selectivity of CO₂ reduction (CO₂R).     

Self‐Cleaning Catalyst Electrodes for Stabilized CO2 Reduction to Hydrocarbons

A surface‐restructuring strategy is presented that involves self‐cleaning Cu catalyst electrodes with unprecedented catalytic stability toward CO₂ reduction. Under the working conditions, the Pd atoms pre‐deposited on Cu surface induce continuous morphological and compositional restructuring of the Cu surface, which constantly refreshes the catalyst surface and thus maintains the catalytic properties for CO₂ reduction to hydrocarbons. The Pd‐decorated Cu electrode can catalyze CO₂ reduction with relatively stable selectivity and current density for up to 16 h, which is one of the best catalytic durability performances among all Cu electrocatalysts for effective CO₂ conversion to hydrocarbons. The generality of this approach of utilizing foreign metal atoms to induce surface restructuring toward stabilizing Cu catalyst electrodes against deactivation by carbonaceous species accumulation in CO₂ reduction is further demonstrated by replacing Pd with Rh.     

Oxo-Bridged Zr Dimers as Well-defined Models of Oxygen Vacancies on ZrO2

While ZrO₂ is known to have a large effect on the activity and selectivity of the Cu/ZrO₂ catalyst for methanol synthesis, its role in this process is poorly understood. Surface defects such as oxygen vacancies could play a role in the strong metal-support interaction (SMSI) between Cu and ZrO₂. However, due to the complexity of the surfaces, the exact molecular nature of this interaction is not at present known. Here, we make well-defined models of both reduced and coordinatively unsaturated surface oxygen vacancies on ZrO₂ using the molecular precursor [Cp₂ZrCl]₂(μ²-O) ( 1 ). Complex 1 can be reduced to form a complex ( 2 ) containing one Zr(III) center and a bridging hydride ligand (according to EPR and IR spectroscopy) derived from C−H activation of either thf or the Cp ring. Complex 2 reacts with CO₂ to largely produce CO, suggesting that surface defects with similar structures probably do not play a role in the industrial catalyst. Halide abstraction from complex 1 results in the Lewis acidic species 3 , which has similar Lewis acid properties to acidic defects on the ZrO₂ surface. Similarities of both of these model species to real surface oxygen vacancies and their role in the catalytic reaction are discussed.     

氧化铈气凝胶担载氧化铜催化剂上的一氧化碳氧化

 以一氧化碳氧化为探针反应,考察了氧化铈气凝胶担载氧化铜催化剂的催化活性,研究了催化剂中氧化铜的含量、载体及催化剂的焙烧温度对催化剂活性的影响．结果表明,氧化铈气凝胶担载的氧化铜催化剂对一氧化碳氧化反应呈现出高催化活性,适当温度下焙烧载体及催化剂有利于提高催化剂的催化活性;随着催化剂中氧化铜含量的增加,一氧化碳完全转化的温度降低,但当w（CuO）＞12％时,过量的氧化铜以体相形式而不是以高分散形式存在,对催化剂活性的影响很小．     

Bipyridine‐Assisted Assembly of Au Nanoparticles on Cu Nanowires To Enhance the Electrochemical Reduction of CO2

We report a new strategy to prepare a composite catalyst for highly efficient electrochemical CO₂ reduction reaction (CO₂RR). The composite catalyst is made by anchoring Au nanoparticles on Cu nanowires via 4,4′‐bipyridine (bipy). The Au‐bipy‐Cu composite catalyzes the CO₂RR in 0.1 m KHCO₃ with a total Faradaic efficiency (FE) reaching 90.6 % at ?0.9 V to provide C‐products, among which CH₃CHO (25 % FE) dominates the liquid product (HCOO^?, CH₃CHO, and CH₃COO^?) distribution (75 %). The enhanced CO₂RR catalysis demonstrated by Au‐bipy‐Cu originates from its synergistic Au (CO₂ to CO) and Cu (CO to C‐products) catalysis which is further promoted by bipy. The Au‐bipy‐Cu composite represents a new catalyst system for effective CO₂RR conversion to C‐products.     

Is Cu instability during the CO2 reduction reaction governed by the applied potential or the local CO concentration?

Cu-based catalysts have shown structural instability during the electrochemical CO₂ reduction reaction (CO₂RR). However, studies on monometallic Cu catalysts do not allow a nuanced differentiation between the contribution of the applied potential and the local concentration of CO as the reaction intermediate since both are inevitably linked. We first use bimetallic Ag-core/porous Cu-shell nanoparticles, which utilise nanoconfinement to generate high local CO concentrations at the Ag core at potentials at which the Cu shell is still inactive for the CO₂RR. Using operando liquid cell TEM in combination with ex situ TEM, we can unequivocally confirm that the local CO concentration is the main source for the Cu instability. The local CO concentration is then modulated by replacing the Ag-core with a Pd-core which further confirms the role of high local CO concentrations. Product quantification during CO₂RR reveals an inherent trade-off between stability, selectivity and activity in both systems.

The stability of bimetallic AgCu and PdCu catalysts for electrochemical CO₂RR is investigated using the combination of operando and ex situ TEM. The local CO concentration is identified as the main link between activity, stability and selectivity.     

Favoring CO Intermediate Stabilization and Protonation by Crown Ether for CO2 Electromethanation in Acidic Media

The large-scale deployment of CO₂ electroreduction is hampered by deficient carbon utilization in neutral and alkaline electrolytes due to CO₂ loss into (bi)carbonates. Switching to acidic media mitigates carbonation, but suffers from low product selectivity because of hydrogen evolution. Here we report a crown ether decoration strategy on a Cu catalyst to enhance carbon utilization and selectivity of CO₂ methanation under acidic conditions. Macrocyclic 18-Crown-6 is found to enrich potassium cations near the Cu electrode surface, simultaneously enhancing the interfacial electric field to stabilize the *CO intermediate and accelerate water dissociation to boost *CO protonation. Remarkably, the mixture of 18-Crown-6 and Cu nanoparticles affords a CH₄ Faradaic efficiency of 51.2 % and a single pass carbon efficiency of 43.0 % toward CO₂ electroreduction in electrolyte with pH=2. This study provides a facile strategy to promote CH₄ selectivity and carbon utilization by modifying Cu catalysts with supramolecules.     

Strong Metal–Support Interactions between Copper and Iron Oxide during the High‐Temperature Water‐Gas Shift Reaction

The commercial high‐temperature water‐gas shift (HT‐WGS) catalyst consists of CuO‐Cr₂O₃‐Fe₂O₃, where Cu functions as a chemical promoter to increase the catalytic activity, but its promotion mechanism is poorly understood. In this work, a series of iron‐based model catalysts were investigated with in situ or pseudo in situ characterization, steady‐state WGS reaction, and density function theory (DFT) calculations. For the first time, a strong metal‐support interaction (SMSI) between Cu and FeO_x was directly observed. During the WGS reaction, a thin FeO_x overlayer migrates onto the metallic Cu particles, creating a hybrid surface structure with Cu‐FeO_x interfaces. The synergistic interaction between Cu and FeO_x not only stabilizes the Cu clusters, but also provides new catalytic active sites that facilitate CO adsorption, H₂O dissociation, and WGS reaction. These new fundamental insights can potentially guide the rational design of improved iron‐based HT‐WGS catalysts.     

Surface and structural properties of pt/ceo2catalyst under preferential co oxidation in hydrogen (PROX)

Summary Preferential oxidation of CO in the presence of excess hydrogen was studied on Pt/CeO₂with 5% metal loading. Catalytic data were similar to those observed on 1% Pt/CeO₂earlier [16]. The optimum temperature region is T￡373 K; conversion and selectivity of CO oxidation strongly decreased at higher temperatures. High-pressure XPS indicated CO adsorbed on platinum particles and significant amount of water on the ceria surface. The top-most ceria surface re-oxidized as small amount of oxygen (3%) was introduced into the H₂/CO feed. Despite this surface re-oxidation, high-resolution TEM after reaction indicated oxygen deficient ceria bulk structure, in which the defects formed a super-cell, with CeO_1.695structure. The defective ceria is suggested to play an important role stabilizing the hydrogen bonded surface water, which (i) suppresses further hydrogen oxidation and (ii) reacts at the metal/support interface with linearly adsorbed CO in a low temperature water-gas-shift type reaction to produce CO₂.</o:p>     

氧化铈形貌对Au/CeO2催化剂催化氧化CO反应活性的影响

采用水热合成法制备了形貌规则的纳米氧化铈颗粒,分别为棒状、立方体和多面体,通过溶胶沉积法将金颗粒沉积到不同形貌氧化铈表面制得了Au/CeO2催化剂.考察了催化剂载体的不同形貌对CO催化氧化反应活性的影响.实验结果表明,棒状(110 100)和多面体(111 100)氧化铈作为载体时的催化剂活性比立方体(100)作为载体时的活性高.在低温段,多面体氧化铈作为载体的催化剂表现出较高活性,而在高温范围,棒状氧化铈作为载体的催化剂的催化活性最好.     

Pt-CeO2/SiO2催化剂用于室温湿空气中CO氧化反应

开发室温CO氧化催化剂的主要挑战是CO自中毒和慢的表面动力学,同时湿气的存在也可导致催化剂失活.本文开发了高活性CeO2促进的Pt基催化剂4%Pt-12%CeO2/SiO2,用于室温湿气(湿度10%?90%,25°C)中CO氧化反应,在低CO浓度(<500 ppm)和高CO浓度(>2500 ppm)时,CO转化率高于99%.优化了催化剂制备变量,如Pt和CeO2负载量、CeO2沉积方法、CeO2和Pt前驱体的干燥和焙烧条件.采用CO/H2化学吸附、O2-H2滴定、X射线衍射和BET比表面积测定表征了催化剂的表面特性,并将其与催化剂活性相关联.结果表明,CeO2沉积方法对催化剂活性影响显著,当用浸渍法沉积CeO2时,所得催化剂的反应速率(5.77μmol/g/s)比用沉积沉淀法(1.96μmol g?1 s?1)或CeO2嫁接法(1.31μmol g?1 s?1)制得催化剂的高3倍.O2-H2滴定结果表明,当用浸渍法沉积CeO2时,CeO2和Pt的紧密结合导致了催化剂的高活性.催化剂载体的选择也非常重要,硅胶负载的催化剂活性(5.77μmol g?1 s?1)是氧化铝负载的(1.05μmol g?1 s?1)5倍.当反应受内扩散控制时,催化剂载体的粒径和孔结构影响非常大.另外,CeO2和Pt前驱体的干燥和焙烧条件对催化剂活性的影响至关重要.当Pt和CeO2含量分别大于2.5和15 wt%时,所得催化剂在室温条件下活性高(TOF>0.02 s?1),稳定性好(反应15 h,CO转化率≥99%).     

Densely Packed,Ultra Small SnO Nanoparticles for Enhanced Activity and Selectivity in Electrochemical CO2 Reduction

Controlling the selectivity in electrochemical CO₂ reduction is an unsolved challenge. While tin (Sn) has emerged as a promising non‐precious catalyst for CO₂ electroreduction, most Sn‐based catalysts produce formate as the major product, which is less desirable than CO in terms of separation and further use. Tin monoxide (SnO) nanoparticles supported on carbon black were synthesized and assembled and their application in CO₂ reduction was studied. Remarkably high selectivity and partial current densities for CO formation were obtained using these SnO nanoparticles compared to other Sn catalysts. The high activity is attributed to the ultra‐small size of the nanoparticles (2.6 nm), while the high selectivity is attributed to a local pH effect arising from the dense packing of nanoparticles in the conductive carbon black matrix.     

Densely Packed,Ultra Small SnO Nanoparticles for Enhanced Activity and Selectivity in Electrochemical CO2 Reduction

Controlling the selectivity in electrochemical CO₂ reduction is an unsolved challenge. While tin (Sn) has emerged as a promising non‐precious catalyst for CO₂ electroreduction, most Sn‐based catalysts produce formate as the major product, which is less desirable than CO in terms of separation and further use. Tin monoxide (SnO) nanoparticles supported on carbon black were synthesized and assembled and their application in CO₂ reduction was studied. Remarkably high selectivity and partial current densities for CO formation were obtained using these SnO nanoparticles compared to other Sn catalysts. The high activity is attributed to the ultra‐small size of the nanoparticles (2.6 nm), while the high selectivity is attributed to a local pH effect arising from the dense packing of nanoparticles in the conductive carbon black matrix.     

Accelerated Transfer and Spillover of Carbon Monoxide through Tandem Catalysis for Kinetics-boosted Ethylene Electrosynthesis

Cu-based catalysts have been widely applied in electroreduction of carbon dioxide (CO₂ER) to produce multicarbon (C₂₊) feedstocks (e.g., C₂H₄). However, the high energy barriers for CO₂ activation on the Cu surface is a challenge for a high catalytic efficiency and product selectivity. Herein, we developed an in situ *CO generation and spillover strategy by engineering single Ni atoms on a pyridinic N-enriched carbon support with a sodalite (SOD) topology (Ni-SOD/NC) that acted as a donor to feed adjacent Cu nanoparticles (NPs) with *CO intermediate. As a result, a high C₂H₄ selectivity of 62.5 % and an industrial-level current density of 160 mA cm⁻² at a low potential of −0.72 V were achieved. Our studies revealed that the isolated NiN₃ active sites with adjacent pyridinic N species facilitated the *CO desorption and the massive *CO intermediate released from Ni-SOD/NC then overflowed to Cu NPs surface to enrich the *CO coverage for improving the selectivity of CO₂ER to C₂H₄.     

柠檬酸辅助固相研磨法制备铜基催化剂及在CO_2加氢合成甲醇反应中的性能研究

通过柠檬酸辅助固相研磨法制备铜基催化剂,采用XRD、TPR、TG-DSC、SEM、BET、TEM、XPS、CO_2-TPD等手段对催化剂性能进行表征.结果表明室温固相研磨的前驱体在惰性气体N_2中焙烧使体系中的CuO绝大部分被原位还原成Cu~0,不需外加H_2还原,直接制得了C/I-Cu/ZnO催化剂,催化剂具有中孔.利用高压固定床连续反应装置对催化剂活性进行了评价,结果表明,柠檬酸用量、前驱体焙烧温度、焙烧升温速率等条件对催化剂活性产生影响,当C_6H_8O_7/(Cu+Zn)摩尔比为1.2/1并Cu/Zn摩尔比1/1,前驱体在N_2中以3 K·min~(-1)升温速率于623 K焙烧3 h,制得的C/I-Cu/ZnO催化剂比表面积最大,Cu~0粒径最小,在CO_2加氢合成甲醇反应中表现出最佳的活性,CO_2转化率、甲醇选择性和产率分别达到了28.28%、74.29%和21.01%.与外加H_2还原的C/H-Cu/ZnO催化剂相比,原位还原C/I-Cu/ZnO催化剂比表面积较大,Cu~0的粒径较小,活性较高.