Studies on the Reaction Mechanism of CO_2-Reforming of Methane over Co/γ-Al_2O_3 Catalyst

TPPR and XPS characterizations were combined to study the reaction mechanism of CO2reforming of methane to syngas over Co/γ-Al2O3 catalysts. CH4 shows a tendency to form surface carbons by deep dissociation at high temperatures. CO2 dissociation reaction also occurs at >673K. It is believed that carbide carbons are active species to generate CO by rcacting with o atoms dissociated from CO2. In the reaction,Co(0) particles are responsible for dissociating CH4 to form active C. abstracting an O atom from CO2 molecule, and transferring O atom to C to form CO.

Promotional roles of ZrO_2 and WO_3 in V_2O_5-WO_3/TiO_2-ZrO_2 catalysts for NO_x reduction by NH_3:Catalytic performance,morphology,and reaction mechanism

V2O5/TiO2-ZrO2 catalysts containing various amounts of WO3 were synthesized.The catalyst morphologies,catalytic performances,and reaction mechanisms in the selective catalytic reduction of NOx by NH3 were investigated using in situ diffuse-reflectance infrared Fourier-transform spectroscopy,temperature-programmed reduction（TPR）,X-ray diffraction,and the Brunauer-Emmett-Teller（BET） method.The BET surface area of the triple oxides increased with increasing ZrO2 doping but gradually decreased with increasing WO3 loading.Addition of sufficient WO3 helped to stabilize the pore structure and the combination of WO3 and ZrO2 improved dispersion of all the metal oxides.The mechanisms of reactions using V2O5-9%WO3/TiO2-ZrO2 and V2O5-9%WO3/TiO2were compared by using either a single or mixed gas feed and various pretreatments.The results suggest that both reactions followed the Eley-Ridel mechanism;however,the dominant acid sites,which depended on the addition of WO3 or ZrO2,determined the pathways for NOx reduction,and involved[NH4^＋-NO-Bronsted acid site]^＊ and[NH2-NO-Lewis acid site]^＊ intermediates,respectively.NH3-TPR and H2-TPR showed that the metal oxides in the catalysts were not reduced by NH3 and O2did not reoxidize the catalyst surfaces but participated in the formation of H2O and NO2.

Study on Reaction Mechanism for Cracking FCC Gasoline on Acid Catalyst

This article is based on the experimental data on reaction of FCC naphtha in the presence of acid catalysts. The data published in the literature were reprocessed and compared with experimental data and the relationship of hydrogen and methane contained in the dry gas with the conversion rate was identified.The similarity between the route for cracking of olefin enriched FCC gasoline and the route for reaction of individual hydrocarbons was deduced, while the route for formation of ethylene in dry gas was also proposed to identify the relationship between the reaction path for formation of ethylene and the conversion rate.

Primary amine coupling on nanocarbon catalysts: Reaction mechanism and kinetics via fluorescence probe analysis

Non-metallic nanocarbon materials catalyzed coupling reactions of primary amines to produce imine is an efficient,green and sustainable synthetic route,which has a wide application prospect in fine chemicals or pharmaceutical molecules.In the present study,we show firstly the relatively high catalytic activity of graphene oxide in the reaction of oxidative coupling of benzylamine(OCB),which is even comparable with typical metal-based catalysts,indicating the great potential of nanocarbon materials in this reaction system.More importantly,a novel twophoton fluorescence probe molecule(N-propyl-4-hydrazinyl-1,8-naphthalimide,NA)with special chemical structure of hydrazine functionality was synthesized.The probe NA could selectively react with aldehyde or ketone compounds,leading to the photoluminescence enhancement via inhibition of photo induced electron transfer(PET)process.The synthesized NA was applied as probe in carbon catalyzed OCB system to predict the existence of reaction intermediate benzaldehyde(BA),indicating the reaction pathway of oxidation-deamination-condensation in nanocarbon catalyzed OCB process.The proposed luminescence-probe strategy for revealing the kinetics and mechanism may also shed light in other reaction systems concerning the intermediates or products of ketones or aldehydes.

Boosting Oxygen Evolution Reaction Performance on NiFe‑Based Catalysts Through d‑Orbital Hybridization

Anion-exchange membrane water electrolyzers(AEMWEs)for green hydrogen production have received intensive attention due to their feasibility of using earth-abundant NiFe-based catalysts.By introducing a third metal into NiFe-based catalysts to construct asymmetrical M-NiFe units,the d-orbital and electronic structures can be adjusted,which is an important strategy to achieve sufficient oxygen evolution reaction(OER)performance in AEMWEs.Herein,the ternary NiFeM(M:La,Mo)catalysts featured with distinct M-NiFe units and varying d-orbitals are reported in this work.Experimental and theoretical calculation results reveal that the doping of La leads to optimized hybridization between d orbital in NiFeM and 2p in oxygen,resulting in enhanced adsorption strength of oxygen intermediates,and reduced rate-determining step energy barrier,which is responsible for the enhanced OER performance.More critically,the obtained NiFeLa catalyst only requires 1.58 V to reach 1 A cm^(−2) in an anion exchange membrane electrolyzer and demonstrates excellent long-term stability of up to 600 h.

Cu-based materials for electrocatalytic CO_(2) to alcohols:Reaction mechanism,catalyst categories,and regulation strategies

Electrocatalytic CO_(2) reduction reaction(CO_(2)RR)technology,which enables carbon capture storage and resource utilization by reducing CO_(2) to valuable chemicals or fuels,has become a global research hotspot in recent decades.Among the many products of CO_(2)RR(carbon monoxide,acids,aldehydes and alcohols,olefins,etc.),alcohols(methanol,ethanol,propanol,etc.)have a higher market value and energy density,but it is also more difficult to produce.Copper is known to be effective in catalyzing CO_(2) to high valueadded alcohols,but with poor selectivity.The progress of Cu-based catalysts for the selective generation of alcohols,including copper oxides,bimetals,single atoms and composites is reviewed.Meanwhile,to improve Cu-based catalyst activity and modulate product selectivity,the modulation strategies are straighten out,including morphological regulation,crystalline surface,oxidation state,as well as elemental doping and defect engineering.Based on the research progress of electrocatalytic CO_(2) reduction for alcohol production on Cu-based materials,the reaction pathways and the key intermediates of the electrocatalytic CO_(2)RR to methanol,ethanol and propanol are summarized.Finally,the problems of traditional electrocatalytic CO_(2)RR are introduced,and the future applications of machine learning and theoretical calculations are prospected.An in-depth discussion and a comprehensive review of the reaction mechanism,catalyst types and regulation strategies were carried out with a view to promoting the development of electrocatalytic CO_(2)RR to alcohols.

Catalyst–Support Interaction in Polyaniline‑Supported Ni_(3)Fe Oxide to Boost Oxygen Evolution Activities for Rechargeable Zn‑Air Batteries

Catalyst–support interaction plays a crucial role in improving the catalytic activity of oxygen evolution reaction(OER).Here we modulate the catalyst–support interaction in polyaniline-supported Ni_(3)Fe oxide(Ni_(3)Fe oxide/PANI)with a robust hetero-interface,which significantly improves oxygen evolution activities with an overpotential of 270 mV at 10 mA cm^(-2)and specific activity of 2.08 mA cm_(ECSA)^(-2)at overpotential of 300 mV,3.84-fold that of Ni_(3)Fe oxide.It is revealed that the catalyst–support interaction between Ni_(3)Fe oxide and PANI support enhances the Ni–O covalency via the interfacial Ni–N bond,thus promoting the charge and mass transfer on Ni_(3)Fe oxide.Considering the excellent activity and stability,rechargeable Zn-air batteries with optimum Ni_(3)Fe oxide/PANI are assembled,delivering a low charge voltage of 1.95 V to cycle for 400 h at 10 mA cm^(-2).The regulation of the effect of catalyst–support interaction on catalytic activity provides new possibilities for the future design of highly efficient OER catalysts.

Boric Acid-Assisted Pyrolysis for High-Loading Single-Atom Catalysts to Boost Oxygen Reduction Reaction in Zn-Air Batteries

The emerging of single-atom catalysts(SACs)offers a great opportunity for the development of advanced energy storage and conversion devices due to their excellent activity and durability,but the actual mass production of high-loading SACs is still challenging.Herein,a facile and green boron acid(H_(3)BO_(3))-assisted pyrolysis strategy is put forward to synthesize SACs by only using chitosan,cobalt salt and H_(3)BO_(3)as precursor,and the effect of H_(3)BO_(3)is deeply investigated.The results show that molten boron oxide derived from H_(3)BO_(3)as ideal high-temperature carbonization media and blocking media play important role in the synthesis process.As a result,the acquired Co/N/B tri-doped porous carbon framework(Co-N-B-C)not only presents hierarchical porous structure,large specific surface area and abundant carbon edges but also possesses high-loading single Co atom(4.2 wt.%),thus giving rise to outstanding oxygen catalytic performance.When employed as a catalyst for air cathode in Zn-air batteries,the resultant Co-N-B-C catalyst shows remarkable power density and long-term stability.Clearly,our work gains deep insight into the role of H_(3)BO_(3)and provides a new avenue to synthesis of high-performance SACs.

Identification of relevant active sites and a mechanism study for reverse water gas shift reaction over Pt/CeO_2 catalysts

Reverse water gas shift (RWGS) reaction can serve as a pivotal stage in the CO2 conversion processes, which is vital for the utilization of CO2. In this study, RWGS reaction was performed over Pt/CeO2 catalysts at the temperature range of 200-500 degrees C under ambient pressure. Compared with pure CeO2, Pt/CeO2 catalysts exhibited superior RWGS activity at lower reaction temperature. Meanwhile, the calculated TOF and E-a values are approximately the same over these Pt/CeO2 catalysts pretreated under various calcination conditions, indicating that the RWGS reaction is not affected by the morphologies of anchored Pt nanoparticles or the primary crystallinity of CeO2. TPR and XPS results indicated that the incorporation of Pt promoted the reducibility of CeO2 support and remarkably increased the content of Ce 3 + sites on the catalyst surface. Furthermore, the CO TPSR-MS signal under the condition of pure CO2 flow over Pt/CeO 2 catalyst is far lower than that under the condition of adsorbed CO2 with H-2 -assisted flow, revealing that CO2 molecules adsorbed on Ce3+ active sites have difficult in generating CO directly. Meanwhile, the adsorbed CO2 with the assistance of H-2 can form formate species easily over Ce3+ active sites and then decompose into Ce3+-CO species for CO production, which was identified by in-situ FTIR. (C) 2016 Science Press and Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences. Published by Elsevier B. V. and Science Press. All rights reserved.

“Capture-activation-recapture” mechanism-guided design of double-atom catalysts for electrocatalytic nitrogen reduction

Compared with the traditional industrial nitrogen fixation, electrocatalytic methods, especially those utilizing double-atom catalysts containing nonmetals, can give good consideration to the economy and environmental protection. However, the existing “acceptance-donation” mechanism is only applicable to bimetallic catalysts and nonmetallic double-atom catalysts containing boron atoms. Herein, a novel “capture-activation-recapture” mechanism for metal-nonmetal double-atom catalyst is proposed to solve the problem by adjusting the coordination environments of nonmetallic atoms and utilizing the activation effect of metal atoms on nitrogen. Based on this mechanism, the nitrogen reduction reaction (NRR) activity of 48 structures is calculated by density functional theory calculation, and four candidates are selected as outstanding electrocatalytic nitrogen reduction catalysts: Si-Fe@NG (U_(L) = –0.14 V), Si-Co@NG (U_(L)= –0.15 V), Si-Mo@BP1 (U_(L) = 0 V), and Si-Re@BP1 (U_(L) = –0.02 V). The analyses of electronic properties further confirm “capture-activation-recapture” mechanism and suggest that the difference in valence electron distribution between metal and Si atoms triggers the activation of N≡N bonds. In addition, a machine learning approach is utilized to generate an expression and an intrinsic descriptor that considers the coordination environment to predict the limiting potential. This study offers profound insight into the synergistic mechanism of TM and Si for NRR and guidance in the design of novel double-atom nitrogen fixation catalysts.

Recent Advances in Transition Metal-Based Catalysts for Electrocatalytic Nitrate Reduction Reaction

The accumulation of excessive nitrate in the atmosphere not only jeopardizes human health but also disrupts the balance of the nitrogen cycle in the ecosystem.Among various nitrate removal technologies,electrocatalytic nitrate reduction reaction(eNO_(3)RR)has been widely studied for its advantages of being eco-friendly,easy to operate,and controllable under environmental conditions with renewable energy as the driving force.Transition metal-based catalysts(TMCs)have been widely used in electrocatalysis due to their abundant reserves,low costs,easy-to-regulate electronic structure and considerable electrochemical activity.In addition,TMCs have been extensively studied in terms of the kinetics of the nitrate reduction reaction,the moderate adsorption energy of nitrogen-containing species and the active hydrogen supply capacity.Based on this,this review firstly discusses the mechanism as well as analyzes the two main reduction products(N_(2)and NH_(3))of eNO_(3)RR,and reveals the basic guidelines for the design of efficient nitrate catalysts from the perspective of the reaction mechanism.Secondly,this review mainly focuses on the recent advances in the direction of eNO_(3RR)with four types of TMCs,Fe,Co,Ni and Cu,and unveils the interfacial modulation strategies of Fe,Co,Ni and Cu catalysts for the activity,reaction pathway and stability.Finally,reasonable suggestions and opportunities are proposed for the challenges and future development of eNO_(3)RR.This review provides far-reaching implications for exploring cost-effective TMCs to replace high-cost noble metal catalysts(NMCs)for eNO_(3)RR.

Enhanced Oxygen Evolution Reaction Performance by Dynamic Adsorption of Intermediates on C2N-Supported Single Atom Catalysts

The dynamic adsorption of possible intermediates on single-atom catalysts(SACs)under working condition plays a key role in the electrocatalytic performance by the oxygen evolution reaction(OER),and therefore the performance of the dynamic adsorption should be fully considered in the theoretical screening of potential SACs.Based on density functional theory calculations,the OER performance of 27 types of C_(2)N-supported single transition metal atoms(TM@C_(2)N)is systematically investigated without and with considering the dynamic adsorption of possible intermediates.Without considering dynamic adsorption,only Rh@C_(2)N and Ni@C_(2)N are screened out as good catalysts.However,by further considering the dynamic adsorption configurations of possible intermediates,more promising TM@C_(2)N SACs including Fe(Co,Ni,Ru,Rh,Ir)@C_(2)N toward the OER are screened out.The presence of the intermediates(*HO,*O)on SACs could shift their d band center toward lower energy level,which makes the interaction between the adsorbate and SACs moderate and thus enhances their OER performance.The present work is instructive for further screening and designing of efficient single-atom catalysts for the oxygen evolution reaction.

The effect of the carbon components on the performance of carbonbased transition metal electrocatalysts for the hydrogen evolution reaction

The hydrogen evolution reaction(HER)is a promising way to produce hydrogen,and the use of non-precious metals with an excellent electrochemical performance is vital for this.Carbon-based transition metal catalysts have high activity and stability,which are important in reducing the cost of hydrogen production and promoting the development of the hydrogen production industry.However,there is a lack of discussion regarding the effect of carbon components on the performance of these electrocatalysts.This review of the literature discusses the choice of the carbon components in these catalysts and their impact on catalytic performance,including electronic structure control by heteroatom doping,morphology adjustment,and the influence of self-supporting materials.It not only analyzes the progress in HER,but also provides guidance for synthesizing high-performance carbon-based transition metal catalysts.

Oxygen Reduction Reaction Activity of Fe-based Dual-Atom Catalysts with Different Local Configurations via Graph Neural Representation

The performance of proton exchange membrane fuel cells depends heavily on the oxygen reduction reaction(ORR)at the cathode,for which platinum-based catalysts are currently the standard.The high cost and limited availability of platinum have driven the search for alternative catalysts.While FeN4 single-atom catalysts have shown promising potential,their ORR activity needs to be further enhanced.In contrast,dual-atom catalysts(DACs)offer not only higher metal loading but also the ability to break the ORR scaling relations.However,the diverse local structures and tunable coordination environments of DACs create a vast chemical space,making large-scale computational screening challenging.In this study,we developed a graph neural network(GNN)-based framework to predict the ORR activity of Fe-based DACs,effectively addressing the challenges posed by variations in local catalyst structures.Our model,trained on a dataset of 180 catalysts,accurately predicted the Gibbs free energy of ORR intermediates and overpotentials,and identified 32 DACs with superior catalytic activity compared to FeN4 SAC.This approach not only advances the design of high-performance DACs,but also offers a powerful computational tool that can significantly reduce the time and cost of catalyst development,thereby accelerating the commercialization of fuel cell technologies.

Recent advances in phenazine-linked porous catalysts toward photo/electrocatalytic applications and mechanism

In recent years,porous organic catalysts have been developed and become research hotspots in photo/electrocatalysis due to their inherent pores,high specific surface area,chemical and thermal stability,and diverse functional building blocks.Phenazine-linked organic catalysts,exhibited excellent conjugation,electrical conductivity,chemical,and thermal stability,could bring in N atoms with specific numbers and positions to regulate electron levels,anchor metals,and absorb near-infrared light,which expands solar energy utilization.These advantages of the phenazine-linked catalysts attracted our group and numerous researchers to conduct experimental and computational work on photo/electrocatalytic applications and mechanisms.This review summarizes the recent significant research progress,synthesis methods,photo/electrocatalytic performance,and applications of relative phenazine-linked catalysts.Furthermore,the photo/electrocatalytic mechanism was systematized and summarized by combining experiments and density functional theory calculations simultaneously.

Progress on the mechanisms of Ru-based electrocatalysts for the oxygen evolution reaction in acidic media

Water electrolysis using proton-exchange membranes is one of the most promising technologies for carbon-neutral and sustainable energy production.Generally,the overall efficiency of water splitting is limited by the oxygen evolution reaction(OER).Nevertheless,a trade-off between activity and stability exists for most electrocatalytic materials in strong acids and oxidizing media,and the development of efficient and stable catalytic materials has been an important focus of research.In this view,gaining in-depth insights into the OER system,particularly the interactions between reaction intermediates and active sites,is significantly important.To this end,this review introduces the fundamentals of the OER over Ru-based materials,including the conventional adsorbate evolution mechanism,lattice oxygen oxidation mechanism,and oxide path mechanism.Moreover,the up-to-date progress of representative modifications for improving OER performance is further discussed with reference to specific mechanisms,such as tuning of geometric,electronic structures,incorporation of proton acceptors,and optimization of metal-oxygen covalency.Finally,some valuable insights into the challenges and opportunities for OER electrocatalysts are provided with the aim to promote the development of next-generation catalysts with high activity and excellent stability.

Accelerating the Screening of Modified MA_(2)Z_(4) Catalysts for Hydrogen Evolution Reaction by Deep Learning-Based Local Geometric Analysis

Machine learning(ML)integrated with density functional theory(DFT)calculations have recently been used to accelerate the design and discovery of single-atom catalysts(SACs)by establishing deep structure–activity relationships.The traditional ML models are always difficult to identify the structural differences among the single-atom systems with different modification methods,leading to the limitation of the potential application range.Aiming to the structural properties of several typical two-dimensional MA_(2)Z_(4)-based single-atom systems(bare MA_(2)Z_(4) and metal single-atom doped/supported MA_(2)Z_(4)),an improved crystal graph convolutional neural network(CGCNN)classification model was employed,instead of the traditional machine learning regression model,to address the challenge of incompatibility in the studied systems.The CGCNN model was optimized using crystal graph representation in which the geometric configuration was divided into active layer,surface layer,and bulk layer(ASB-GCNN).Through ML and DFT calculations,five potential single-atom hydrogen evolution reaction(HER)catalysts were screened from chemical space of 600 MA_(2)Z_(4)-based materials,especially V_(1)/HfSn_(2)N_(4)(S)with high stability and activity(Δ_(GH*)is 0.06 eV).Further projected density of states(pDOS)analysis in combination with the wave function analysis of the SAC-H bond revealed that the SAC-dz^(2)orbital coincided with the H-s orbital around the energy level of−2.50 eV,and orbital analysis confirmed the formation ofσbonds.This study provides an efficient multistep screening design framework of metal single-atom catalyst for HER systems with similar two-dimensional supports but different geometric configurations.

A critical review towards the causes of the iron-based catalysts deactivation mechanisms in the selective oxidation of hydrogen sulfide to elemental sulfur from biogas

Hydrogen sulfide(H_(2)S) not only presents significant environmental concerns but also induces severe corrosion in industrial equipment,even at low concentrations.Among various technologies,the selective oxidation of hydrogen sulfide(SOH_(2)S) to elemental sulfur(S) has emerged as a sustainable and environmentally friendly solution.Due to its unique properties,iron oxide has been extensively investigated as a catalyst for SOH_(2)S;however,rapid deactivation has remained a significant drawback.The causes of iron oxide-based catalysts deactivation mechanisms in SOH_(2)S,including sulfur or sulfate deposition,the transformation of iron species,sintering and excessive oxygen vacancy formation,and active site loss,are thoroughly examined in this review.By focusing on the deactivation mechanisms,this review aims to provide valuable insights into enhancing the stability and efficiency of iron-based catalysts for SOH_(2)S.

Insights into kinetics and reaction mechanism of acid-catalyzed transesterification synthesis of diethyl oxalate

The catalytic performance of different acidic catalysts for diethyl oxalate synthesis from the one-step transesterification of dimethyl oxalate and ethanol was evaluated.The effects of different factors(e.g.,acidity,electron accepting capacity,cations type and crystalline water)on the catalytic activity of acidic catalysts were investigated respectively.It was proposed and confirmed that the transesterification reaction catalyzed by a Lewis acid(FeCl3)and a Bronsted acid(H2SO4)follows a first-order kinetic reaction process.In addition,the Lewis acid-catalyzed transesterification processes with different ester structures were used to further explore and understand the speculated reaction mechanism.This work enriches the theoretical understanding of acid-catalyzed transesterification reactions and is of great significance for the development of highly active catalysts for diethyl oxalate synthesis,diminishing the industrial production cost of diethyl oxalate,and developing downstream bulk or high-value-added industrial products.

Hydroxyalkylation of Cyclic Imides with Oxiranes Part III. Mechanism of the Reaction in Presence of Sodium Hydroxide Catalyst

The kinetics of reaction between cyclic monoimides (succinimide, phtalimide, and glutarimide) with ethylene and propylene oxides in presence of sodium hydroxide was studied. The effect of substrate and catalyst concentrations on the course of the reaction was investigated. Kinetics of reaction was studied by dilatometry, i.e. by measuring volume contraction of reaction mixture. The kinetic law describing the reaction of imides with oxiranes is: . where ccat, cAH and cB are concentrations of catalyst, imide, and oxirane, respectively. The relative reactivity of imides and oxiranes was: GI > PI ≥ SI and EO > PO. The reaction mechanism was proposed based upon experimentally determined rate law for the reaction of cyclic monoimides and oxiranes as well as analytical and instrumental analysis of products. The elementary reaction between oxirane and imide anion is rate determining step. The imide anion is formed by hydrogen cation transfer into catalytic hydroxide anion from dissociated NaOH. In the consecutive elemental reaction an imidate anion attack on the oxirane molecule occurs. It is the slowest stage of the reaction, limiting the entire process. All the studied reactions obey the same mechanism as can be concluded from isokinetic relationship of studied systems)