Highly dispersed Ru/Co catalyst with enhanced activity for catalyzing NaBH4 hydrolysis in alkaline solutions

Ru and Co are highly dispersed on the surface of TiO₂ nanoparticles with an easy coprecipitation method to fabricate a novel Ru-based catalyst (Ru/Co-TiO₂). The fabricated Ru/Co-TiO₂ catalyst exhibits superior catalytic performance for promoting NaBH₄ hydrolysis in alkaline medium, showing an impressive hydrogen generation rate per gram Ru as high as 172 L min⁻¹ g_Ru^-1, which is better than most of recently reported Ru-based catalysts. In addition, the fabricated Ru/Co-TiO₂ catalyst also shows excellent durability in cycle use, with only 2.9% activity loss after being used for 5 cycles. These advantages make the developed Ru/Co-TiO₂ catalyst a potential choice for promoting hydrogen generation from NaBH₄ hydrolysis.     

Highly Active Electrocatalysis of the Hydrogen Evolution Reaction by Cobalt Phosphide Nanoparticles

Nanoparticles of cobalt phosphide, CoP, have been prepared and evaluated as electrocatalysts for the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) under strongly acidic conditions (0.50 M H₂SO₄, pH 0.3). Uniform, multi‐faceted CoP nanoparticles were synthesized by reacting Co nanoparticles with trioctylphosphine. Electrodes comprised of CoP nanoparticles on a Ti support (2 mg cm^?2 mass loading) produced a cathodic current density of 20 mA cm^?2 at an overpotential of ?85 mV. The CoP/Ti electrodes were stable over 24 h of sustained hydrogen production in 0.50 M H₂SO₄. The activity was essentially unchanged after 400 cyclic voltammetric sweeps, suggesting long‐term viability under operating conditions. CoP is therefore amongst the most active, acid‐stable, earth‐abundant HER electrocatalysts reported to date.     

Synthesis,characterization of SiO2 supported-industrial phosphoric acid catalyst for hydrolysis of NaBH4 solution

Abstract

Tunisian industrial phosphoric acid H₃PO₄ was supported on silica gel SiO₂ (SIPA) to catalyze the hydrolysis reaction of aqueous alkaline sodium borohydride (NaBH₄). The SiO₂ was produced from purified quartz sand using alkali fusion-acidification chemical process. The BET surface area results indicate that the prepared silica gel could reach a specific surface area up to 585 m²/g. The addition of PO₃H₂ functional groups resulted in an increase of surface acidity of SiO₂ catalyst as shown by FT-IR and DTA-DTG spectra. The total acidity of SIPA catalyst was determined by titration to be 2.8?mmol H⁺/g. SEM/EDS maps reveal the distribution of heavy metals on the silica surface. The effect of supported PO₃H₂ functional groups and heavy metals on the NaBH₄ hydrolysis reaction was studied for different ratios of SIPA catalyst to NaBH₄. The sample 12SIPA/NaBH₄ leads to a very high hydrogen generation rate (up to 90%). The activation energy of hydrogen generation by NaBH₄ hydrolysis was 25.7?kJ mol^?1.     

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.     

Pd/Co双金属纳米颗粒的制备及催化制氢性能

采用聚乙烯吡咯烷酮(PVP)保护的化学共还原法制备了Pd/Co双金属纳米颗粒, 研究了PVP及还原剂(NaBH₄)的用量、金属盐浓度、金属比例等对Pd/Co双金属纳米颗粒催化NaBH₄制氢性能的影响. 透射电子显微镜(TEM)的结果表明, 所制备的Pd/Co双金属纳米颗粒的平均粒径在1.5-2.8 nm之间. Pd/Co双金属纳米颗粒(BNPs)的催化活性远高于Pd与Co单金属纳米颗粒的活性; 当Pd/Co的理论原子比为1/9时, 双金属纳米颗粒的催化活性最高可达15570 mol·mol^-1·h^-1 (文中纳米颗粒的催化活性均为每摩尔Pd的活性). 密度泛函理论(DFT)的计算结果表明, Pd原子与Co原子之间发生电荷转移, 使得Pd原子带负电而Co原子带正电, 荷电的Pd和Co原子进而成为催化反应的活性中心. 所制备的Pd/Co双金属纳米颗粒具有很好的催化耐久性, 即使重复使用5次后, 该催化剂仍具有较高的催化活性, 且使用后的纳米颗粒催化剂也没有出现团聚现象. 双金属纳米颗粒催化NaBH₄水解反应的活化能约为54 kJ·mol^-1.     

负载型Ni-Co-P/CNFs催化剂的制备及释氢性能

以纳米碳纤维(CNFs)为基体材料,采用化学镀法在CNFs表面沉积了Ni-Co-P催化剂。研究了催化剂用量,硼氢化钠、氢氧化钠浓度,温度等对碱性硼氢化钠溶液水解释氢的影响。电感耦合等离子体原子发射光谱法(ICP-AES)测试得出负载型Ni-Co-P催化剂含镍13.30%(质量分数,下同)、钴82.25%、磷4.45%。硼氢化钠水解释氢实验结果表明,产氢速率与催化剂用量呈线性关系。当温度为45 ℃、催化剂浓度为7.5 g/L、氢氧化钠浓度为5%、硼氢化钠浓度为2.5%时,氢气释放速率达到最大值18.044 L/(g·min)。通过对负载型催化剂Ni-Co-P/CNFs催化碱性硼氢化钠溶液释放氢气动力学研究表明,该催化剂的活化能E_a为51.57 kJ/mol。     

Micromotor‐Based Energy Generation

A micromotor‐based strategy for energy generation, utilizing the conversion of liquid‐phase hydrogen to usable hydrogen gas (H₂), is described. The new motion‐based H₂‐generation concept relies on the movement of Pt‐black/Ti Janus microparticle motors in a solution of sodium borohydride (NaBH₄) fuel. This is the first report of using NaBH₄ for powering micromotors. The autonomous motion of these catalytic micromotors, as well as their bubble generation, leads to enhanced mixing and transport of NaBH₄ towards the Pt‐black catalytic surface (compared to static microparticles or films), and hence to a substantially faster rate of H₂ production. The practical utility of these micromotors is illustrated by powering a hydrogen–oxygen fuel cell car by an on‐board motion‐based hydrogen and oxygen generation. The new micromotor approach paves the way for the development of efficient on‐site energy generation for powering external devices or meeting growing demands on the energy grid.     

Heterostructured Inter‐Doped Ruthenium–Cobalt Oxide Hollow Nanosheet Arrays for Highly Efficient Overall Water Splitting

The development of transition‐metal‐oxides (TMOs)‐based bifunctional catalysts toward efficient overall water splitting through delicate control of composition and structure is a challenging task. Herein, the rational design and controllable fabrication of unique heterostructured inter‐doped ruthenium–cobalt oxide [(Ru–Co)O_x] hollow nanosheet arrays on carbon cloth is reported. Benefiting from the desirable compositional and structural advantages of more exposed active sites, optimized electronic structure, and interfacial synergy effect, the (Ru–Co)O_x nanoarrays exhibited outstanding performance as a bifunctional catalyst. Particularly, the catalyst showed a remarkable hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) activity with an overpotential of 44.1 mV at 10 mA cm^?2 and a small Tafel slope of 23.5 mV dec^?1, as well as an excellent oxygen evolution reaction (OER) activity with an overpotential of 171.2 mV at 10 mA cm^?2. As a result, a very low cell voltage of 1.488 V was needed at 10 mA cm^?2 for alkaline overall water splitting.     

Cobalt‐Nanocrystal‐Assembled Hollow Nanoparticles for Electrocatalytic Hydrogen Generation from Neutral‐pH Water

Highly active and stable electrocatalysts for hydrogen generation from neutral‐pH water are highly desired, but very difficult to achieve. Herein we report a facile synthetic approach to cobalt nanocrystal assembled hollow nanoparticles (Co‐HNP), which serve as an electrocatalyst for hydrogen generation from neutral‐pH water. An electrode composed of Co‐HNP on a carbon cloth (CC) produces cathodic current densities of 10 and 100 mA cm^?2 at overpotentials of ?85 mV and ?237 mV, respectively. The Co‐HNP/CC electrode retains its high activity after 20 h hydrogen generation at a high current density of 150 mA cm^?2, indicating the superior activity and stability of Co‐HNP as electrocatalyst.     

Ionic Polymer Microspheres Bearing a CoIII–Salen Moiety as a Bifunctional Heterogeneous Catalyst for the Efficient Cycloaddition of CO2 and Epoxides

We report a unique strategy to obtain the bifunctional heterogeneous catalyst TBB‐Bpy@Salen‐Co (TBB=1,2,4,5‐tetrakis(bromomethyl)benzene, Bpy=4,4’‐bipyridine, Salen‐Co=N,N’‐bis({4‐dimethylamino}salicylidene)ethylenediamino cobalt(III) acetate) by combining a cross‐linked ionic polymer with a Co^III–salen Schiff base. The catalyst showed extra high activity for CO₂ fixation under mild, solvent‐free reaction conditions with no requirement for a co‐catalyst. The synthesized catalyst possessed distinctive spherical structural features, abundant halogen Br^? anions with good leaving group ability, and accessible Lewis acidic Co metal centers. These unique features, together with the synergistic role of the Co and Br^? functional sites, allowed TBB‐Bpy@Salen‐Co to exhibit enhanced catalytic conversion of CO₂ into cyclic carbonates relative to the corresponding monofunctional analogues. This catalyst can be easily recovered and recycled five times without significant leaching of Co or loss of activity. Moreover, based on our experimental results and previous work, a synergistic cycloaddition reaction mechanism was proposed.     

Cobalt‐Catalyzed,Aminoquinoline‐Directed C(sp2)H Bond Alkenylation by Alkynes

A method for cobalt‐catalyzed, aminoquinoline‐ and picolinamide‐directed C(sp²)? H bond alkenylation by alkynes was developed. The method shows excellent functional‐group tolerance and both internal and terminal alkynes are competent substrates for the coupling. The reaction employs a Co(OAc)₂?4 H₂O catalyst, Mn(OAc)₂ co‐catalyst, and oxygen (from air) as a terminal oxidant.     

Electrodeposited Amorphous Tungsten‐doped Cobalt Oxide as an Efficient Catalyst for the Oxygen Evolution Reaction

Thin film of amorphous tungsten‐doped cobalt oxide (W:CoO) was successfully grown on a conducting electrode via an electrochemical oxidation process employing a [Co(WS₄)₂]^2? deposition bath. The W:CoO catalyst displays an attractive performance for the oxygen evolution reaction in an alkaline solution. In an NaOH solution of pH 13, W:CoO operates with a moderate onset overpotential of 230 mV and requires 320 mV overpotential to generate a catalytic current density of 10 mA cm^?2. A low Tafel slope of 45 mV decade^?1 was determined, indicating a rapid O₂‐evolving kinetics. The as‐prepared W:CoO belongs to the best cobalt oxide‐based catalysts ever reported for the oxygen evolution (OER) reaction.     

A Cost‐Effective 3D Hydrogen Evolution Cathode with High Catalytic Activity: FeP Nanowire Array as the Active Phase

Iron is the cheapest and one of the most abundant transition metals. Natural [FeFe]‐hydrogenases exhibit remarkably high activity in hydrogen evolution, but they suffer from high oxygen sensitivity and difficulty in scale‐up. Herein, an FeP nanowire array was developed on Ti plate (FeP NA/Ti) from its β‐FeOOH NA/Ti precursor through a low‐temperature phosphidation reaction. When applied as self‐supported 3D hydrogen evolution cathode, the FeP NA/Ti electrode shows exceptionally high catalytic activity and good durability, and it only requires overpotentials of 55 and 127 mV to afford current densities of 10 and 100 mA cm², respectively. The excellent electrocatalytic performance is promising for applications as non‐noble‐metal HER catalyst with a high performance–price ratio in electrochemical water splitting for large‐scale hydrogen fuel production.     

Exceptionally high molecular weight linear polyethylene by using N,N,N′‐Co catalysts appended with a N′‐2,6‐bis{di(4‐fluorophenyl)methyl}‐4‐nitrophenyl group

The bis(arylimino)pyridines, 2‐[CMeN{2,6‐{(4‐FC₆H₄)₂CH}₂–4‐NO₂}]‐6‐(CMeNAr)C₅H₃N (Ar = 2,6‐Me₂C₆H₃ L1 , 2,6‐Et₂C₆H₃ L2 , 2,6‐i‐Pr₂C₆H₃ L3 , 2,4,6‐Me₃C₆H₂ L4 , 2,6‐Et₂–4‐MeC₆H₂ L5 ), each containing one N′‐2,6‐bis{di(4‐fluorophenyl)methyl}‐4‐nitrophenyl group, have been synthesized by two successive condensation reactions from 2,6‐diacetylpyridine. Their subsequent treatment with anhydrous cobalt (II) chloride gave the corresponding N,N,N′‐CoCl₂ chelates, Co1 – Co5 , in excellent yield. All five complexes have been characterized by ¹H/¹⁹F NMR and IR spectroscopy as well as by elemental analysis. In addition, the molecular structures of Co1 and Co3 have been determined and help to emphasize the differences in steric properties imposed by the inequivalent N‐aryl groups; distorted square pyramidal geometries are adopted by each complex. Upon activation with either methylaluminoxane (MAO) or modified methylaluminoxane (MMAO), precatalyts Co1 – Co5 collectively exhibited very high activities for ethylene polymerization with 2,6‐dimethyl‐substituted Co1 the most active (up to 1.1 × 10⁷ g (PE) mol^?1 (Co) h^?1); the MAO systems were generally more productive. Linear polyethylenes of exceptionally high molecular weight (M_w up to 1.3 × 10⁶ g mol^?1) were obtained in all cases with the range in dispersities exhibited using MAO as co‐catalyst noticeably narrower than with MMAO [M_w/M_n: 3.55–4.77 ( Co1 – Co5 /MAO) vs. 2.85–12.85 ( Co1 – Co5 /MMAO)]. Significantly, the molecular weights of the polymers generated using this class of cobalt catalyst are higher than any literature values reported to date using related N,N,N‐bis (arylimino)pyridine‐cobalt catalysts.     

The kinetics of complex formation between Ti(IV) and hydrogen peroxide

The kinetics of the formation of the titanium‐peroxide [TiO²⁺₂] complex from the reaction of Ti(IV)OSO₄ with hydrogen peroxide and the hydrolysis of hydroxymethyl hydroperoxide (HMHP) were examined to determine whether Ti(IV)OSO₄ could be used to distinguish between hydrogen peroxide and HMHP in mixed solutions. Stopped‐flow analysis coupled to UV‐vis spectroscopy was used to examine the reaction kinetics at various temperatures. The molar absorptivity (ε) of the [TiO²⁺₂] complex was found to be 679.5 ± 20.8 L mol^?1 cm^?1 at 405 nm. The reaction between hydrogen peroxide and Ti(IV)OSO₄ was first order with respect to both Ti(IV)OSO₄ and H₂O₂ with a rate constant of 5.70 ± 0.18 × 10⁴ M^?1 s^?1 at 25°C, and an activation energy, E_a = 40.5 ± 1.9 kJ mol^?1. The rate constant for the hydrolysis of HMHP was 4.3 × 10^?3 s^?1 at pH 8.5. Since the rate of complex formation between Ti(IV)OSO₄ and hydrogen peroxide is much faster than the rate of hydrolysis of HMHP, the Ti(IV)OSO₄ reaction coupled to time‐dependent UV‐vis spectroscopic measurements can be used to distinguish between hydrogen peroxide and HMHP in solution. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J Chem Kinet 39: 457–461, 2007     

MoB/g‐C3N4 Interface Materials as a Schottky Catalyst to Boost Hydrogen Evolution

Proton adsorption on metallic catalysts is a prerequisite for efficient hydrogen evolution reaction (HER). However, tuning proton adsorption without perturbing metallicity remains a challenge. A Schottky catalyst based on metal–semiconductor junction principles is presented. With metallic MoB, the introduction of n‐type semiconductive g‐C₃N₄ induces a vigorous charge transfer across the MoB/g‐C₃N₄ Schottky junction, and increases the local electron density in MoB surface, confirmed by multiple spectroscopic techniques. This Schottky catalyst exhibits a superior HER activity with a low Tafel slope of 46 mV dec^?1 and a high exchange current density of 17 μA cm^?2, which is far better than that of pristine MoB. First‐principle calculations reveal that the Schottky contact dramatically lowers the kinetic barriers of both proton adsorption and reduction coordinates, therefore benefiting surface hydrogen generation.     

Promotion of Mn Doped Co/CNTs Catalysts for CO Hydrogenation to Light Olefins

With various contents, Mn was introduced into carbon nanotubes (CNTs) supported cobalt catalysts and the obtained Mn‐Co/CNTs catalysts were investigated for CO hydrogenation to light alkenes and characterized by N₂ adsorption, X‐ray diffraction (XRD), X‐ray photoelectron spectra (XPS), H₂ temperature programmed reduction (TPR), CO temperature programmed desorption (TPD) and transmission electron microscope (TEM). The results indicate that the addition of a small amount of Mn (0.3 wt%) to CNTs‐supported Co catalyst significantly increased the selectivity of C₂–C₄ olefins and decreased the selectivity of CH₄. However, with further addition of Mn to the cobalt catalysts, the CH₄ selectivity decreased obviously along with the increase of the C₅₊ selectivity. Compared with the unpromoted catalysts, the Mn‐promoted cobalt catalysts increased the C₂^?–C₄^?/C₂⁰–C₄⁰ molar ratio.     

Fe_2O_3-Modified Hydrogen Storage Alloys as Electrocatalyst for Borohydride Oxidation

The effects of hot alkaline treatment and Fe₂O₃ modification of hydrogen storage alloy on the electrocatalytic activity for oxidation of borohydride have been investigated using linear sweep voltammetry. The performance of borohydride electrochemical oxidation was significantly influenced by the hot alkaline treatment and Fe₂O₃ modification of the hydrogen storage alloy. The results showed that the current density of the Fe₂O₃‐modified hot alkaline‐treated hydrogen storage alloy electrode containing 5 wt% Fe₂O₃ reached 125 mA·cm^?2 in 0.10 mol·L^?1 NaBH₄ and 2 mol·L^?1 NaOH solution at ?0.55 V vs. saturated Ag/AgCl, KCl electrode.     

Metallic Co4N Porous Nanowire Arrays Activated by Surface Oxidation as Electrocatalysts for the Oxygen Evolution Reaction

Designing highly efficient electrocatalysts for oxygen evolution reaction (OER) plays a key role in the development of various renewable energy storage and conversion devices. In this work, we developed metallic Co₄N porous nanowire arrays directly grown on flexible substrates as highly active OER electrocatalysts for the first time. Benefiting from the collaborative advantages of metallic character, 1D porous nanowire arrays, and unique 3D electrode configuration, surface oxidation activated Co₄N porous nanowire arrays/carbon cloth achieved an extremely small overpotential of 257 mV at a current density of 10 mA cm⁻², and a low Tafel slope of 44 mV dec⁻¹ in an alkaline medium, which is the best OER performance among reported Co‐based electrocatalysts to date. Moreover, in‐depth mechanistic investigations demonstrate the active phases are the metallic Co₄N core inside with a thin cobalt oxides/hydroxides shell during the OER process. Our finding introduces a new concept to explore the design of high‐efficiency OER electrocatalysts.     

Co‐catalyst effects on the thermal stability/activity of N,N,N‐Co ethylene polymerization Catalysts Bearing Fluoro‐Substituted N‐2,6‐dibenzhydrylphenyl groups

The unsymmetrical bis (arylimino)pyridines, 2‐[CMeN{2,6‐{(4‐FC₆H₄)₂CH}₂–4‐t‐BuC₆H₂}]‐6‐(CMeNAr)C₅H₃N (Ar = 2,6‐Me₂C₆H₃ L1 , 2,6‐Et₂C₆H₃ L2 , 2,6‐i‐Pr₂C₆H₃ L3 , 2,4,6‐Me₃C₆H₂ L4 , 2,6‐Et₂–4‐MeC₆H₂ L5 ), each containing one N‐aryl group bedecked with ortho‐substituted fluorobenzhydryl groups, have been employed in the preparation of the corresponding five‐coordinate cobalt (II) chelates, LCoCl₂ ( Co1 – Co5 ); the symmetrical comparator [2,6‐{CMeN(2,6‐(4‐FC₆H₄)₂CH)₂–4‐t‐BuC₆H₂}₂C₅H₃N]CoCl₂ (Co6) is also reported. All cobaltous complexes are paramagnetic and have been characterized by ¹H/¹⁹F NMR spectroscopy, FT‐IR spectroscopy and elemental analysis. The molecular structures of Co3 and Co6 highlight the different degrees of steric protection given to the metal center by the particular N‐aryl group combination. Depending on the aluminoxane co‐catalyst employed to activate the cobalt precatalyst, distinct variations in thermal stability and activity of the catalyst towards ethylene polymerization were exhibited. In particular with MAO, the resultant catalysts reached their optimal performance at 70 °C delivering high activities of up to 10.1 × 10⁶ g PE (mol of Co)^?1 h^?1 with Co1  >  Co4  >  Co2  >  Co5  >  Co3 >>  Co6 . On the other hand, using MMAO, the catalysts operate most effectively at 30 °C but are by comparison less productive. In general, the polyethylenes were highly linear, narrowly disperse and displayed a wide range of molecular weights [M_w range: 18.5–58.7 kg mol^?1 (MAO); 206.1–352.5 kg mol^?1 (MMAO)].