Recent progress in production and usage of hydrogen peroxide

Hydrogen peroxide has attracted increasing interest as an environmentally benign and green oxidant that can also be used as a solar fuel in fuel cells.This review focuses on recent progress in production of hydrogen peroxide by solar-light-driven oxidation of water by dioxygen and its usage as a green oxidant and fuel.The photocatalytic production of hydrogen peroxide is made possible by combining the e^(-)and 4e-oxidation of water with the e^(-)reduction of dioxygen using solar energy.The catalytic control of the selectivity of the e^(-)vs.4e-oxidation of water is discussed together with the selectivity of the e^(-)vs.4e-reduction of dioxygen.The combination of the photocatalytic e^(-)oxidation of water and the e^(-)reduction of dioxygen provides the best efficiency because both processes afford hydrogen peroxide.The solar-light-driven hydrogen peroxide production by oxidation of water and by reduction of dioxygen is combined with the catalytic oxidation of substrates with hydrogen peroxides,in which dioxygen is used as the greenest oxidant.

Rational design and precise manipulation of nano‐catalysts

Nano‐catalysis plays a vital role in the chemical transformations and significantly impacts the booming modern chemical industry.The rapid technological enhancements have resulted in serious energy and environmental issues,which are currently spurring the exploration of the novel nano‐catalysts in diverse fields.In order to develop the efficient nano‐catalysts,it is essential to understand their fundamental physicochemical properties,including the coordination structures of the active centers and substrate‐adsorbate interactions.Subsequently,the nano‐catalyst design with precise manipulation at the atomic level can be attained.In this account,we have summarized our extensive investigation of the factors impacting nano‐catalysis,along with the synthetic strategies developed to prepare the nano‐catalysts for applications in electrocatalysis,photocatalysis and thermocatalysis.Finally,a brief conclusion and future research directions on nano‐catalysis have also been presented.

Efficient photoelectrocatalytic CO_2 reduction by cobalt complexes at silicon electrode

Two homogeneous photoelectrocatalytic systems composed of simple polypyridyl Co complexes[Co(tpy)2](PF6)2and[Co(bpy)3](PF6)2as electrocatalysts and a Si wafer as the photoelectrode were used for combined photoelectrochemical reduction of CO2to CO.A high photocurrent density of1.4mA/cm2was observed for the system with the[Co(tpy)2](PF6)2catalyst and a photovoltage of400mV was generated.Faradaic efficiencies of CO were optimized to83%and94%for the[Co(tpy)2](PF6)2and[Co(bpy)3](PF6)2complexes,respectively,in acetonitrile solution with10%methanol(volume fraction,same below)as a protic additive.Addition of2%water volume fraction induced a large amount of non‐specific H2evolution by the Si photoelectrode.

Alkali metal cation effects on electrocatalytic CO_(2)reduction with iron porphyrins

The electrocatalytic CO_(2)reduction reaction(CO_(2)RR)has attracted increasing attention in recentyears.Practical electrocatalysis of CO_(2)RR must be carried out in aqueous solutions containing electrolytesof alkali metal cations such as sodium and potassium.Although considerable efforts havebeen made to design efficient electrocatalysts for CO_(2)RR and to investigate the structure–activityrelationships using molecular model complexes,only a few studies have been investigated the effectof alkali metal cations on electrocatalytic CO_(2)RR.In this study,we report the effect of alkali metalcations(Na^(+)and K^(+))on electrocatalytic CO_(2)RR with Fe porphyrins.By running CO_(2)RR electrocatalysisin dimethylformamide(DMF),we found that the addition of Na^(+)or K^(+)considerably improves thecatalytic activity of Fe chloride tetrakis(3,4,5‐trimethoxyphenyl)porphyrin(FeP).Based on thisresult,we synthesized an Fe porphyrin^(N)18C6‐FeP bearing a tethered 1‐aza‐18‐crown‐6‐ether(^(N)18C6)group at the second coordination sphere of the Fe site.We showed that with the tethered^(N)18C6 to bind Na^(+)or K^(+),^(N)18C6‐FeP is more active than FeP for electrocatalytic CO_(2)RR.This workdemonstrates the positive effect of alkali metal cations to improve CO_(2)RR electrocatalysis,which isvaluable for the rational design of new efficient catalysts.

Theoretical insights into oxygen reduction reaction on Au-based single-atom alloy cluster catalysts

Developing highly active alloy catalysts that surpass the performance of platinum group metals in the oxygen reduction reaction(ORR)is critical in electrocatalysis.Gold-based single-atom alloy(AuSAA)clusters are gaining recognition as promising alternatives due to their potential for high activity.However,enhancing its activity of AuSAA clusters remains challenging due to limited insights into its actual active site in alkaline environments.Herein,we studied a variety of Au_(54)M_(1) SAA cluster catalysts and revealed the operando formed MO_(x)(OH)_(y) complex acts as the crucial active site for catalyzing the ORR under the basic solution condition.The observed volcano plot indicates that Au_(54)Co_(1),Au_(54)M_(1),and Au_(54)Ru_(1) clusters can be the optimal Au_(54)M_(1) SAA cluster catalysts for the ORR.Our findings offer new insights into the actual active sites of AuSAA cluster catalysts,which will inform rational catalyst design in experimental settings.

Antibacterial applications of graphene oxides: structure-activity relationships, molecular initiating events and biosafety

Bacterial infections may lead to diverse acute or chronic diseases （e.g., inflammation, sepsis and cancer）. New antibiotics against bacteria are rarely discovered in recent years, which necessitates the exploration of new antibacterial agents. Engineered nanomatetials {ENMs） have been extensively studied for antibacterial use because of their long lasting killing effects in wide spectra of bacteria. Graphene oxide （GO） is one of the most widely studied ENMs and exhibit strong bactericidal effects. The physicochemical properties of GO play important roles in bacterial killing by triggering a cascade of toxic events. Many studies have explored the signaling pathways of GO in bacteria. Although molecular initiating events （MIEs） of GO in bacteria dominate its killing efficiency as well as toxicity mechanisms, they have been rarely reviewed. In this report, we discussed the structure-activity relationships （SARs） involved in GOinduced bacterial killing and the MIEs including redox reaction with biomolecules, mechanical destruction of membranes and catalysis of extracellular metabolites. Furthermore, we summarized the clinical or commercial applications of GO-based antibacterial products and discussed their biosafety in mammal. Finally, we reviewed the remaining challenges in GO for antibacterial applications, which may offer new insights for the development of nano antibacterial studies.

Studies on the roles of vanadyl sulfate and sodium nitrite in catalytic oxidation of benzyl alcohol with molecular oxygen

An efficient catalytic system consisting of vanadyl sulfate/sodium nitrite was disclosed previously for the oxidation of benzylic alcohols into aldehydes with molecular oxygen.However,the roles of catalyst components were not investigated.In this paper,we examined catalytic oxidation of benzyl alcohol as a model reaction,especially by infrared spectroscopy.The role of each component is discussed including nitrite,vanadyl,sulphate,and water.Sodium nitrite could be converted into nitrate and nitric acid.The vanadium(IV)could be smoothly oxidized into vanadium(V)under mild and acidic conditions without any organic ligands.The transformation of sulfate and bisulfate,the cessation of an induction period,and the oxidation of benzyl alcohol were closely interrelated.The multiple roles of water are discussed,including reduction of the induction period,participation in redox cycles of nitric compounds,deactivation of vanadium,and as a byproduct of oxidation.This study contributes to further development of aerobic oxidation using vanadium based catalysts.

Thermal-reductive transformations of carbon dioxide catalyzed by small molecules using earth-abundant elements

In the present review, we summarize the progress for thermal reductive transformations of CO2 catalyzed by small homogeneous catalysts using earth-abundant elements. Three main types of transformations categorized by the use of different reductants(hydrogen, hydrosilanes, and boranes), in which no C–C bond formation is involved, are surveyed.

Conducting polymer-based peroxidase mimics:synthesis, synergistic enhanced properties and applications

The concept of artificial enzymes has been proposed for a long time and a large variety of materials have been exploited in enzyme-like catalytic field for decades. The emergence of nanotechnology provides increasing opportu- nities for the development of artificial enzymes. Conducting polymer-based nanocomposites are a new type of burgeoning functional materials as enzyme mimics owing to their nu- merous functional groups, excellent electrical conductivity and redox properties. This review summarizes the recent progress of the synthesis of conducting polymers and their nanocomposites, as well as their applications as efficient peroxidase mimics. After a brief description of the develop- ment of conducting polymers, we specifically introduce the fabrication of conducting polymers and their nanocomposites via diverse approaches and show the enhanced peroxidase-like catalytic properties. In addition, the mechanism of the en- hanced catalytic efficiency of the conducting polymer-based nanocomposites has been proposed. Finally, we highlight the applications of such conducting polymer-based nanocompo- sites in the sensitive detection of different types of substances. It is anticipated that this review will pave the way for devel- oping more intriguing functional nanomaterials as enzyme mimics, which shows promising applications in a great many technological fields.

Cyanide-bridged single molecule magnet based on a manganese(Ⅲ) complex with TTF-fused Schiff base ligand

Reaction of [Mn（TTF-salphen）][OAc] （TTF-salphen2=2,2＇-（（2-（4,5-bis（methylthio）-1,3-dithiol-2-ylidene）-1,3-benzodithiole- 5,6-diyl）bis（nitrilomethylidyne）bis（pbenolate）dianion） and the cyanometalate building blocks [n-Bu4N][（Tp）Fe（CN）3] （Tp =Tris（pyrazolyl）hydroborate） or [n-Bu4N][Ru（salen）（CN）2] （salen2 =N,N＇-ethylenebis（salicylideneimine）dianion） resulted in the formation of two redox-active complexes, the dinuclear heterometallic complex [（Tp）Fe（CN）3Mn（TTF-salphen）＇CH3OH] （1） and the one dimensional complex [Ru（salen）（CN）2Mn（TTF-salphen）]n （2）. Both complexes were characterized by X-ray crystallography and solid state electrochemistry, in addition to static and dynamic magnetic measurements. Antiferromagnetic couplings are found to be operative between metal ion centers bridged by cyanide in both complexes. Complex 1 exhibited field-induced SMM behavior with an energy barrier of 13.8 K. The introduction of the redox-active TTF unit into cyanidebridged complexes with interesting magnetic properties renders them promising candidates for the construction of new hybrid inorganic-organic materials.

Oxidative polymerization of hydroquinone using deoxycholic acid supramolecular template

Polyhydroquinone (PHQ) is a redox-active polymer with quinone/hydroquinone redox active units in the main chain and may have potential applications as a mediator in biosensors and biofuel cells. By the oxidative polymerization of hydroquinone (HQ), PHQ can be easily synthesized, but the reaction lacks control over the structure of the product. Deoxycholic acid (DCA) was introduced as a supramolecular template to control the reaction. The reaction rate is 14 times of that in deionized water and twice of that in buffer. The DCA template increases not only the reaction rate, but also the molecular weight of the polymer obtained. The template effect of DCA was attributed to the supramolecular assemblies of DCA formed in the solution. Cyclic voltammetry study indicated the resulting PHQ was redox-active. While the supramolecular assemblies of DCA provided a template for the oxidative polymerization of HQ, the protons released as a by-product of the oxidative polymerization of HQ in turn enhanced the self-assembly of DCA. As a result, DCA microfibers form and separate out of the solution.