Single-Atom Rh on High-Index CeO2 Facet for Highly Enhanced Catalytic CO Oxidation

Reducible oxide-supported noble metal nanoparticles exhibit high activity in catalyzing many important oxidation reactions. However, atom migration under harsh reaction conditions leads to deactivation of the catalyst. Meanwhile, single-atom catalysts demonstrate enhanced stability, but often suffer from poor catalytic activity owing to the ionized surface states. In this work, we simultaneously address the poor activity and stability issues by synthesizing highly active and durable rhodium (Rh) single-atom catalysts through a “wrap-bake-peel” process. The pre-coated SiO₂ layer during synthesis of catalyst plays a crucial role in not only protecting CeO₂ support against sintering, but also donating electron to weaken the Ce−O bond, producing highly loaded Rh single atoms on the CeO₂ support exposed with high-index {210} facets. Benefiting from the unique electronic structure of CeO₂ {210} facets, more oxygen vacancies are generated along with the deposition of more electropositive Rh single atoms, leading to remarkably improved catalytic performance in CO oxidation.     

Regulating Efficient and Selective Single-atom Catalysts for Electrocatalytic CO2 Reduction

Anchoring transition metal (TM) atoms on suitable substrates to form single-atom catalysts (SACs) is a novel approach to constructing electrocatalysts. Graphdiyne with sp−sp² hybridized carbon atoms and uniformly distributed pores have been considered as a potential carbon material for supporting metal atoms in a variety of catalytic processes. Herein, density functional theory (DFT) calculations were performed to study the single TM atom anchoring on graphdiyne (TM₁−GDY, TM=Sc, Ti, V, Cr, Mn, Co and Cu) as the catalysts for CO₂ reduction. After anchoring metal atoms on GDY, the catalytic activity of TM₁−GDY (TM=Mn, Co and Cu) for CO₂ reduction reaction (CO₂RR) are significantly improved comparing with the pristine GDY. Among the studied TM₁−GDY, Cu₁−GDY shows excellent electrocatalytic activity for CO₂ reduction for which the product is HCOOH and the limiting potential (U_L) is −0.16 V. Mn₁−GDY and Co₁−GDY exhibit superior catalytic selectivity for CO₂ reduction to CH₄ with U_L of −0.62 and −0.34 V, respectively. The hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) by TM₁−GDY (TM=Mn, Co and Cu) occurs on carbon atoms, while the active sites of CO₂RR are the transition metal atoms . The present work is expected to provide a solid theoretical basis for CO₂ conversion into valuable hydrocarbons.     

Non-Interacting Ni and Fe Dual-Atom Pair Sites in N-Doped Carbon Catalysts for Efficient Concentrating Solar-Driven Photothermal CO2 Reduction

Solar-to-chemical energy conversion under weak solar irradiation is generally difficult to meet the heat demand of CO₂ reduction. Herein, a new concentrated solar-driven photothermal system coupling a dual-metal single-atom catalyst (DSAC) with adjacent Ni−N₄ and Fe−N₄ pair sites is designed for boosting gas-solid CO₂ reduction with H₂O under simulated solar irradiation, even under ambient sunlight. As expected, the (Ni, Fe)−N−C DSAC exhibits a superior photothermal catalytic performance for CO₂ reduction to CO (86.16 μmol g⁻¹ h⁻¹), CH₄ (135.35 μmol g⁻¹ h⁻¹) and CH₃OH (59.81 μmol g⁻¹ h⁻¹), which are equivalent to 1.70-fold, 1.27-fold and 1.23-fold higher than those of the Fe−N−C catalyst, respectively. Based on theoretical simulations, the Fermi level and d-band center of Fe atom is efficiently regulated in non-interacting Ni and Fe dual-atom pair sites with electronic interaction through electron orbital hybridization on (Ni, Fe)−N−C DSAC. Crucially, the distance between adjacent Ni and Fe atoms of the Ni−N−N−Fe configuration means that the additional Ni atom as a new active site contributes to the main *COOH and *HCO₃ dissociation to optimize the corresponding energy barriers in the reaction process, leading to specific dual reaction pathways (COOH and HCO₃ pathways) for solar-driven photothermal CO₂ reduction to initial CO production.     

Cu含量对Pd-Cu/铝土矿CO氧化催化剂结构和性能的影响

利用资源丰富的天然铝土矿经NaOH溶液水热处理后焙烧,获得比表面积达174 m²·g^-1铝土矿载体,制备了双金属Pd-Cu为活性组分的催化剂,金属Pd负载量为0.5%（质量百分数）,以CO氧化反应为探针反应,详细考察了Cu含量的变化对催化剂物化性能的影响。研究发现,Cu的引入有利于提高金属Pd的分散度,同时随着Cu含量的变化,金属Pd与Cu之间以及金属与铝土矿载体之间的相互作用随之改变。催化剂的CO氧化反应性能评价结果表明,Pd和Cu负载量分别为0.5%和4%的样品（PdCu₄/MB）催化反应性能最佳。结合表征结果认为,PdCu₄/MB的高活性归因于良好的Pd和Cu分散度,金属Pd、Cu以及金属与载体之间较强的相互作用。此外,CO-TPD表征结果说明较强的CO吸附能力和从载体中获取氧的能力也有利于提高PdCu₄/MB样品的CO氧化反应性能。     

Cu含量对Pd-Cu/铝土矿CO氧化催化剂结构和性能的影响

利用资源丰富的天然铝土矿经NaOH溶液水热处理后焙烧,获得比表面积达174 m²·g^-1铝土矿载体,制备了双金属Pd-Cu为活性组分的催化剂,金属Pd负载量为0.5%（质量百分数）,以CO氧化反应为探针反应,详细考察了Cu含量的变化对催化剂物化性能的影响。研究发现,Cu的引入有利于提高金属Pd的分散度,同时随着Cu含量的变化,金属Pd与Cu之间以及金属与铝土矿载体之间的相互作用随之改变。催化剂的CO氧化反应性能评价结果表明,Pd和Cu负载量分别为0.5%和4%的样品（PdCu₄/MB）催化反应性能最佳。结合表征结果认为,PdCu₄/MB的高活性归因于良好的Pd和Cu分散度,金属Pd、Cu以及金属与载体之间较强的相互作用。此外,CO-TPD表征结果说明较强的CO吸附能力和从载体中获取氧的能力也有利于提高PdCu₄/MB样品的CO氧化反应性能。     

The Solid-State-Grinding Synthesis of Maganese-Modified Cobalt Oxides and Application in the Low-Temperature CO Preferential Oxidation in H<Subscript>2</Subscript>-Rich Gases

A series of MnOx modified cobalt oxides with different atomic molar ratios of Mn/(Mn?+?Co) were prepared by a soft reactive grinding route and investigated for CO preferential oxidation in H₂. It was found that as-prepared Mn-doped cobalt oxides exhibited superior activity compared to the single constituted oxides, other Mn–Co–O mixed oxides synthesized by solution-based route, and other grinding-derived mixed metal oxides M–Co–O (M?=?Zn, Ni, Cu, Fe). The grinding-derived MnCo10 catalyst with Mn/(Mn?+?Co) molar ration of 10% showed the best CO oxidation activity and higher selectivity at low temperature. The surface richness of Co³⁺ was not found as increasing the Mn molar ratio in the present work. However, the incoporation of MnOx with proper amount into Co₃O₄ could produce high surface area, high structure defects, and rich surface active oxygen species, while the ability to supply the active oxygen species was suggested to play the crucial role in promoting the catalytic performance of Mn–Co–O mixed oxides.     

Light-driven Orderly Assembly of Ir-atomic Chains to Integrate a Dynamic Reaction Pathway for Acidic Oxygen Evolution

This work suggests an intriguing light-driven atomic assembly proposal to orderly configure the distribution of reactive sites to optimize the spin-entropy-related orbital interaction and charge transfer from electrocatalysts to intermediates. Herein, the introduced fluorine (F) atoms acting as photo-corrosion centres in MnO_1.9F_0.1 effectively soften the bonding interaction of Mn−O bonds in the IrCl₃ solution. Therefore, partial Mn atoms can be successively replaced to form orderly atomic-hybridized catalysts with a spin-related low entropy due to the coexistence of Ir-atomic chains and clusters. The time-related elemental analysis demonstrates that the dynamic dissolution/redeposition of Ir clusters in acidic oxygen evolution leads to a reintegration of the reaction pathway to seek the switchable rate-limiting step with a lower activation energy.     

Comparative Study of NO and CO Oxidation Reactions on Single-Atom Catalysts Anchored Graphene-like Monolayer

Noble metal single-atom catalysts (NM-SACs) anchored at novel graphene-like supports has attracted enormous interests. Gas sensitivity, catalytic activity, and d-band centers of single NM (Pt and Pd) atoms at graphenylene (graphenylene-NM) are investigated using first-principle calculations. The adsorption geometries of gas reactants on graphenylene-NM sheets are analyzed. It is found that the adsorption energies of reactant species on graphenylene-Pt are larger than those on graphenylene-Pd, because the d-band center of the Pt atom is closeser to the Fermi level. The NO and CO oxidation reactions on graphenylene-NM are investigated via four catalytic mechanisms, including Langmuir-Hinshelwood (LH), Eley-Rideal (ER), New ER (NER), and termolecular ER (TER). The results show that the NO and CO oxidations via LH and TER mechanisms can occur owing to the relatively small energy barriers. Moreover, the interaction of 2NO+2CO via ER mechanism is the energetically more favorable reaction. Although the NO oxidation via the NER mechanism has rather low energy barriers, the reaction is unlikely to occur due to the low adsorption energy of O₂ compared with CO and NO. This research may provide guidance for exploring the catalytic performance of SACs on graphene-like materials to remove toxic gas molecules.     

Real-Time Atomic-Scale Visualization of Reversible Copper Surface Activation during the CO Oxidation Reaction

By using in situ aberration-corrected environmental transmission electron microscopy, for the first time at atomic level, the dynamic evolution of the Cu surface is captured during CO oxidation. Under reaction conditions, the Cu surface is activated, typically involving 2–3 atomic layers with the formation of a reversible metastable phase that only exists during catalytic reactions. The distinctive role of CO and O₂ in the surface activation is revealed, which features CO exposure to lead to surface roughening and consequently formation of low-coordinated Cu atoms, while O₂ exposure induces a quasi-crystalline CuOx phase. Supported by DFT calculations, it is shown that crystalline CuOx reversibly transforms into the amorphous phase, acting as an active species to facilitate the interaction of gas reactants and catalyzing CO oxidation.     

Dual-active-site Fe/Cu single-atom nanozymes with multifunctional specific peroxidase-like properties for S2− detection and dye degradation

Designing single-atom nanozymes with densely exposed metal atom active sites and enhancing catalytic activity to detect pollutants remain a serious challenge. Herein, we reported a single-atom nanozyme with layered stacked Fe/Cu dual active sites (Fe/Cu-NC SAzyme) synthesized via hydrothermal and high-temperature pyrolysis using folic acid as a template. Compared with Fe-NC and Cu-NC SAzyme, Fe/Cu-NC SAzyme has higher peroxidase-like activity, which indicates that the doping of synthesized Fe/Cu bimetals can improve the catalytic activity and that the atomic loading of Fe and Cu in Fe/Cu-NC is 5.5 wt% and 2.27 wt%, respectively. When S²⁻ is added to the Fe/Cu-NC catalytic system, a high-sensitivity and high-selectivity S²⁻ colorimetric sensing platform can be established, with a wide linear range (0.09–6 µmol/L) and a low detection limit (30 nmol/L), which can be used to detect S²⁻ in environmental water samples. What's more, the Fe/Cu-NC SAzyme can activate peroxymonosulfate (PMS) to degrade 99.9% of rhodamine B (RhB) within 10 min with a degradation kinetics of 0.5943 min⁻¹. This work details attractive applications in Fe/Cu-NC SAzyme colorimetric sensing and dye degradation.     

Water Activation Triggered by Cu−Co Double-Atom Catalyst for Silane Oxidation

High-performance catalysts sufficient to significantly reduce the energy barrier of water activation are crucial in facilitating reactions that are restricted by water dissociation. Herein we present a Cu−Co double-atom catalyst (CuCo-DAC), which possesses a uniform and well-defined CuCoN₆(OH) structure, and works together to promote water activation in silane oxidation. The catalyst achieves superior catalytic performance far exceeding that of single-atom catalysts (SACs). Various functional silanes are converted into silanols with up to 98 % yield and 99 % selectivity. Kinetic studies show that the activation energy of silane oxidation by CuCo-DAC is significantly lower than that of Cu single-atom catalyst (Cu-SAC) and Co single-atom catalyst (Co-SAC). Theoretical calculations demonstrate two different reaction pathways where water splitting is the rate-determining step and it is accelerated by CuCo-DAC, whereas H₂ formation is key for its single-atom counterpart.     

Correlation between structure and catalytic activity of manganese oxides in liquid-phase oxidation of 1-octene

We have studied the correlation between the crystal structure and the catalytic activity of manganese oxides MnO, MnO₂, Mn₃O₄, and Mn₂O₃ in liquid-phase oxidation of 1-octene by molecular oxygen. The catalytic activity decreases in the series of oxides with octahedral coordination environment for the manganese atoms MnO−Mn₂O₃−MnO₂. The oxide Mn₃O₄ (with mixed tetrahedral and octahedral environment for the Mn atoms) catalyzes the process according to a different mechanism. L'vov Polytechnic State University, 12 S. Bandery ul., L'vov-13 290646, Ukraine. Translated from Teoreticheskaya i éksperimental'naya Khimiya, Vol. 34, No. 5, pp. 324–327, September–October, 1998.     

Atomically Dispersed Nickel Anchored on a Nitrogen-Doped Carbon/TiO2 Composite for Efficient and Selective Photocatalytic CH4 Oxidation to Oxygenates

Direct photocatalytic oxidation of methane to liquid oxygenated products is a sustainable strategy for methane valorization at room temperature. However, in this reaction, noble metals are generally needed to function as cocatalysts for obtaining adequate activity and selectivity. Here, we report atomically dispersed nickel anchored on a nitrogen-doped carbon/TiO₂ composite (Ni−NC/TiO₂) as a highly active and selective catalyst for photooxidation of CH₄ to C1 oxygenates with O₂ as the only oxidant. Ni−NC/TiO₂ exhibits a yield of C1 oxygenates of 198 μmol for 4 h with a selectivity of 93 %, exceeding that of most reported high-performance photocatalysts. Experimental and theoretical investigations suggest that the single-atom Ni−NC sites not only enhance the transfer of photogenerated electrons from TiO₂ to isolated Ni atoms but also dominantly facilitate the activation of O₂ to form the key intermediate ⋅OOH radicals, which synergistically lead to a substantial enhancement in both activity and selectivity.     

Unraveling the Structure Transition and Peroxidase Mimic Activity of Copper Sites over Atomically Dispersed Copper-Doped Carbonized Polymer Dots

The lack of systematic structural resolution makes it difficult to build specific transition-metal-atom-doped carbonized polymer dots (TMA-doped CPDs). Herein, the structure-activity relationship between Cu atoms and CPDs was evaluated by studying the peroxidase-like properties of Glu−Cu−CPDs prepared by using copper glutamate (Glu) with a Cu−N₂O₂ initial structure. The results showed that the Cu atoms bound to Glu−Cu−CPDs in the form of Cu−N₂C₂, indicating that Cu−O bonds changed into Cu−C bonds under hydrothermal conditions. This phenomenon was also observed in other copper-doped CPDs. Moreover, the carboxyl and amino groups content decreased after copper-atom doping. Theoretical calculations revealed a dual-site catalytic mechanism for catalyzing H₂O₂. The detection of intracellular H₂O₂ suggested their application prospects. Our study provides an in-depth understanding of the formation and catalytic mechanism of TMA-doped-CPDs, allowing for the generation specific TMA-doped-CPDs.     

Real‐Time Atomic‐Scale Visualization of Reversible Copper Surface Activation during the CO Oxidation Reaction

By using in situ aberration‐corrected environmental transmission electron microscopy, for the first time at atomic level, the dynamic evolution of the Cu surface is captured during CO oxidation. Under reaction conditions, the Cu surface is activated, typically involving 2–3 atomic layers with the formation of a reversible metastable phase that only exists during catalytic reactions. The distinctive role of CO and O₂ in the surface activation is revealed, which features CO exposure to lead to surface roughening and consequently formation of low‐coordinated Cu atoms, while O₂ exposure induces a quasi‐crystalline CuOx phase. Supported by DFT calculations, it is shown that crystalline CuOx reversibly transforms into the amorphous phase, acting as an active species to facilitate the interaction of gas reactants and catalyzing CO oxidation.     

Electronic Perturbation of Copper Single-Atom CO2 Reduction Catalysts in a Molecular Way

Fine-tuning electronic structures of single-atom catalysts (SACs) plays a crucial role in harnessing their catalytic activities, yet challenges remain at a molecular scale in a controlled fashion. By tailoring the structure of graphdiyne (GDY) with electron-withdrawing/-donating groups, we show herein the electronic perturbation of Cu single-atom CO₂ reduction catalysts in a molecular way. The elaborately introduced functional groups (−F, −H and −OMe) can regulate the valance state of Cu^δ+, which is found to be directly scaled with the selectivity of the electrochemical CO₂-to-CH₄ conversion. An optimum CH₄ Faradaic efficiency of 72.3 % was achieved over the Cu SAC on the F-substituted GDY. In situ spectroscopic studies and theoretical calculations revealed that the positive Cu^δ+ centers adjusted by the electron-withdrawing group decrease the pK_a of adsorbed H₂O, promoting the hydrogenation of intermediates toward the CH₄ production. Our strategy paves the way for precise electronic perturbation of SACs toward efficient electrocatalysis.     

Bias-Free Solar-Driven Syngas Production: A Fe2O3 Photoanode Featuring Single-Atom Cobalt Integrated with a Silver-Palladium Cathode

Photoelectrochemical syngas production from aqueous CO₂ is a promising technique for carbon capture and utilization. Herein, we demonstrate the efficient and tunable syngas production by integrating a single-atom cobalt-catalyst-decorated α-Fe₂O₃ photoanode with a bimetallic Ag/Pd alloy cathode. A record syngas production activity of 81.9 μmol cm⁻² h⁻¹ (CO/H₂ ratio: ≈1 : 1) was achieved under artificial sunlight (AM 1.5 G) with an excellent durability. Systematic studies reveal that the Co single atoms effectively extract the holes from Fe₂O₃ photoanodes and serve as active sites for promoting oxygen evolution. Simultaneously, the Pd and Ag atoms in bimetallic cathodes selectively adsorb CO₂ and protons for facilitating CO production. Further incorporation with a photovoltaic, to allow solar light (>600 nm) to be utilized, yields a bias-free CO₂ reduction device with solar-to-CO and solar-to-H₂ conversion efficiencies up to 1.33 and 1.36 %, respectively.     

Intermediates-induced CO2 Reduction Reaction Activity at Single-Atom M−N2 (M=Fe,Co, Ni) Sites

Single-atom M−N₂ (M=Fe, Co, Ni) catalysts exhibit high activity for CO₂ reduction reaction (CO₂RR). However, the CO₂RR mechanism and the origin of activity at the single-atom sites remain unclear, which hinders the development of single-atom M−N₂ catalysts. Here, using density functional theory calculations, we reveal intermediates-induced CO₂RR activity at the single-atom M−N₂ sites. At the M−N₂ sites, the asymmetric *O*CO configuration tends to split into *CO and *OH intermediates. Intermediates become part of the active moiety to form M−(CO)N₂ or M-(OH)N₂ sites, which optimizes the adsorption of intermediates on the M sites. The maximum free energy differences along the optimal CO₂RR pathway are 0.30, 0.54, and 0.28 eV for Fe−(OH)N₂, Co−(CO)N₂, and Ni−(OH)N₂ sites respectively, which is lower than those of Fe−N₂ (1.03 eV), Co−N₂ (1.24 eV) and Ni−N₂ (0.73 eV) sites. The intermediate modification can shift the d-band center of the spin-up (minority) state downward by regulating the charge distribution at the M sites, leading to less charge being accepted by the intermediates from the M sites. This work provides new insights into the understanding of the activity of single-atom M−N₂ sites.     

Synergistic Effect of Boron Nitride and Carbon Domains in Boron Carbide Nitride Nanotube Supported Single-Atom Catalysts for Efficient Nitrogen Fixation

Developing the low-cost and efficient single-atom catalysts (SACs) for nitrogen reduction reaction (NRR) is of great importance while remains as a great challenge. The catalytic activity, selectivity and durability are all fundamentally related to the elaborate coordination environment of SACs. Using first-principles calculations, we investigated the SACs with single transition metal (TM) atom supported on defective boron carbide nitride nanotubes (BCNTs) as NRR electrocatalysts. Our results suggest that boron-vacancy defects on BCNTs can strongly immobilize TM atoms with large enough binding energy and high thermal/structural stability. Importantly, the synergistic effect of boron nitride (BN) and carbon domains comes up with the modifications of the charge polarization of single-TM-atom active site and the electronic properties of material, which has been proven to be the essential key to promote N₂ adsorption, activation, and reduction. Specifically, six SACs (namely V, Mn, Fe, Mo, Ru, and W atoms embedded into defective BCNTs) can be used as promising candidates for NRR electrocatalysts as their NRR activity is higher than the state-of-the art Ru(0001) catalyst. In particular, single Mo atom supported on defective BCNTs with large tube diameter possesses the highest NRR activity while suppressing the competitive hydrogen evolution reaction, with a low limiting potential of −0.62 V via associative distal path. This work suggests new opportunities for driving NH₃ production by carbon-based single-atom electrocatalysts under ambient conditions.