Controlling Proton Delivery through Catalyst Structural Dynamics

The fastest synthetic molecular catalysts for H₂ production and oxidation emulate components of the active site of hydrogenases. The critical role of controlled structural dynamics is recognized for many enzymes, including hydrogenases, but is largely neglected in designing synthetic catalysts. Our results demonstrate the impact of controlling structural dynamics on H₂ production rates for [Ni(P^Ph₂N^C6H4R₂)₂]²⁺ catalysts (R=n‐hexyl, n‐decyl, n‐tetradecyl, n‐octadecyl, phenyl, or cyclohexyl). The turnover frequencies correlate inversely with the rates of chair–boat ring inversion of the ligand, since this dynamic process governs protonation at either catalytically productive or non‐productive sites. These results demonstrate that the dynamic processes involved in proton delivery can be controlled through modification of the outer coordination sphere, in a manner similar to the role of the protein architecture in many enzymes. As a design parameter, controlling structural dynamics can increase H₂ production rates by three orders of magnitude with a minimal increase in overpotential.     

Anchoring a Structurally Editable Proximal Cofactor-like Module to Construct an Artificial Dual-center Peroxygenase

A recent novel strategy for constructing artificial metalloenzymes (ArMs) that target new-to-nature functions uses dual-functional small molecules (DFSMs) with catalytic and anchoring groups for converting P450BM3 monooxygenase into a peroxygenase. However, this process requires excess DFSMs (1000 equivalent of P450) owing to their low binding affinity for P450, thus severely limiting its practical application. Herein, structural optimization of the DFSM-anchoring group considerably enhanced their binding affinity by three orders of magnitude (K_d≈10⁻⁸ M), thus approximating native cofactors, such as FMN or FAD in flavoenzymes. An artificial cofactor-driven peroxygenase was thus constructed. The co-crystal structure of P450BM3 bound to a DFSM clearly revealed a precatalytic state in which the DFSM participates in H₂O₂ activation, thus facilitating peroxygenase activity. Moreover, the increased binding affinity substantially decreases the DFSM load to as low as 2 equivalents of P450, while maintaining increased activity. Furthermore, replacement of catalytic groups showed disparate selectivity and activity for various substrates. This study provides an unprecedented approach for assembling ArMs by binding editable organic cofactors as a co-catalytic center, thereby increasing the catalytic promiscuity of P450 enzymes.     

Biosynthetic approach to modeling and understanding metalloproteins using unnatural amino acids

Metalloproteins have inspired chemists for many years to synthesize artificial catalysts that mimic native enzymes.As a complementary approach to studying native enzymes or making synthetic models,biosynthetic approach using small and stable proteins to model native enzymes has offered advantages of incorporating non-covalent secondary sphere interactions under physiological conditions.However,most biosynthetic models are restricted to natural amino acids.To overcome this limitation,incorporating unnatural amino acids into the biosynthetic models has shown promises.In this review,we summarize first synthetic,semisynthetic and biological methods of incorporates unnatural amino acids(UAAs)into proteins,followed by progress made in incorporating UAAs into both native metalloproteins and their biosynthetic models to fine-tune functional properties beyond native enzymes or their variants containing natural amino acids,such as reduction potentials of azurin,O_2 reduction rates and percentages of product formation of HCO models in Mb,the rate of radical transport in ribonucleotide reductase(RNR)and the proton and electron transfer pathways in photosystemⅡ(PSⅡ).We also discuss how this endeavour has allowed systematic investigations of precise roles of conserved residues in metalloproteins,such as Metl21 in azurin,Tyr244 that is cross-linked to one of the three His ligands to CuB in HCO,Tyr122,356,730 and 731 in RNR and TyrZ in PSⅡ.These examples have demonstrated that incorporating UAAs has provided a new dimension in our efforts to mimic native enzymes and in providing deeper insights into structural features responsible high enzymatic activity and reaction mechanisms,making it possible to design highly efficient artificial catalysts with similar or even higher activity than native enzymes.     

镁铁和镁铁铝催化剂氢还原过程的研究

以水滑石为前体 ,制备了镁铁和镁铁铝复合氧化物催化剂 ,运用原位穆斯堡尔谱研究了催化剂在H2 气氛中的还原行为。结果表明 :由于Mg、Al的加入和固溶体的形成 ,相对地稳定了FeO物相 ,阻碍了H2 对铁离子的还原 ,使得Fe2 进一步还原为金属Fe0 的能力减弱 ;在还原过程中催化剂首先生成含Fe2 的固溶体FeO MgO或FeO MgO Al2O3,然后再完全还原成金属Fe0。     

Oxidative Transformations of Organic Compounds Mediated by Redox Molecular Sieves

Zeolites are viewed by some as the “philosopher's stone” of modern chemistry.^[1] They are more or less indispensable in oil refining and petrochemicals manufacture where they are widely applied as solid acid catalysts. More recently attention has been focused on their use in the manufacture of fine chemicals. The synthetic utility of zeolites and related molecular sieves (zeotypes) has been considerably extended by the incorporation of redox metals into their frameworks. The resulting redox molecular sieves catalyze a variety of selective oxidations under mild conditions in the liquid phase. Their structural diversity–including variation of the redox metal, incorporation of metal complexes, and the size and polarity of the micropores–provides the possibility of designing tailor-made solid catalysts (“mineral enzymes”) for liquid-phase oxidations with clean oxidants such as O₂, H₂O₂, and RO₂H. Hence, they have enormous potential in industrial organic synthesis as environmentally friendly alternatives to traditional oxidations employing inorganic oxidants in stoichiometric amounts. A primary aim of this review is to familiarize organic chemists with the synthetic potential of redox molecular sieves. An outline of their synthesis, structures, and chemical properties, highlighting their unique advantages, is followed by a discussion of general (mechanistic) features that influence the choice of a suitable catalyst for a particular type of oxidation. The main part of the review deals with the oxidation of various substrates of synthetic interest–such as alkanes, alkenes, (alkyl)arenes, alcohols, and amines–and emphasizes the advantages of redox molecular sieves (including selectivity and stability) over their homogeneous counterparts. New directions towards truly biomimetic solid catalysts, for example zeolite-encapsulated chiral metal complexes as heterogeneous catalysts for asymmetric oxidations, are high-lighted.     

Catalytic properties of transition metal salts immobilized on nanoporous silica polyamine composites II: hydrogenation

The transition metal compounds Pd(OAc)₂, RhCl₃·4H₂O and RuCl₃ · nH₂O were adsorbed onto the nanoporous silica polyamine composite (SPC) particles (150–250 µm), WP‐1 [poly(ethyleneimine) on amorphous silica], BP‐1 [poly(allylamine) on amorphous silica], WP‐2 (WP‐1 modified with chloroacetic acid) and BP‐2 (BP‐1 modified with chloroacetic acid). Inductively coupled plasma‐atomic emission spectrometry analysis of the dried samples after digestion indicated metal loadings of 0.4–1.2 mmol g^?1 except for RhCl₃·4H₂O on BP‐2 which showed a metal loading of only 0.1 mmol g^?1. The metal loaded composites were then screened as hydrogenation catalysts for the reduction of 1‐octene, 1‐decene, 1‐hexene and 1, 3‐cyclohexadiene at a hydrogen pressure of 5 atm in the temperature range of 50–90 °C. All 12 combinations of SPC and transition metal compound proved active for the reduction of the terminal olefins, but isomerization to internal alkenes was competitive in all cases. Under these conditions, selective hydrogenation of 1,3‐cyclohexadiene to cyclohexene was observed with some of the catalysts. Turnover frequencies were estimated for the hydrogenation reactions based on the metal loading and were in some cases comparable to more conventional heterogeneous hydrogenation catalysts. Examination of the catalysts before and after reaction with X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy and transmission electron microscopy revealed that, in the cases of Pd(OAc)₂ on WP‐2, BP‐1 and BP‐2, conversion of the surface‐ligand bound metal ions to metal nano‐particles occurs. This was not the case for Pd(OAc)₂ on WP‐1 or for RuCl₃ · nH₂O and RhCl₃· 4H₂O on all four composites. The overall results are discussed in terms of differences in metal ion coordination modes for the composite transition‐metal combinations. Suggested ligand interactions are supported by solid state CPMAS ¹³C NMR analyses and by analogy with previous structural investigations of metal binding modes on these composite materials. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Di- and poly-nuclear transition metal complexes as catalysts for the metal carbonyl substitution reaction. The role of supported metals and metal oxides as catalyst promoters

Various di- and poly-nuclear transition metal complexes have been investigated as catalysts for the metal carbonyl substitution reaction. The complexes [{(η⁵-C₅H₄R)Fe(CO)₂} ₂] (R = H, Me, CO₂Me, OMe, O(CH₂)₄OH) and [{(η⁵-C₅H₅)-Ru(CO)₂} ₂] are active catalysts for a range of substitution reactions including the probe reaction [Fe(CO)₄(CNBu^t)] + Bu^tNC → [Fe(CO)₃(CNBu^t)₂] + CO. [{(η⁵-C₅Me₅)Fe(CO)₂}₂] is catalytically active only on irradiation with visible light. For [{η⁵-C₅H₅)Fe(CO)₂}₂] and a range ofisocyanides RNC ( R = Bu^t, C₆H₅CH₂, 2,6-Me₂C₆H₃), catalyst modification by substitution with isocyanide is a major factor influencing the degree of the catalytic effects observed, e.g. [{(η⁵-C₅H₅)Fe(CO)(CNBu^t)}₂] is approximately 35 times as active as [(η⁵-C₅H₅)₂FE₂(CO)₃(CNBu^t)] for the [Fe(CO)₄(CNBu^t)] → [Fe(CO)₃(CNBu^t)₂] conversion. Mechanistic studies on this system suggest that the catalytic substitution step probably involves a rapid intermolecular attack of isonitrile, possibly on a labile catalyst-substrate radical intermediate such as {[Fe(CO)₄(CNR)][(η⁵-C₅H₅)Fe(CO)₂]}; or on a reactive radical cation such as [Fe(CO)₄(CNR)]⁺ generated via electron transfer between the substrate and the catalyst. Other transition metal complexes which also catalyze the substitution of CO by isocyanide in [Fe(CO)₄(CNR)] (and [M(CO)₆] (M = Cr, Mo, W), [Mn₂(CO)₁₀], [Re₂(CO)₁₀]) include [Ru₃(CO)₁₂], [H₄Ru₄(CO)₁₂], [M₄(CO)₁₂] (M = Co, Ir) and [Co₂(CO)₈]. These reactions conform to the general mechanistic patterns established for [{(η⁵-C₅H₅)Fe(CO)₂}₂], suggesting a similar mechanism. A range of materials, notably PtO₂, PdO and Pd/C, act as promoters for the homogeneous di- and poly-nuclear transition metal catalysts, and can even be used to induce activity in normally inactive dimer and cluster complexes e.g. [Os₃(CO)₁₂]. This promotion is attributed to at least three possible effects: the removal of catalyst inhibitors, a catalyzed substitution of the homogeneous catalyst partner, and a possible homogeneous-heterogeneous interaction which promotes the formation of catalytic intermediates.     

Nitric oxide producing artificial enzymes based on metalloporphyrins

Artificial enzymes are synthetic materials or molecules that exhibit enzyme-like activities. Herein, we report artificial enzymes based on metalloporphyrins (MPs) that can mimic nitric oxide synthase (NOS) to produce nitric oxide (NO) from l-arginine (Arg) using hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂) as an oxidant, and we determine the microenvironmental influence on their activity and stability. An assortment of structurally diverse water-soluble MPs was synthesized, and their NO production was compared. Improved catalytic activity and stability of the lead MP were observed when it was conjugated to the hydrophilic homopolymer poly(2-carboxyethyl acrylate) (PCEA). Micelles assembled from the amphiphilic block copolymer poly(cholesteryl methacrylate)-block-PCEA functionalized with the lead MP, and MP-conjugated PCEA polymer chains immobilized on silica particles resulted in moieties with ～3× higher catalytic activity compared to the monomeric MP. Finally, the PCEA-coated silica particles could use the MPs as motor units to exhibit enhanced diffusion in the presence of the required fuel molecules Arg and H₂O₂. Taken together, the microenvironments of the artificial enzymes have a marked impact on their activity and stability, and these NO-producing MPs offer an interesting synthetic alternative to their natural counterparts.     

Promoted porous Co<Subscript>3</Subscript>O<Subscript>4</Subscript>-Al<Subscript>2</Subscript>O<Subscript>3</Subscript> catalysts for ammonia decomposition

Transition metal catalysts have been considerably used for NH₃ decomposition because of the potential application in CO_x-free H₂ generation for fuel cells. However, most transition metal catalysts prepared via traditional synthetic approaches performed the inferior stability due to the agglomeration of active components. Here, we adopted an efficient method, aerosol-assisted self-assembly approach (AASA), to prepare the optimized cobalt-alumina (Co₃O₄-Al₂O₃) catalysts. The Co₃O₄-Al₂O₃ catalysts exhibited excellent catalytic performance in the NH3 decomposition reaction, which can reach 100% conversion at 600 °C and maintain stable for 72 h at a gaseous hourly space velocity (GHSV) of 18000 cm³ g_cat^?1 h^?1. The catalysts were characterized by various techniques including transmission electron microscope (TEM), scanning electron microscope (SEM), nitrogen sorption, temperature-programmed reduction by hydrogen (H₂-TPR), ex-situ/in-situ Raman and ex-situ/in-situ X-ray diffraction (XRD) to obtain the information about the structure and property of the catalysts. H₂-TPR and in-situ XRD results show that there is strong interaction between the cobalt and alumina species, which influences the redox properties of the catalysts. It is found that even a low content of alumina (10 at%) is able to stabilize the catalysts due to the adequate dispersion and rational interaction between different components, which ensures the high activity and superior stability of the cobalt-alumina catalysts.     

Promoted H2 Generation from NH3BH3 Thermal Dehydrogenation Catalyzed by Metal–Organic Framework Based Catalysts

The application of ammonium borane (AB) as a hydrogen storage material is limited by the sluggish kinetics of H₂ release. Two catalysts based on metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) have been prepared either by applying MOF as precursors or by the in situ reduction method. In the release of H₂ from AB, the high H₂ content of the whole system, the remarkably lower reaction onset temperature, the significantly increased H₂ release rates at ≤90 °C, and the decreased reaction exothermicity have all been achieved with only 1.0 mol % MOF‐based catalyst. Moreover, the clear catalytic diversity of three catalysts has been observed and discussed. The in situ synthesized Ni⁰ sites and the MOF supports in the catalysts were proven to show significant and different effects to promote the catalytic activities. With MOF‐based catalysts, both the enhanced kinetics and the high H₂ capacity of the AB system present great advantages for future use.     

A Dinuclear Ruthenium‐Based Water Oxidation Catalyst: Use of Non‐Innocent Ligand Frameworks for Promoting Multi‐Electron Reactions

Insight into how H₂O is oxidized to O₂ is envisioned to facilitate the rational design of artificial water oxidation catalysts, which is a vital component in solar‐to‐fuel conversion schemes. Herein, we report on the mechanistic features associated with a dinuclear Ru‐based water oxidation catalyst. The catalytic action of the designed Ru complex was studied by the combined use of high‐resolution mass spectrometry, electrochemistry, and quantum chemical calculations. Based on the obtained results, it is suggested that the designed ligand scaffold in Ru complex 1 has a non‐innocent behavior, in which metal–ligand cooperation is an important part during the four‐electron oxidation of H₂O. This feature is vital for the observed catalytic efficiency and highlights that the preparation of catalysts housing non‐innocent molecular frameworks could be a general strategy for accessing efficient catalysts for activation of H₂O.     

Chemistry of λ-2H-azaphosphirene metal complexes

In this review, important aspects of λ³-2H-azaphosphirene metal complexes are discussed in relation to synthesis, physical properties and synthetic applications; ab-initio calculations on relative energies of CH₂NP isomers and of λ³-2H-azaphosphirene metal complexes (Cr, Mo, W) are also presented. Currently, there are three routes to this unsaturated three-membered ring system, which are discussed in detail: two of them use a rearrangement of metal carbene complexes, whereas the other relies on [2+1] cycloaddition reactions of electrophilic terminal phosphanediyl complexes and carbonitriles. The structural data show characteristics of a very strained heterocyclic ring system, which partially helps to understand the reactivity of this heterocycle complex in solution. The synthetic potential of λ³-2H-azaphosphirene metal complexes is illustrated by selected examples, which demonstrate their ability to serve, under very mild conditions as precursor for various new building blocks, i.e. nitrilium phosphanylide complexes, electrophilic terminal phosphanediyl complexes and phosphavinyl-nitrene complexes.     

Cobalt, a reactive metal in releasing hydrogen from sodium borohydride by hydrolysis: A short review and a research perspective

Cobalt is commonly admitted as being a promising catalyst in accelerating NaBH₄ hydrolysis, being as reactive as noble metals and much more cost-effective. This is the topic of the present paper. Herein, we survey (i) the NaBH₄-devoted literature while especially focusing on the Co catalysts and (ii) our work on the same topic. Finally, we report (iii) reactivity results of newly developed Co-based catalysts. From both surveys, it mainly stands out that Co has been investigated as catalysts in various forms: namely, as chlorides, reduced nanoparticles (metal Co, Co boride, Co-B alloy), supported over supports and shaped. In doing so the reactivity can be easily varied achieving H₂ generation rates from few to >1000 L(H₂)/min·g (metal). Nevertheless, our work can be distinguished from the NaBH₄ literature. Indeed, we are working on strategies that focus on making alternative Co-based catalysts. One of these strategies is illustrated here as we report new reactivity data of Co-based bimetallic supported catalysts. For example, we show that 20 wt% Co⁹⁰Y¹⁰/γAl₂O₃-20 wt% Co⁹⁵Hf⁵/γAl₂O₃ > 20 wt% Co⁹⁹Zr¹/γAl₂O₃ > 20 wt% Co/γAl₂O₃, the best catalysts showing HGRs of about 245 mL(H₂)/min or 123 L(H₂)/min·g (metals).     

Electrochemical Conversion of CO2 to Syngas with Controllable CO/H2 Ratios over Co and Ni Single‐Atom Catalysts

The electrochemical CO₂ reduction reaction (CO₂RR) to yield synthesis gas (syngas, CO and H₂) has been considered as a promising method to realize the net reduction in CO₂ emission. However, it is challenging to balance the CO₂RR activity and the CO/H₂ ratio. To address this issue, nitrogen‐doped carbon supported single‐atom catalysts are designed as electrocatalysts to produce syngas from CO₂RR. While Co and Ni single‐atom catalysts are selective in producing H₂ and CO, respectively, electrocatalysts containing both Co and Ni show a high syngas evolution (total current >74 mA cm^?2) with CO/H₂ ratios (0.23–2.26) that are suitable for typical downstream thermochemical reactions. Density functional theory calculations provide insights into the key intermediates on Co and Ni single‐atom configurations for the H₂ and CO evolution. The results present a useful case on how non‐precious transition metal species can maintain high CO₂RR activity with tunable CO/H₂ ratios.     

由M0.02Cu0.4Mg5.6Al1.98(OH)16CO3 (M=Ru,Re)水滑石为前驱体制备的双金属固体碱催化甘油氢解

采用共沉淀法合成了M_0.02Cu_0.4Mg_5.6Al_1.98(OH)₁₆CO₃ (M = Ru,Re)水滑石前驱体,然后经焙烧和还原制备了铜分散度较高的双功能M-Cu/固体碱催化剂.这些双功能催化剂在粗甘油氢解制备丙二醇反应中表现出了很好的催化活性.表征结果证明,M的加入增强了催化剂表面氢的吸附和活化,进而促进了甘油的转化.     

Electrochemical Conversion of CO2 to Syngas with Controllable CO/H2 Ratios over Co and Ni Single-Atom Catalysts

The electrochemical CO₂ reduction reaction (CO₂RR) to yield synthesis gas (syngas, CO and H₂) has been considered as a promising method to realize the net reduction in CO₂ emission. However, it is challenging to balance the CO₂RR activity and the CO/H₂ ratio. To address this issue, nitrogen-doped carbon supported single-atom catalysts are designed as electrocatalysts to produce syngas from CO₂RR. While Co and Ni single-atom catalysts are selective in producing H₂ and CO, respectively, electrocatalysts containing both Co and Ni show a high syngas evolution (total current >74 mA cm⁻²) with CO/H₂ ratios (0.23–2.26) that are suitable for typical downstream thermochemical reactions. Density functional theory calculations provide insights into the key intermediates on Co and Ni single-atom configurations for the H₂ and CO evolution. The results present a useful case on how non-precious transition metal species can maintain high CO₂RR activity with tunable CO/H₂ ratios.     

Uncovering the synergistic photocatalytic behavior of bimetallic molecular catalysts

Bimetallic catalysts usually exhibit better performance than monometallic catalysts due to synergistic effect. However, there is a lack of exploring the synergistic effect on catalytic performance caused by the introduction of inactive metal ion. In this work, we design a molecular model system that can precisely regulate the metal site number and catalytic property. When these molecular metal compounds are used as homogeneous catalysts for photocatalytic CO₂ reduction, the dinuclear heterometallic CuNi-L² shows the highest CO₂-to-CO conversion, which is 2.1 and 3.0 times higher than that of dinuclear homometallic Ni₂-L² and mononuclear Ni-L¹. Density functional theory calculations demonstrate that, in CuNi-L², the introduction of inactive Cu^II is easier to promote the photo-generated electrons transferring to the coupled active Ni^II site to achieve the highest activity. In addition, this work also provides insights to design and construct more efficient bimetallic catalysts in future.     

A d10 Ni–(H2) Adduct as an Intermediate in H?H Oxidative Addition across a Ni?B Bond

Bifunctional E H activation offers a promising approach for the design of two‐electron‐reduction catalysts with late first‐row metals, such as Ni. To this end, we have been pursuing H₂ activation reactions at late‐metal boratranes and herein describe a diphosphine–borane‐supported Ni—(H₂) complex, [(^PhDPB^iPr)Ni(H₂)], which has been characterized in solution. ¹H NMR spectroscopy confirms the presence of an intact H₂ ligand. A range of data, including electronic‐structure calculations, suggests a d¹⁰ configuration for [(^PhDPB^iPr)Ni(H₂)] as most appropriate. Such a configuration is highly unusual among transition‐metal H₂ adducts. The nonclassical H₂ adduct is an intermediate in the complete activation of H₂ across the Ni B interaction. Reaction‐coordinate analysis suggests synergistic activation of the H₂ ligand by both the Ni and B centers of the nickel boratrane subunit, thus highlighting an important role of the borane ligand both in stabilizing the d¹⁰ Ni—(H₂) interaction and in the H—H cleavage step.