Catalytic activity of nanoalloys from gold and palladium

We present a quantitative study of the catalytic activity of well-defined faceted gold-palladium nanoalloys which are immobilized on cationic spherical polyelectrolyte brushes. The spherical polyelectrolyte brush particles used as carriers for the nanoalloys consist of a solid polystyrene core onto which cationic polyelectrolyte chains of 2-aminoethyl methacrylate are attached. Au/Pd nanoalloy particles with sizes in the range from 1 to 3 nm have been generated which are homogeneously distributed on the surface of the spherical polyelectrolyte brushes. The reduction of 4-nitrophenol has been chosen as a well-controlled model reaction allowing us to determine the catalytic activity of the nanoalloys as a function of the Au/Pd composition. The adsorption behavior was studied by Langmuir-Hinshelwood kinetics. We find a pronounced maximum of the catalytic activity at 75 molar % Au. A comparison of gold, platinum, palladium and gold-palladium alloy nanoparticles is made in terms of Langmuir-Hinshelwood kinetics. Density functional calculations for Au/Pd clusters with up to 38 atoms show that the density of states at the Fermi level increases with increasing Pd content, and that the highest occupied orbitals are associated with Pd atoms. The calculations confirm that small changes in the atomic arrangement can lead to pronounced changes in the particles' electronic properties, indicating that the known importance of surface effects is further enhanced in nanoalloys.     

三元合金氧还原电催化剂

质子交换膜燃料电池作为重要的电化学能源转换装置,在提高能量转换效率、减少环境污染等方面具有诱人的前景.然而,阴极氧还原过电位较大、活性较低、稳定性差,且铂基催化剂昂贵,使该燃料电池难以商业化.纳米结构电催化剂的发展有望解决此难题。对纳米合金电催化剂其组分和结构的设计是开发高活性、高稳定性和低成本的燃料电池电催化剂的重要因素.本文综述了近期由分子设计和热化学控制处理法制备的三元纳米合金电催化剂对燃料电池氧还原反应催化性能的最新进展.该方法可控制纳米合金的尺寸、组成以及二元和三元纳米催化剂的合金化程度.以高活性的三元纳米合金催化剂PtNiCo/C为例,综述了在设计燃料电池电催化剂时结构和组成的纳米级调优的重要性.PtNiCo/C电催化剂的质量比活性远高于其二元合金催化剂和Pt/C商业电催化剂.三元电催化剂的催化活性可通过控制其组成来调节.文章还讨论了三元纳米合金催化剂的结构及其协同效应对增强其电催化性能的影响.     

Geometric, electronic, and bonding properties of AuNM (N = 1-7, M = Ni, Pd, Pt) clusters

Employing first-principles methods, based on density functional theory, we report the ground state geometric and electronic structures of gold clusters doped with platinum group atoms, Au(N)M (N = 1-7, M = Ni, Pd, Pt). The stability and electronic properties of Ni-doped gold clusters are similar to that of pure gold clusters with an enhancement of bond strength. Due to the strong d-d or s-d interplay between impurities and gold atoms originating in the relativistic effects and unique properties of dopant delocalized s-electrons in Pd- and Pt-doped gold clusters, the dopant atoms markedly change the geometric and electronic properties of gold clusters, and stronger bond energies are found in Pt-doped clusters. The Mulliken populations analysis of impurities and detailed decompositions of bond energies as well as a variety of density of states of the most stable dopant gold clusters are given to understand the different effects of individual dopant atom on bonding and electronic properties of dopant gold clusters. From the electronic properties of dopant gold clusters, the different chemical reactivity toward O(2), CO, or NO molecule is predicted in transition metal-doped gold clusters compared to pure gold clusters.     

Distinctive features of supported catalysts prepared from platinum carbonyl clusters

The formation of Pt/γ-Al₂O₃ and Pt/C catalysts from platinum carbonyl clusters H₂[Pt₃(CO)₆]_n (n = 2, 5) is studied. The strength of interaction between clusters (strong Lewis bases) and the support and the state of platinum in catalysts are governed by the acceptor strength of the support. The formation of a stable platinum compound with a surface of γ-Al₂O₃ (strong Lewis acid) is shown for a Pt/γ-Al₂O₃ catalyst by the method of radial distribution functions. In a Pt/C catalyst containing the same amount of Pt supported on a carbon material known to be a weaker acceptor, metallic platinum is formed along with surface-bonded platinum. Proceeding from the existence of the active phase of catalysts in the form of a surface platinum complex and platinum crystallites, the properties of catalysts are discussed in the complete oxidation of methane and the dehydrogenation of cyclohexane, as well as the high dispersity of platinum and its thermal stability     

Hydrogen chemisorption on supported platinum, gold, and platinum-gold-alloy catalysts

Alloyed catalysts receive considerable attention, because of their unique catalytic properties; they often show higher selectivity, activity, and stability compared to the pure metal particles. To provide insights in the origins of these features, we report the structure and the interaction of hydrogen with each of the metals in an intimately mixed platinum-gold catalyst and compare these characteristics to those in the single metal particles. X-Ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) and electron microscopy analysis showed that the structure of the mixed particle differed from the single metal particles. The interaction of platinum with hydrogen is stronger than the H-Au interaction and the adsorption sites were different. EXAFS analysis showed that the structure of the platinum clusters changes with increasing hydrogen coverage, observed as a relaxation of the contracted Pt-Pt distance and an increase in the Pt-Pt coordination number. No such changes were observed for gold clusters. Well-mixed PtAu-alloy clusters, with a bulk Au-to-Pt ratio of two, supported on SiO(2), adsorb hydrogen on both platinum and gold atoms, which indicates that gold cannot be regarded as an inert metal. The heat of adsorption on the platinum ensembles does not decrease upon alloying; the weakening of the overall hydrogen adsorption strength when alloying platinum with gold is an ensemble-size effect.     

Effect of the microstructure of Pt/CeO2-TiO2 catalysts on their catalytic properties in CO oxidation

The microstructure of 2% Pt/CeO₂-TiO₂ catalysts has an effect on their catalytic properties in CO oxidation. The nanostructured catalysts as platinum clusters 0.3–0.5 nm in size are the most active. These clusters are stabilized at crystal boundaries formed by irregularly intergrown anatase particles. The catalyst containing platinum particles 2–5 nm in size is less active because of the decrease in the extent of dispersion of platinum and the change of its electron state.     

钬对铂重整催化剂改性作用的研究

采用脉冲微反应技术研究了一系列Pt-Ho催化剂催化甲基环戊烷及环己烷的重整反应,应用Faraday磁天平研究了催化剂的磁性,用氢氧滴定法测定了催化剂上铂的分散度与平均粒径.结果表明,钬能改善活性组分铂的分散度,降低铂的平均粒径,从而增加铂催化剂的活性中心数,提高了铂重整催化剂的活性,进而增强了铂催化剂的抗硫稳定性.Pt-Ho催化剂的活性与磁性有对应关系.     

Combinatorial screening of PtTiMe ternary alloys for oxygen electroreduction

The catalytic oxygen electroreduction properties of PtTiMe (Me = Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mn, Mo, Ni, Pd, Ta, V, W and Zr) ternary alloys were studied using an in-house developed thin film based combinatorial high throughput method. Libraries containing discrete alloy compositions were fabricated by plasma co-sputtering and the resulting alloys were electrochemically screened by the hydrodynamic rotating disk electrode technique. Candidate catalysts were identified by comparing the activity-stability-composition relationships between the platinum titanium alloys and pure platinum standard. Among the PtTiMe alloys studied, PtTiNi, PtTiCu and PtTiV, respectively, displayed the highest catalytic oxygen electroreduction activities with a tenfold, an eightfold and a sixfold enhancement as compared to the pure platinum standard and good chemical stabilities.     

Exploring AuRh Nanoalloys: A Computational Perspective on the Formation and Physical Properties

We studied the formation of AuRh nanoalloys (between 20–150 atoms) in the gas phase by means of Molecular Dynamics (MD) calculations, exploring three possible formation processes: one-by-one growth, coalescence, and nanodroplets annealing. As a general trend, we recover a predominance of Rh@Au core-shell ordering over other chemical configurations. We identify new structural motifs with enhanced thermal stabilities. The physical features of those selected systems were studied at the Density Functional Theory (DFT) level, revealing profound correlations between the nanoalloys morphology and properties. Surprisingly, the arrangement of the inner Rh core seems to play a dominant role on nanoclusters’ physical features like the HOMO-LUMO gap and magnetic moment. Strong charge separations are recovered within the nanoalloys suggesting the existence of charge-transfer transitions.     

Structure and dynamics of model Ag and Pt clusters

The structure and dynamics of model silver and platinum clusters were investigated by performing molecular dynamics calculations with regular quenching along the trajectory. An eigenvector-following routine was used to determine stationary points linking minimum configurations. Clusters of 13 and 14 atoms were studied, using Sutton-Chen potentials suitable for silver and platinum to describe the interatomic interaction. The close relationship between features of the potential energy surface and the dynamic behaviour of the clusters, for example the occurrence of coexistence, is shown. For silver and platinum, very different structural as well as dynamic properties are observed.     

Interplay between subsurface ordering, surface segregation, and adsorption on Pt-Ti(111) near-surface alloys

Using the first-principles cluster expansion (CE) method, we studied the subsurface ordering of Pt/Pt-Ti(111) surface alloys and the effect of this ordering on segregation and adsorption behavior. The clusters included in the CE are optimized by a genetic algorithm to better describe the interactions between Pt and Ti atoms in the subsurface layer. Similar to bulk Pt-Ti alloys, Pt-Ti(111) subsurface alloys show a strong ordering tendency. A series of stable ordered Pt-Ti subsurface structures are identified from the two-dimensional (2D) CE. As an indication of the connection between the 2D and the bulk ordering, the CE predicts a ground-state Pt(8)Ti structure in the (111) subsurface layer, which is the same ordering as the close-packed plane of the bulk Pt(8)Ti compound. We carried out Monte Carlo simulations (MC) using the CE Hamiltonian to study the finite temperature stability of the Pt-Ti subsurface structures. The MC results show that subsurface structures in the Pt-rich range have higher order-disorder transition temperatures than their Ti-rich subsurface counterparts. We calculate the binding energy of different adsorbates (O, S, H, and NO) on Pt-terminated and Ti-segregated surfaces of ordered PtTi and Pt(8)Ti subsurface alloys. The binding of these adsorbates is generally stronger on Ti-segregated surfaces than Pt-terminated surfaces. The adsorption-induced Ti surface segregation is determined by two factors: (i) the unfavorable energy penalty for the Ti atom to segregate to the clean surface and (ii) the favorable energy decrease from stronger adsorbate binding on the Ti-segregated surface. The two factors introduce similar magnitude in energy change for the S and NO adsorption on Ti-segregated surfaces of PtTi subsurface alloys. We predict an adsorption-induced Ti surface segregation that is dependent on the atomic configurations of the Ti-segregated surfaces resulting from the competition of the two factors.     

金属有机骨架基催化剂在加氢反应中的应用

加氢是现代化工产业中的一类主干反应,广泛应用于精细化学品、药物、食品、染料、功能聚合物及香料等制造产业中.高效催化剂的引入使得加氢反应能够在相对温和的条件下还原各类不饱和化合物.金属催化剂在加氢反应中活性高,所需的反应温度较低,适用性广,但是容易和S,N,As和P等元素结合而"中毒"失去反应活性.金属氧化物催化剂和金属硫化物催化剂具有一定的抗毒性,但活性相对较差,通常需要采用高温高压的反应条件,对催化剂本身和反应器的要求较为苛刻.传统催化剂在反应中具有一定的局限性,所以亟需开发新一代高效的加氢催化剂,在保证高活性和高选择性催化效果的同时,降低对能源的消耗和对环境的负面影响.金属有机骨架(MOFs)作为一种新型的多孔材料在过去二十年中受到相当大的关注,并在催化、气体存储和分离、传感器、发光材料和药物输送等众多领域的应用中表现出卓越的性能.利用MOF材料良好的相容性,将MOF和其它功能材料结合形成新的复合材料可以在更大程度上扩大MOF材料的应用领域.与传统的催化剂相比,MOF基材料具有优异的物理化学特性和结构可调性,通过合理的设计能够满足不同的催化加氢过程:(1)MOF基催化剂具有多样且特异性的活性位点.除了组成MOF材料的金属离子/簇和功能有机配体之外,MOF材料可通过封装其他活性物质或者被活性物质包裹等方式引入其他类型的催化位点,进一步扩大MOF基催化剂在不同催化加氢中的适应性.此外,不同的活性位点之间的协同作用又能特异性地促进反应的进行,对提高反应的选择性起到重要的作用.(2)活性位点的尺寸大小和空间分布可以被有效控制.这能影响到催化剂在催化反应过程中的活性和选择性,并且通过MOF材料的限域效应,同时能增强活性位点的稳定性和耐久性.(3)高比表面积能提高MOF基催化剂的催化活性.这种结构特性不仅可以增加MOF基催化剂的活性位点,而且能够吸附反应物和还原剂达到扩大其局部浓度的效果.(4)反应分子的扩散可通过调节MOF基催化剂的结构实现控制.通过调整MOF材料的孔窗口和通道的尺寸,能够改变反应物在催化剂内部的扩散途径,影响底物和活性位点的接触,能进一步影响反应的活性和选择性.本文总结了近几年来MOF基材料在不同的催化加氢反应中的应用,其中包括烯烃、炔烃、芳硝基化合物、肉桂醛、糠醛和苯等化合物的加氢反应.首先介绍了MOF基材料中不同类型的活性位点,除了MOF材料自身的金属离子/簇和功能有机配体外,MOF基复合材料中的金属纳米颗粒?金属硫化物?金属氧化物?均相催化剂等活性位点可以通过封装或包裹的方式引入.在不同加氢反应中,着重介绍了MOF基催化剂中不同类型活性位点的加氢过程中的催化方式、催化剂本身的结构优化及催化剂与反应底物之间的相互作用,以及这些因素之间的协同作用对反应活性和选择性的影响.最后,讨论了MOF基材料在加氢反应中应用存在的问题以及未来发展展望.     

Influence of steam on the activity of alumina-platinum catalysts with different contents of the metal

Summary The effects of the activation of alumina-platinum catalysts on hydrothermal treatment and of their deactivation on treatment with pure hydrogen diminish as the content of platinum in the catalysts increases.     

Electrocatalytic properties of the catalysts based on carbon nanofibers with various platinum contents

The catalysts on carbon nanofibers with various platinum contents were synthesized. The morphology, resistance to oxidation, and electrochemical behavior of the catalysts in the reactions that occur in fuel cells were studied. The dependence of the specific output of cathodes of hydrogen—air fuel cells on the sizes of the platinum clusters was established.     

Effects of adsorbates on supported platinum and iridium clusters: Characterization in reactive atmospheres and during alkene hydrogenation catalysis by X-ray absorption spectroscopy

MgO-, SiO2-, and gamma-Al2O3-supported platinum clusters and particles (with average diameters ranging from 11 to 45 A) and zeolite-supported Ir4 clusters (approximately 6 A in diameter) were characterized by extended X-ray absorption fine structure spectroscopy in the presence of H2, O2, ethene, propene, and ethane, as well as under conditions of alkene hydrogenation catalysis. The results indicate that under various atmospheres, the presence of adsorbates affects the smaller platinum clusters (11 A) on gamma-Al2O3 more substantially than the larger platinum particles (i.e., those greater than approximately 21 A in average diameter) on MgO or SiO2. When Pt/gamma-Al2O3 was exposed to H2, the platinum morphology did not change, although the Pt-Pt bond distance increased. In contrast, when the same sample was exposed to O2, complete oxidative fragmentation took place. This processes was reversed following subsequent treatment with H2. Exposure to alkenes changed both the morphology and electron density (as indicated by X-ray absorption near-edge spectra) of the gamma-Al2O3-supported platinum clusters. Under conditions of alkene hydrogenation catalysis at room temperature, the electronic properties and the structure of the platinum clusters were found to depend on the reactant composition and the nature of molecules involved in the reaction process. The effects of the reactant gases on the smaller iridium clusters (Ir4) were substantially less pronounced, apparently as a consequence of the extremely small number of atoms in each iridium cluster.     

In situ characterization of Pt catalysts supported on ceria modified TiO2 for the WGS reaction: influence of ceria loading

This work analyzes the influence of cerium content (6-15 wt%) on a TiO(2) support over the structure and water gas shift (WGS) activity of Pt catalysts. The structural properties of these Pt/Ce-TiO(2) catalysts were characterized by XRD, TEM and XANES. Physicochemical characterization of the catalysts showed differences in the structure and dispersion of Ce entities on the support with Ce loading. For the samples with low ceria content (6 wt%), cerium is deposited on the support in the form of CeO(x) clusters in a highly dispersed state in close interaction with the Ti atoms. The formation of CeO(x) clusters at low Ce-loading on the support facilitates the dispersion of small particles of Pt and improves the reducibility of ceria component at low temperatures. The changes in platinum dispersion and support reducibility with Ce-loading on the TiO(2) support lead to significant differences in the WGS activity. Pt supported on the sample with lower Ce content (6 wt%) shows better activity than those corresponding to catalysts with higher Ce content (15 wt%). Activity measurements coupled with catalysts characterization suggest that the improvement in the reducibility of the support with lower Ce content was associated with the presence of CeO(x) clusters of high reducibility that improve the chemical activity of the oxide-metal interfaces at which the WGS reaction takes place.     

Effect of titanium,antimony, and ruthenium doping on tin dioxide adsorption properties. Quantum-chemical modeling

The influence of the composition of oxides supports on the specific electroactive surface area of Pt in the catalysts, the platinum nanoparticles dispersion, and Pt contents in the catalysts was studied. The Sb-doped SnO₂ oxides with various Sb-doping levels were prepared as a supports of platinum catalysts in polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells. Density functional theory simulation of Ti, Sb, and Ru doping of tin dioxide and interaction of the doped surfaces with platinum cluster Pt₁₉ have been carried out. All calculations were performed in PBE exchange–correlation functional, with periodic boundary conditions and projector-augmented waves (PAW) basis set. The calculation results were compared with the experimental data X-ray diffraction and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). It was shown that Sb doping of tin dioxide (in quantity of less than 10%, that is, the quantity which cannot provoke significant defects of crystal structure of the supports) leads to a significant increase in a number of platinum clusters adsorbed from the colloidal solution onto the supports surface which results to an increase of the platinum cluster interaction with the supports. The calculated and experimental results are in close fit.     

Sulfide aggregates and clusters of platinum

The homometallic and lteterometallic chemistry of platinum sulfide polynuclear complexes with or without metal-metal bonds is reviewed. The synthetic strategies, structural and bonding characteristics, and chemical properties of these materials are emphasized. Other dinuclear platinum sulfide complexes which are potential precursors to larger aggregates (non-M-M bonded) or clusters (M-M bonded) are also identified.     

Structure of ethene adsorption sites on supported metal catalysts from in situ XANES Analysis

The structures of the catalytically active sites in supported metal catalysts are a long sought after goal. In this study, XAS has been used to establish these structures. The ethene-induced changes in the XAS spectra as a function of temperature and pressure were correlated to changes in the adsorption mode of the hydrocarbon. At low temperature, ethene was adsorbed in on-top (pi) and bridged (di-sigma) sites on small platinum clusters. Below room temperature, the adsorbed ethene was dehydrogenated to an ethylidyne species, which was adsorbed in threefold Pt sites. On larger clusters the dehydrogenation proceeded at higher temperature indicating a different reactivity. EXAFS results showed that changes in the geometrical structures were mainly due to (co)adsorbed hydrogen. Our results for platinum agree with those obtained using other techniques proving that detailed shape analysis of the L3 edge XANES is a practical tool to determine the structure of the sites that are involved in bonding to reactants and intermediates. Application to gold and alloy catalysts showed that ethene induced a significant change in the electronic structure of gold nanoclusters that could be interpreted as ethene adsorbed on top of single gold atoms or in bridged sites. Ethene adsorbed on both platinum and gold in the bimetallic clusters.