Synergistic effect of heterogeneous single atoms and clusters for improved catalytic performance

Electrocatalytic water splitting provides an efficient method for the production of hydrogen.In electrocatalytic water splitting,the oxygen evolution reaction(OER)involves a kinetically sluggish four-electron transfer process,which limits the efficiency of electrocatalytic water splitting.Therefore,it is urgent to develop highly active OER catalysts to accelerate reaction kinetics.Coupling single atoms and clusters in one system is an innovative approach for developing efficient catalysts that can synergistically optimize the adsorption and configuration of intermediates and improve catalytic activity.However,research in this area is still scarce.Herein,we constructed a heterogeneous single-atom cluster system by anchoring Ir single atoms and Co clusters on the surface of Ni(OH)_(2)nanosheets.Ir single atoms and Co clusters synergistically improved the catalytic activity toward the OER.Specifically,Co_(n)Ir_(1)/Ni(OH)_(2)required an overpotential of 255 mV at a current density of 10 mA·cm^(−2),which was 60 mV and 67 mV lower than those of Co_(n)/Ni(OH)_(2)and Ir1/Ni(OH)_(2),respectively.The turnover frequency of Co_(n)Ir_(1)/Ni(OH)_(2)was 0.49 s^(−1),which was 4.9 times greater than that of Co_(n)/Ni(OH)_(2)at an overpotential of 300 mV.

Cation effects in electrocatalytic reduction reactions:Recent advances

Electrocatalytic reduction reactions,powered by clean energy sources such as solar energy and wind,offer a sustainable method for converting inexpensive feedstocks(e.g.,CO_(2),N2/NOx,organics,and O_(2))into high-value-added chemicals or fuels.The design and modification of electrocatalysts have been widely implemented to improve their performance in these reactions.However,bottle-necks are encountered,making it challenging to further improve performance through catalyst development alone.Recently,cations in the electrolyte have emerged as critical factors for tuning both the activity and product selectivity of reduction reactions.This review summarizes recent advances in understanding the role of cation effects in electrocatalytic reduction reactions.First,we introduce the mechanisms underlying cation effects.We then provide a comprehensive overview of their application in electroreduction reactions.Characterization techniques and theoretical calcula-tion methods for studying cation effects are also discussed.Finally,we address remaining challeng-es and future perspectives in this field.We hope that this review offers fundamental insights and design guidance for utilizing cation effects,thereby advancing their development.

Enhancing selectivity in acidic CO_(2)electrolysis:Cation effects and catalyst innovation

The electrochemical reduction of CO_(2)(eCO_(2)R)under ambient conditions is crucial for reducing carbon emissions and achieving carbon neutrality.Despite progress with alkaline and neutral elec-trolytes,their efficiency is limited by(bi)carbonates formation.Acidic media have emerged as a solution,addressing the(bi)carbonates challenge but introducing the issue of the hydrogen evolu-tion reaction(HER),which reduces CO_(2)conversion efficiency in acidic environments.This review focuses on enhancing the selectivity of acidic CO_(2)electrolysis.It commences with an overview of the latest advancements in acidic CO_(2)electrolysis,focusing on product selectivity and electrocatalytic activity enhancements.It then delves into the critical factors shaping selectivity in acidic CO_(2)elec-trolysis,with a special emphasis on the influence of cations and catalyst design.Finally,the research challenges and personal perspectives of acidic CO_(2)electrolysis are suggested.

Conjugated microporous polymers-scaffolded enzyme cascade systems with enhanced catalytic activity

Enhancing catalytic activity of multi-enzyme in vitro through substrate channeling effect is promis-ing yet challenging.Herein,conjugated microporous polymers(CMPs)-scaffolded integrated en-zyme cascade systems(I-ECSs)are constructed through co-entrapping glucose oxidase(GOx)and horseradish peroxidase(HRP),in which hydrogen peroxide(H_(2)O_(2))is the intermediate product.The interplay of low-resistance mass transfer pathway and appropriate pore wall-H_(2)O_(2)interactions facilitates the directed transfer of H_(2)O_(2),resulting in 2.4-fold and 5.0-fold elevation in catalytic activ-ity compared to free ECSs and separated ECSs,respectively.The substrate channeling effect could be regulated by altering the mass ratio of GOx to HRP.Besides,I-ECSs demonstrate excellent stabili-ties in harsh environments and multiple recycling.

Ag-Ni alloy nanoparticles for electrocatalytic reduction of benzyl chloride

Ag-based nanocatalysts exhibit good catalytic activity for the electrochemical reduction of organic halides. Ag-Ni alloy nanoparticles（NPs） were facilely prepared by chemical reduction, and the as-prepared nanocatalysts were characterized by X-ray diffraction, ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy. The electrocatalytic activity of Ag-Ni NPs for benzyl chloride reduction was studied in organic medium using cyclic voltammetry, chronoamperometry and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. The results show that the addition of Ni element can obviously decrease the size of Ag-Ni NPs, shift the reduction peak potential（φp） of benzyl chloride positively, and increase the catalytic activity of Ag-Ni NPs. However, when the Ni content reaches a certain value, the catalytic activity of Ag-Ni NPs decreases. Meanwhile, the synergistic catalytic effect of Ag-Ni NPs was also discussed.

Hydrogenation and Ammoniation of SrTiO3 for an Enhanced Visible-light Photocatalysis

Hydrogenation and ammoniation of SrTiOa （STO）, a normal ultraviolet photocatalyst, were performed by annealing STO（100） in Hz：N2=5%：95% and NH3, respectively, at various temperatures T. It was found that hydrogenation at T≥900℃ remarkably enhanced the UV photocatalytic ability of STO, but the visible-light photocatalysis was still unavailable, while ammoniation at T≥800℃ introduced the N doping, resulting in visible-light photocat- alytie activity. Furthermore, when a hydrogenated STO was subjected to ammoniation, the visible-light photocatalytie ability was nearly the same as that of the ammoniated one; but the hydrogenation of an ammoniated one significantly enhanced visible-light photoeatalysis, indicating a synergetic effect of hydrogenation and ammoniation. Discussions and identifications have been made to analyze these results.

Surface plasmon resonance-induced visible-light photocatalytic performance of silver/silver molybdate composites

Novel silver/silver molybdate（Ag/Ag2MoO4） composites with surface plasmon resonance（SPR）-enhanced photocatalytic performance were successfully fabricated via a facile one-pot hydrothermal route with the presence of sodium dodecyl sulfate（SDS） in this study.The as prepared silver/silver molybdate（Ag/Ag2MoO4） composites were systematically characterized by X-ray diffraction（XRD）,scanning electron microscopy（SEM） and ultraviolet-visible diffuse reflectance absorption spectroscopy（DRS） in order to investigate their crystal structure,morphology and optical property as well.The photocatalytic activities of the composites were subsequently evaluated by their ability to degrade rhodamine B（RhB） under visible-light irradiation.Varies of controlled experiments were then carefully operated to gain a deep insight into the assembling of Ag/Ag2MoO4composites.It was found that preparation conditions such as pH,reaction time,and the amount of surfactant played important roles in the formation of composites with octahedral microstructures.And the composite obtained at 160 ℃ using 0.5 g of sodium dodecyl sulfate exhibited the highest photocatalytic performance under visible-light irradiation.Capture experiments were also conducted to clarify the function of different active species generated on the surface of Ag/Ag2MoO4during the photocatalytic process,in which both holes and ·OH radicals were found to play crucial role in photocatalytic removal of RhB under visible light irradiation.A possible photocatalytic mechanism of Ag/Ag2MoO4 was finally proposed on the basis of all the results to explain the higher photocatalytic activity of the octahedral Ag/Ag2MoO4 composites.It was inferred that the photoinduced ＂hot＂ electrons can quickly transfer from the Ag NPs to the conduction band of Ag2MoO4 and react with oxygen and H2O to generate a large quality of active radicals such as ·OH and ·O2^- because of the SPR effects.Besides,this SPR effects of Ag nanoparticles deposited on the surface of Ag2MoO4 can not only dramatically amplify its light absorption,especially in the visible region,but also promote the separation of photoexcited electron-hole pairs and effectively decrease electron-hole recombination.

Photocatalysis fundamentals and surface modification of TiO_2 nanomaterials

As a green and sustainable technology,heterogeneous photocatalysis using semiconductors has received much attention during the past decades because of its potential to address energy and environmental problems. Among various semiconductors,TiO2 has been regarded as the best and most widely investigated photocatalyst in the past 10 years. Based on the fundamentals of photocatalysis and surface chemistry of TiO2 nanomaterials,we herein summarize and discuss the achievements in the different surface modification strategies employed to date such as surface doping and sensitization,construction of surface heterojunctions,loading of nano-sized co-catalysts,increase in the accessible surface areas,and usage of surface F effects and exposure of highly reactive facets. Especially,the interesting synergistic effects of these different surface modification strategies deserve more attention in the near future. Studying these important advances in photocatalysis fundamentals,and surface chemistry and modification may offer new opportunities for designing highly efficient TiO2-based and non-TiO2-based photocatalysts for solar fuel production,environmental remediation,organic photosynthesis,and other related fields such as solar cell device fabrication,thermal catalysis,and separation and purification.

Synergistic effects in N‐K_2Ti_4O_9/UiO‐66‐NH_2 composites and their photocatalysis degradation of cationic dyes

N-K2Ti4O9/UiO-66-NH2 composites synthesized by a facile solvothermal method have a core-shell structure with UiO-66-NH2 forming the shell around a N-K2Ti4O9 core.Their photocatalytic activities in the degradation of dyes under visible light irradiation were investigated.The N-K2Ti4O9/UiO-66-NH2 composites exhibited higher photocatalytic activity than the pure components.This synergistic effect was due to the high adsorption capacity of UiO-66-NH2 and that the two components together induced an enhanced separation efficiency of photogenerated electron-hole pairs.The mass ratio of N-K2Ti4O9 to ZrCl4 of 3：7 in the composite exhibited the highest photocatalytic activity.Due to the electrostatic attraction between the negatively charged backbone of UiO-66-NH2with the positively charged groups of cationic dyes,the composites were more photocatalytically active for cationic dyes than for anionic dyes.

Effects of Co_3O_4 nanocatalyst morphology on CO oxidation:Synthesis process map and catalytic activity

This study focuses on drawing a hydrothermal synthesis process map for Co3O4 nanoparticles with various morphologies and investigating the effects of Co3O4 nanocatalyst morphology on CO oxidation.A series of cobalt-hydroxide-carbonate nanoparticles with various morphologies（i.e.,nanorods,nanosheets,and nanocubes） were successfully synthesized,and Co3O4 nanoparticles were obtained by thermal decomposition of the cobalt-hydroxide-carbonate precursors.The results suggest that the cobalt source is a key factor for controlling the morphology of cobalt-hydroxide-carbonate at relatively low hydrothermal temperatures（≤ 140℃）.Nanorods can be synthesized in CoCl2 solution,while Co（NO3）2 solution promotes the formation of nanosheets.Further increasing the synthesis temperature（higher than 140 ℃） results in the formation of nanocubes in either Co（NO3）2 or CoCl2 solution.The reaction time only affects the size of the obtained nanoparticles.The presence of CTAB could improve the uniformity and dispersion of particles.Co3O4 nanosheets showed much higher catalytic activity for CO oxidation than nanorods and nanocubes because it has more abundant Co^（3＋） on the surface,much higher reducibility,and better oxygen desorption capacity.

Elimination of 1,2-dichloroethane over(Ce,Cr)_x O_2/Nb_2O_5 catalysts: synergistic performance between oxidizing ability and acidity

A series of(Ce,Cr)xO2/Nb2O5 catalysts with different(Ce,Cr)xO2 to Nb2O5 mass ratios were synthesized by the deposition-precipitation method for use in deep catalytic oxidation of 1,2-dichloroethane(DCE), which is one of the typical chlorinated volatile organic compound pollutants. The textural properties were characterized by X-ray diffraction, N2 adsorption/desorption isotherms, UV-Raman spectroscopy, and scanning electron microscopy. The surface acidity and the redox properties were characterized by ammonia temperature-programmed desorption and H2 temperature-programmed reduction, respectively. The results show that the addition of a proper amount of(Ce,Cr)xO2 over Nb2O5 significantly improves the intrinsic catalytic activity towards the deep oxidation of DCE, and only a very small amount of C2H3Cl is detected as the byproduct of the oxidation process. Further study reveals the existence of an obvious synergistic effect between Nb2O5, with abundant strong acid sites, and(Ce,Cr)xO2, with strong oxidation sites, as the strong acid sites of Nb2O5 promote the adsorption and dehydrochlorination of DCE, while the strong oxidation sites of(Ce,Cr)xO2 contribute to the deep oxidation of the reactant, intermediates, and byproducts.

Recent progress in electronic modulation of electrocatalysts for high-efficient polysulfide conversion of Li-S batteries

With the merits of high energy density,environmental friendliness,and cost effectiveness,lithium-sulfur(Li-S)batteries are considered as one of the most promising next-generation electrochemical storage systems.However,the notorious polysulfide shuttle effect,which results in low active material utilization and serious capacity fading,severely impedes the practical application of Li-S batteries.Utilizing various electrocatalysts to improve the polysulfide redox kinetics has recently emerged as a promising strategy to address the shuttle effect.Specially,the electronic structure of the electrocatalysts plays a decisive role in determining the catalytic activity to facilitate the polysulfide conversion.Therefore,reasonably modulating the electronic structure of electrocatalysts is of paramount significance for improving the electrochemical performance of Li-S batteries.Herein,a comprehensive overview of the fascinating strategies to tailor the electronic structure of electrocatalysts for Li-S batteries is presented,including but not limited to vacancy engineering,heteroatom doping,single atom doping,band regulation,alloying,and heterostructure engineering.The future perspectives and challenges are also proposed for designing high-efficient electrocatalysts to construct high-energy-density and long-lifetime Li-S batteries.

Enhanced photocatalytic H_(2) production performance of CdS hollow spheres using C and Pt as bi-cocatalysts

Photocatalytic H2 production from water splitting is an effective method to solve energy crisis and environmental pollution simultaneously.Herein,carbon@CdS composite hollow spheres(C@CdS-HS)are fabricated via a facile hydrothermal method using porous carbon hollow spheres(C-HS)as the template.The C@CdS-HS shows an excellent photocatalytic H2-generation rate of 20.9 mmol h^(−1) g^(−1)(apparent quantum efficiency of 15.3%at 420 nm),with 1.0 wt%Pt as a cocatalyst under simulated sunlight irradiation;this rate is 69.7,13.9,and 3.9 times higher than that obtained with pure CdS hollow spheres(CdS-HS),C@CdS-HS,and CdS-HS/Pt,respectively.The enhanced photocatalytic H_(2)-evolution activity of C@CdS-HS/Pt is due to the synergistic effect of C and Pt as the bi-cocatalyst.The C-HS serves not only as an active site provider but also as an electron transporter and reservoir.Moreover,C-HS has a strong photothermal effect that is induced by near infrared light,which kinetically accelerates the H_(2)-production reaction.Additionally,the underlying charge transfer pathway and process from CdS to C−HS is revealed.This work highlights the potential application of C-HS-based nanocomposites in solar-to-chemical energy conversion.

Insights into facet-dependent reactivity of CuO–CeO2 nanocubes and nanorods as catalysts for CO oxidation reaction

Copper–ceria(Cu O–CeO2) catalysts have been known to be very effective for the oxidation of CO, and their chemical behavior has been extensively studied during the last decades. However, the effect of different CeO2 crystal surfaces on the catalytic activity of Cu O–CeO2 for the oxidation of CO is still unclear and should be further elucidated. In this study, we deposited 1 wt% Cu on mostly {100}-exposed CeO2 nanocubes(1 Cu Ce NC) and mostly {110}-exposed CeO2 nanorods(1 Cu Ce NR), respectively. Both 1 Cu Ce NC and 1 Cu Ce NR have been used as catalysts for the oxidation of CO and achieved 100% and 50% CO conversion at 130 ℃, respectively. The differences in the catalytic activity of 1 Cu Ce NC and 1 Cu Ce NR were analyzed using temperature-programmed reduction of H2 and temperature-programmed desorption of CO techniques. The results confirmed the excellent reducibility of the 1 Cu Ce NC catalyst, which was attributed to the weak interactions between Cu and the CeO2 support. Moreover, in situ diffuse reflectance infrared Fourier-transform spectroscopy studies indicated that the {100} planes of 1 Cu Ce NC facilitated the generation of active Cu(I) sites, which resulted in the formation of highly reactive Cu(I)-CO species during the oxidation of CO. Both the excellent redox properties and effective CO adsorption capacity of the 1 Cu Ce NC catalyst increased its catalytic reactivity.

MgO and Au nanoparticle Co-modified g-C_(3)N_(4)photocatalysts for enhanced photoreduction of CO_(2)with H_(2)O

The photoreduction of CO_(2)to achieve high-value-added hydrocarbons under simulated sunlight irradiation is advantageous,but challenging.In this study,a series of MgO and Au nanoparticle-co-modified g-C_(3)N_(4)photocatalysts were synthesized and subsequently applied for the photocatalytic reduction of CO_(2)with H2O under simulated solar irradiation.The best photocatalytic performance was demonstrated by the Au and 3%MgO-co-modified g-C_(3)N_(4)photocatalysts with CO,CH_(4),CH3OH,and CH3CHO yields of 423.9,83.2,47.2,and 130.4μmol/g,respectively,in a 3-h reaction.We investigated the effects of MgO and Au as cocatalysts on photocatalytic behaviors,respectively.The characterizations and experimental results showed that the enhanced photocatalytic activity was due to the synergistic effect among the components of the ternary photocatalyst.The cocatalyst MgO can activate CO_(2)(adsorbed at the interface between the MgO and Au particles),and the Mg-N bonds formed in the MgO-CN nanosheets played an important role in the charge transfer.Meanwhile,the Au particles that were modified into MgO/g-C_(3)N_(4)can increase the absorption of visible light via the surface plasmon resonance effect and further reduce the activation energies of the photoreduction of CO_(2)using H2O.This study provided an effective method for the modification of traditional primary photocatalysts with promising performance for photocatalytic CO_(2)reduction.

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.

Construction of LSPR-enhanced 0D/2D CdS/MoO3‒x S-scheme heterojunctions for visible-light-driven photocatalytic H2 evolution

Plasmonic nonmetal semiconductors with localized surface plasmon resonance(LSPR)effects possess extended light-response ranges and can act as highly efficient H2 generation photocatalysts.Herein,an LSPR-enhanced 0D/2D CdS/MoO3‒x heterojunction has been synthesized by the growth of 0D CdS nanoparticles on 2D plasmonic MoO3‒x elliptical nanosheets via a simple coprecipitation method.Taking advantage of the LSPR effect of the MoO3‒x elliptical nanosheets,the light absorption of the CdS/MoO3‒x heterojunction was extended from 600 nm to the near-infrared region(1400 nm).Furthermore,the introduction of 2D plasmonic MoO3‒x elliptical nanosheets not only provided a platform for the growth of CdS nanoparticles,but also contributed to the construction of an LSPR-enhanced S-scheme structure due to the interface between the MoO3‒x and CdS,accelerating the separation of light-induced electrons and holes.Therefore,the CdS/MoO3‒x heterojunction exhibited higher photocatalytic H2 generation activity than pristine CdS under visible light irradiation,including under 420,450,550,and 650 nm monochromic light,as well as improved photo-corrosion performance.

Synergetic photocatalytic and thermocatalytic reforming of methanol for hydrogen production based on Pt@TiO_(2) catalyst

In order to efficiently produce H_(2),conventional methanol‐water thermocatalytic(TC)reforming requires a very high temperature due to high Gibbs free energy,while the energy conversion efficiency of methanol‐water photocatalytic(PC)reforming is far from satisfaction because of the kinetic limitation.To address these issues,herein,we incorporate PC and TC processes together in a specially designed reactor and realize simultaneous photocatalytic/thermocatalytic(PC‐TC)reforming of methanol in an aqueous phase.Such a design facilitates the synergetic effect of the PC and TC process for H_(2) production due to a lower energy barrier and faster reaction kinetics.The methanol‐water reforming based on the optimized 0.05%Pt@TiO_(2) catalyst delivers an outstanding H_(2) production rate in the PC‐TC process(5.66μmol H_(2)·g^(‒1) catalyst·s^(‒1)),which is about 3 and 7 times than those of the TC process(1.89μmol H_(2)·g^(‒1) catalyst·s^(‒1))and the PC process(0.80μmol H_(2)·g^(‒1) catalyst·s^(‒1)),respectively.Isotope tracer experiments,active intermediate trapping experiments,and theoretical calculations demonstrate that the photo‐generated holes and hydroxyl radicals could enhance the methanol dehydrogenation,water molecule splitting,and water‐gas shift reaction,while high temperature accelerates reaction kinetics.The proposed PC‐TC reforming of methanol for hydrogen production can be a promising technology to solve the energy and environmental issue in the closed‐loop hydrogen economy in the near future.

SiO_2-supported Au-Ni bimetallic catalyst for the selective hydrogenation of acetylene

Supported Au catalysts have been reported to exhibit high ethylene selectivity in the hydrogenation of acetylene,but the conversion is relatively low.Adding a second metal to Au has proven to be a promising approach to enhance its catalytic performance in acetylene hydrogenation.In this work,SiO2‐supported Au‐Ni bimetallic catalysts were synthesized and investigated in the selective hydrogenation of acetylene.The Au‐Ni bimetallic catalysts exhibited much higher catalytic performance than that of the corresponding monometallic Au or Ni catalysts.By tuning the reduction temperature and/or Ni loading,we obtained an Au‐Ni/SiO2catalyst with optimal performance.The results of transmission electron microscopy imaging revealed that the Au‐Ni bimetallic particles were highly dispersed on the SiO2support.Meanwhile,analysis of the bimetallic catalyst by energy‐dispersive X‐ray spectroscopy,high‐resolution transmission electron microscopy,and in situ diffuse reflectance infrared Fourier transform spectroscopy demonstrated the formation of Au‐Ni alloy,which contributed to the synergistic effect between Au and Ni in the hydrogenation of acetylene.