Sr-doping effects on La_2O_3 catalyst for oxidative coupling of methane

Density‐functional theory calculations were carried out to study the strontium(Sr)‐doping effect on methane activation over a lanthanum‐oxide(La2O3)catalyst for the oxidative coupling of methane(OCM)using the cluster model.Eight Sr‐doped La2O3cluster models were built from pure La2O3clusters that were used previously to model the La2O3catalyst.These form two distinct categories,namely,those without a radical character(LaSrO2(OH),La2SrO4,La3SrO5(OH),and La5SrO8(OH))and those with a radical character(LaSrO3,La2SrO4(OH),La3SrO6,and La5SrO9).The potential‐energy surface for CH4activation to form a CH3radical at different Sr-O and La-O pair sites on these Sr‐doped La2O3clusters was calculated to study the Sr‐doping effect on the OCM catalytic activity.CH4physisorption and chemisorption energies,and activation barriers,and CH3desorption energies were predicted.Compared with the pure La2O3clusters,in general,the Sr‐doped La2O3clusters are thermodynamically and kinetically more reactive with CH4.For the Sr‐doped La2O3clusters without the radical character,the Sr-O pair site is more reactive with CH4than the La-O pair site,although a direct release of the CH3radical is also highly endothermic as in the case of the pure La2O3clusters.In contrast,for the Sr‐doped La2O3clusters with a radical character,the activation of CH4at the oxygen radical site and the release of the CH3radical are much easier.Thus,our calculations suggest that the Sr dopant prompts the OCM catalytic activity of the La2O3catalyst by providing a highly active oxygen‐radical site and by strengthening the basicity of the M-O pair site,which leads to lower CH4activation energies and lower CH3desorption energies.

Active oxygen center in oxidative coupling of methane on La_(2)O_(3) catalyst

La_(2)O_(3) catalyzed oxidative coupling of methane(OCM) is a promising process that converts methane directly to valuable C_(2)(ethylene and ethane) products. Our online MS transient study results indicate that pristine surface without carbonate species demonstrates a higher selectivity to C_(2) products, and a lower light-off temperature as well. Further study is focused on carbonate-free La_(2)O_(3) catalyst surface for identification of active oxygen species associated with such products behavior. XPS reveals unique oxygen species with O 1 s binding energy of 531.5 e V correlated with OCM catalytic activity and carbonates removal. However, indicated thermal stability of this species is much higher than the surface peroxide or superoxide structures proposed by earlier computation models. Motivated by experimental results,DFT calculations reveal a new more stable peroxide structure, formed at the subsurface hexacoordinate lattice oxygen sites, with energy 2.18 e V lower than the previous models. The new model of subsurface peroxide provides a perspective for understanding of methyl radicals formation and C_(2) products selectivity in OCM over La_(2)O_(3) catalyst.

Benzalaniline from nitrobenzene and benzaldehyde catalyzed efficiently by an atomically precise palladium nanocluster

Nanoclusters with a precise number of atoms may exhibit unique and often unexpected catalytic properties.Here,we report an atomically precise Pd3 nanocluster as an efficient catalyst,whose catalytic performance differs remarkably from typical Pd nanoparticle catalysts,with excellent reactivity and selectivity in the one-pot synthesis of benzalaniline from nitrobenzene and benzaldehyde.We anticipate that our work will serve as a starting point for the catalytic applications of these tiny atomically precise nanoclusters in green chemistry for the one-pot syntheses of fine chemicals.

Effect of In_(2)O_(3)particle size on CO_(2) hydrogenation to lower olefins over bifunctional catalysts

A reaction-coupling strategy is often employed for CO_(2)hydrogenation to produce fuels and chemicals using oxide/zeolite bifunctional catalysts.Because the oxide components are responsible for CO_(2)activation,understanding the structural effects of these oxides is crucial,however,these effects still remain unclear.In this study,we combined In_(2)O_(3),with varying particle sizes,and SAPO‐34 as bifunctional catalysts for CO_(2)hydrogenation.The CO_(2)conversion and selectivity of the lower olefins increased as the average In_(2)O_(3)crystallite size decreased from 29 to 19 nm;this trend mainly due to the increasing number of oxygen vacancies responsible for CO_(2) and H_(2) activation.However,In_(2)O_(3)particles smaller than 19 nm are more prone to sintering than those with other sizes.The results suggest that 19 nm is the optimal size of In_(2)O_(3)for CO_(2)hydrogenation to lower olefins and that the oxide particle size is crucial for designing catalysts with high activity,high selectivity,and high stability.

Effect of Pd doping on CH_4 reactivity over Co_3O_4 catalysts from density-functional theory calculations

Palladium oxide(PdOx)and cobalt oxide(Co3O4)are efficient catalysts for methane(CH4)combustion,and Pd‐doped Co3O4catalysts have been found to exhibit better catalytic activities,which suggest synergism between the two components.We carried out first‐principles calculations at the PBE+U level to investigate the Pd‐doping effect on CH4reactivity over the Co3O4catalyst.Because of the structural complexity of the Pd‐doped Co3O4catalyst,we built Pd‐doped catalyst models using Co3O4(001)slabs with two different terminations and examined CH4reactivity over the possible Pd?O active sites.A low energy barrier of0.68eV was predicted for CH4dissociation over the more reactive Pd‐doped Co3O4(001)surface,which was much lower than the0.98and0.89eV that was predicted previously over the more reactive pure Co3O4(001)and(011)surfaces,respectively.Using a simple model,we predicted CH4reaction rates over the pure Co3O4(001)and(011)surfaces,and Co3O4(001)surfaces with different amounts of Pd dopant.Our theoretical results agree well with the available experimental data,which suggests a strong synergy between the Pd dopant and the Co3O4catalyst,and leads to a significant increase in CH4reaction rate.

Li-promoted C_(3)N_(4) catalyst for efficient isomerization of glucose into fructose at 50℃ in water

Efficient and selective glucose-to-fructose isomerization is a crucial step for production of oxygenated chemicals derived from sugars,which is usually catalyzed by base or Lewis acid heterogeneous catalyst.However,high yield and selectivity of fructose cannot be simultaneously obtained under mild conditions which hamper the scale of application compared with enzymatic catalysis.Herein,a Li-promoted C_(3)N_(4) catalyst was exploited which afforded an excellent fructose yield(40.3 wt%)and selectivity(99.5%)from glucose in water at 50℃,attributed to the formation of stable Li–N bond to strengthen the basic sites of catalysts.Furthermore,the so-formed N_(6)–Li–H_(2)O active site on Li–C_(3)N_(4) catalyst in aqueous phase changes the local electronic structure and strengthens the deprotonation process during glucose isomerization into fructose.The superior catalytic performance which is comparable to biological pathway suggests promising applications of lithium containing heterogeneous catalyst in biomass refinery.

Nickel-modified In_(2)O_(3) with inherent oxygen vacancies for CO_(2) hydrogenation to methanol

Methanol synthesis is one of the most important industrially-viable approaches for carbon dioxide(CO_(2)) utilization, as the produced methanol can be used as a platform chemical for manufacturing green fuels and chemicals. The In_(2)O_(3) catalysts are ideal for sustainable methanol synthesis and have received considerable attention. Herein, Co-, Ni-and Cu-modified In_(2)O_(3) catalysts were fabricated with high dispersion and high stability to improve the hydrogenation performance. The Ni-promoted In_(2)O_(3) catalyst in the form of high dispersion possessed the largest amount of oxygen vacancies and the strongest ability for H_(2) activation, leading to the highest CO_(2) conversion and space time yield of methanol of 0.390 g_(Me OH)g_(cat)^(-1)h^(-1) with CH_(3)OH selectivity of 68.7%. In addition, the catalyst exhibits very stable performance over 120 h on stream, which suggests the promising prospect for industrial applications. Further experimental and theoretical studies demonstrate that surface Ni doping promotes the formation of oxygen defects on the In_(2)O_(3) catalyst, although it also results in lower methanol selectivity. Surprisingly, subsurface Ni dopants are found to be more beneficial for methanol formation than surface Ni dopants, so the Nipromoted In_(2)O_(3)catalyst with a lower surface Ni content at the similar Ni loading can reach higher methanol selectivity and productivity. This work thus provides theoretical guidance for significantly improving the CO_(2) reactivity of In_(2)O_(3)-based catalysts while maintaining high methanol selectivity.