Integration of morphology and electronic structure modulation on cobalt phosphide nanosheets to boost photocatalytic hydrogen evolution from ammonia borane hydrolysis

The controllable and safe hydrogen storage technologies are widely recognized as the main bottleneck for the accomplishment of sustainable hydrogen energy.Ammonia borane(AB)has regarded as a competitive candidate for chemical hydrogen storage.However,developing efficient yet high-performance catalysts towards hydrogen evolution from AB hydrolysis remains an enormous challenge.Herein,cobalt phosphide nanosheets are synthesized by a facile salt-assisted along with low-temperature phosphidation strategy for simultaneously modulating its morphology and electronic structure,and function as hydrogen evolution photocatalysts.Impressively,the Co_(2)P nanosheets display extraordinary performance with a record high turnover frequency of 44.9 min^(-1),outperforming most of the noble-metal-free catalysts reported to date.This remarkable performance is attributed to its desired nanosheets structure,featuring with high specific surface area,abundant exposed active sites,and short charge diffusion paths.Our findings provide a novel strategy for regulating metal phosphides with desired phase structure and morphology for energy-related applications and beyond.

Ammonia borane-enabled hydrogen transfer processes:Insights into catalytic strategies and mechanisms

Transfer hydrogenation(TH) with in situ generated hydrogen donor is of great importance in reduction reactions, and an alternative strategy to traditional hydrogenation processes involving pressurized molecular hydrogen. Ammonia borane(NH3BH3, AB) is a promising material of hydrogen storage, and it has attracted much attention in reductive organic transformations owing to its high activity, good atom economy, nontoxicity, sustainability, and ease of transport and storage. This review focuses on summarizing the recent progress of AB-mediated TH reactions of diverse substrates including nitro compounds, nitriles, imines, alkenes, alkynes, carbonyl compounds(ketones and aldehydes), carbon dioxide,and N-and O-heterocycles. Syntheses protocols(metal-containing and metal-free), the effect of reaction parameters, product distribution, and variation of reactivity are surveyed, and the mechanism of each reaction involving the action mode of AB as well as structure-activity relationships is discussed in detail. Finally, perspectives are presented to highlight the challenges and opportunities for AB-enabled TH reactions of unsaturated compounds.

Anomalous metastable hcp Ni nanocatalyst induced by non-metal N doping enables promoted ammonia borane dehydrogenation

Developing high-performing non-noble transition metal catalysts for H_(2) evolution from chemical hydrogen storage materials is of great significance for the hydrogen economy system, yet challenging. Herein,we present for the first time that anomalous metastable hexagonal close-packed Ni nanoparticles induced by heteroatom N doping encapsulated in carbon(N-hcp-Ni/C) can exhibit admirable catalytic performance for ammonia borane(AB) dehydrogenation, prominently outperforming conventional fcc Ni counterpart with similar morphology and favorably presenting the state-of-the-art level.Comprehensive experimental and theoretical studies unravel that unusual hcp phase engineering of Ni together with N doping could induce charge redistribution and modulate electronic structure, thereby facilitating H_(2)O adsorption and expediting H_(2)O dissociation(rate-determining step). As a result, AB dehydrogenation can be substantially boosted with the assistance of N-hcp-Ni/C. Our proposed strategy highlights that unconventional crystal phase engineering coupled with non-metal heteroatom doping is a promising avenue to construct advanced transition metal catalysts for future renewable energy technologies.

Interface electron collaborative migration of Co–Co3O4/carbon dots:Boosting the hydrolytic dehydrogenation of ammonia borane

Ammonia borane(AB)is an excellent candidate for the chemical storage of hydrogen.However,its practical utilization for hydrogen production is hindered by the need for expensive noble-metal-based catalysts.Herein,we report Co-Co3O4 nanoparticles(NPs)facilely deposited on carbon dots(CDs)as a highly efficient,robust,and noble-metal-free catalyst for the hydrolysis of AB.The incorporation of the multiinterfaces between Co,Co3O4 NPs,and CDs endows this hybrid material with excellent catalytic activity(rB=6816 mLH2 min^-1 gCo^-1)exceeding that of previous non-noble-metal NP systems and even that of some noble-metal NP systems.A further mechanistic study suggests that these interfacial interactions can affect the electronic structures of interfacial atoms and provide abundant adsorption sites for AB and water molecules,resulting in a low energy barrier for the activation of reactive molecules and thus substantial improvement of the catalytic rate.

Co-CoO_x supported onto TiO_(2) coated with carbon as a catalyst for efficient and stable hydrogen generation from ammonia borane

Ammonia borane(AB) can be catalytically hydrolyzed to provide hydrogen at room temperature due to its high potentaial for hydrogen storage. Non-precious metal heterogeneous catalysts have broad application in the field of energy catalysis. In this article, catalysts precursor is obtained from Co-Ti-resorcinol-formaldehyde resin by sol–gel method. Co/TiO_(2)@N-C(CTC) catalyst is prepared by calcining the precursor under high temperature conditions in nitrogen atmosphere. Co-CoO_x/TiO_(2)@N-C(COTC) is generated by the controllable oxidation reaction of CTC. The catalyst can effectively promote the release of hydrogen during the hydrolytic dehydrogenation of AB. High hydrogen generation at a specific rate of 5905 m L min^(-1) g_(Co)^(-1) is achieved at room temperature. The catalyst retains its 85% initial catalytic activity even for its fifth time use in AB hydrolysis. The synergistic effect among Co, Co_(3)O_(4) and TiO_(2) promotes the rate limiting step with dissociation and activation of water molecules by reducing its activation energy. The applied method in this study promotes the development of non-precious metals in catalysis for utilization in clean energy sources.

A step‐growth strategy to grow vertical porous aromatic framework nanosheets on graphene oxide:Hybrid material‐confined Co for ammonia borane methanolysis

The rational synthesis of a two-dimensional(2D)porous aromatic framework(PAF)with a controllable growth direction remains a challenge to overcome the limitation of traditional stacked 2D materials.Herein,a step-growth strategy is developed to fabricate a vertically oriented nitrogen-rich porous aromatic framework on graphene oxide(V-PAF-GO)using monolayer benzidine-functionalized GO(BZ-GO)as a molecular pillar.Then,the confined Co nanoparticle(NP)catalysts are synthesized by encapsulating ultra-small Co into the slit pores of V-PAF-GO.Due to the high nitrogen content,large specific surface area,and adequate slit pores,the optimized vertical nanocomposites V-PAF-GO provide abundant anchoring sites for metal NPs,leading to ultrafine Co NPs(1.4 nm).The resultant Co/V-PAF-GO catalyst shows an extraordinary catalytic activity for ammonia borane(AB)methanolysis,yielding a turnover frequency value of 47.6 min−1 at 25°C,comparable to the most effective non-noble-metal catalysts ever reported for AB methanolysis.Experimental and density functional theory studies demonstrate that the electron-donating effect of N species of PAF positively corresponds to the low barrier in methanol molecule activation,and the cleavage of the O–H bond in CH3OH has been proven to be the rate-determining step for AB methanolysis.This work presents a versatile step-growth strategy to prepare a vertically oriented PAF on GO to solve the stacking problem of 2D materials,which will be used to fabricate other novel 2D or 2D–2D materials with controllable orientation for various applications.

Core-shell structured nanospheres with mesoporous silica shell and Ni core as a stable catalyst for hydrolytic dehydrogenation of ammonia borane

Core-shell structured nanospheres with mesoporous silica shell and Ni core(denoted as Ni@meso-SiO2) are prepared through a three-step process. Monodispersed Ni precursors are first prepared, and then coated with mesoporous SiO2. Final Ni@meso-SiO2spheres are obtained after calcination. The products are characterized by X-ray powder diffraction, transmission electron microscopy and N2adsorption-desorption methods. These spheres have a high surface area and are well dispersed in water, showing a high catalytic activity with a TOF value of 18.5,and outstanding stability in hydrolytic dehydrogenation of ammonia borane at room temperature.

Bimetallic RuM(M=Co,Ni)Alloy NPs Supported on MIL-110(AI):Synergetic Catalysis in Hydrolytic Dehydrogenation of Ammonia Borane

By adjusting various Ru/M （M=Co, Ni） molar ratios, a series of highly dispersed bimetallic RuM alloy nanoparticles （NPs） anchored on MIL-110（Al） have been successfully prepared via a conventional impregnation-reduction method. And they are first used as heterogeneous catalysts for the dehydrogenation reaction of AB at room temperature. The results reveal that the as-prepared RulCo1@MIL-110 and RulNi1@MIL-110 exhibit the highest catalytic activities in different RuCo and RuNi molar ratios, respectively. It is worthy of note that the turnover frequency （TOF） values of Ru1Co1@MIL-110 and Ru1Ni1@MIL-110 catalysts reached 488.1 and 417.1 mol H2 min-1 （mol Ru）-1 and the activation energies （Ea） are 31.7 and 36.0 k J/tool, respectively. The superior catalytic performance is attributed to the bimetallic synergistic action between Ru and M, uniform distribution of metal NPs as well as bi-functional effect between RuM alloy NPs and MIL-110. Moreover, these catalysts exhibit favorable stability after 5 consecutive cycles for the hydrolysis of AB.

Carbon dots-confined CoP-CoO nanoheterostructure with strong interfacial synergy triggered the robust hydrogen evolution from ammonia borane

Ammonia borane(NH_(3)BH_(3),AB) is promising for chemical hydrogen sto rage;however,current systems for rapid hydrogen production are limited by the expensive noble metal catalysts required for AB hydrolysis.Here we report the design and synthesis of a highly efficient and robust non-noble-metal catalyst for the hydrolysis of AB at 298 K(TOF=89.56 molH_(2) min^(-1) molCo^(-1)).Experiments and density functional theory calculations were performed to explore the catalyst’s hybrid nanoparticle heterostructure and its catalytic mechanism.The catalyst comprised nitrogen-doped carbon dots confining CoO and CoP,and exhibited strong interface-induced synergistic catalysis for AB hydrolysis that effectively decreased the energy barriers for the dissociation of both AB and water molecules.The co-doping of N and P introduced numerous defects,and further regulated the reactivity of the carbon layers.The heterogeneous interface design technique presented here provides a new strategy for developing efficient and inexpensive non-noblemetal catalysts that may be applicable in other fields related to energy catalysis.

Single Pt Atoms Supported on Oxidized Graphene as a Promising Catalyst for Hydrolysis of Ammonia Borane

Based on density functional theory calculations,the full hydrolysis of per NH3BH3 molecule to produce three hydrogen molecules on single Pt atoms supported on oxidized graphene(Pt1/Gr-O)is investigated.It is suggested that the first hydrogen molecule is produced by the combination of two hydrogen atoms from two successive B-H bonds breaking.Then one H2O molecule attacks the left*BHNH3 group(*represents adsorbed state)to form*BH(H2O)NH3 and the elongated O-H bond is easily broken to produce*BH(OH)NH3.The second H2O molecule attacks*BH(OH)NH3 to form*BH(OH)(H2O)NH3 and the breaking of O-H bond pointing to the plane of Pt1/Gr-O results in the desorption of BH(OH)2NH3.The second hydrogen molecule is produced from two hydrogen atoms coming from two H2O molecules and Pt1/Gr-O is recovered after the releasing of hydrogen molecule.The third hydrogen molecule is generated by the further hydrolysis of BH(OH)2NH3 in water solution.The rate-limiting step of the whole process is the combination of one H2O molecule and*BHNH3 with an energy barrier of 16.1 kcal/mol.Thus,Pt1/Gr-O is suggested to be a promising catalyst for hydrolysis of NH3BH3 at room temperature.

Structures and Stability of Metal Amidoboranes (MAB): Density Functional Calculations

Molecule geometry structures, frequencies, and energetic stabilities of ammonia borane （AB, NH3BH3 ） and metal amidoboranes （MAB, MNH2BH3）, formed by substituting H atom in AB with one of main group metal atoms, have been investigated by density-functional theory and optimized at the B3LYP levels with 6-311G＋＋ （3dr, 3pd） basic set. Their structural parameters and infrared spectrum characteristic peaks have been predicted, which should be the criterion of a successfully synthesized material. Several parameters such as binding energies, vibrational frequencies, and the energy gaps between the HOMO and the LUMO have been adopted to characterize and evaluate their structure stabilities. It is also found that the binding energies and HOMO-LUMO energy gaps of the MAB obviously change with the substitution of the atoms. MgAB has the lowest binding energy and is easier to decompose than any other substitutional structures under same conditions, while CaAB has the highest chemical activity.

Polymer Film Supported Bimetallic Au–Ag Catalysts for Electrocatalytic Oxidation of Ammonia Borane in Alkaline Media

Ammonia borane is widely used in most areas including fuel cell applications.The present paper describes electrochemical behavior of ammonia borane in alkaline media on the poly(p-aminophenol) film modified with Au and Ag bimetallic nanoparticles.The glassy carbon electrode was firstly covered with polymeric film electrochemically and then,Au,Ag,and Au–Ag nanoparticles were deposited on the polymeric film,respectively.The surface morphology and chemical composition of these electrodes were examined by scanning electron microscopy,transmission electron microscopy,electrochemical impedance spectroscopy,X-ray diffraction,and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy.It was found that alloyed Au–Ag bimetallic nanoparticles are formed.Electrochemical measurements indicate that the developed electrode modified by Au–Ag bimetallic nanoparticles exhibit the highest electrocatalytic activity for ammonia borane oxidation in alkaline media.The rotating disk electrode voltammetry demonstrates that the developed electrode can catalyze almost six-electron oxidation pathway of ammonia borane.Our results may be attractive for anode materials of ammonia borane fuel cells under alkaline conditions.

Ni_(0.6)Cu_(0.4)O/NC催化剂的制备及其催化氨硼烷水解制氢性能研究

本研究在氮气气氛下高温碳化Ni/Cu-ZIF前驱体制备了一种含氮炭材料(Ni_(0.6)Cu_(0.4)O/NC)催化剂,并采用多种表征方法对所制备催化剂的微观结构以及组成成分进行了研究。此外,通过控制变量法探究了催化剂的催化性能以及变化规律。研究结果表明,Ni_(0.6)Cu_(0.4)O/NC催化AB水解制氢的活化能(Ea)为56.8 kJ/mol,TOF值高达1572.2 h^(−1)。该催化剂催化AB水解制氢速率对于AB自身浓度可近似看作零级反应,而相对于催化剂的用量可近似看作一级反应。催化剂经过10次循环后仍然保持良好的催化活性,表明其具有良好的稳定性。

双模板剂合成CO_(2)P纳米片及其催化氨硼烷水解性能的研究

开发一种在温和条件下具有高活性、高选择性的催化剂是实现氨硼烷水解制氢应用的关键。以构建具有P掺杂材料为出发点,以两种不同比例的金属盐作为模板剂,以过渡非贵金属Co为中心金属,合成出制作方法简便、性能优异的催化剂。通过乙酸钴和氨水制备出Co_(3)O_(4)前躯体,将Co_(3)O_(4)前躯体与NaH_(2)PO_(2),NaCl,LiCl混合,在N_(2)气氛下焙烧,然后进行水洗将两种盐模板剂去除,得到纳米片催化剂CO_(2)P-NaLi。试验结果表明,当n(NaCl)∶n(LiCl)=1∶0.15时制备的催化剂CO_(2)P-NaLi_(0.15)催化活性最高,其在298 K、光照条件下催化氨硼烷水解反应的初始转化率(TOF)为31.2 min^(-1),且该催化剂上氨硼烷分解的活化能(E_(a))为60.8 kJ/mol。循环5次后,催化剂依然保持良好活性,表明其拥有良好的稳定性。

层状多孔炭片负载钌催化剂的制备及其催化氨硼烷水解制氢性能研究

本研究以煤沥青为炭材料,氯化钠为模板剂,碳酸钾为活化剂,在氩气气氛下高温煅烧得到载体层状多孔炭片(LPCS),通过浸渍法向其中加入RuCl3金属溶液,将活性组分Ru负载到LPCS载体上合成Ru/LPCS催化剂,并对其催化氨硼烷水解制氢的性能进行了研究。结果表明,Ru/LPCS催化剂中,当煅烧温度为1123 K时,Ru的负载量为2%时,催化剂的反应转化频率(TOF)值最大,此时有光下催化剂的TOF为334.8 min^(-1),是无光照时TOF的1.38倍。在光照下,催化剂的活化能(Ea)从90.60 kJ/mol下降到70.33 kJ/mol。氨硼烷水解制氢速率相对于其浓度的级数为0.75,而相对于催化剂的用量满足于一级动力学关系。

碳材料在催化氨硼烷水解释氢中的应用

碳材料因其独特的化学和结构特性,在催化领域包括催化氨硼烷水解释氢中有广泛的应用。以碳材料的结构为侧重点,综述了不同维度形态的碳材料在催化氨硼烷水解释氢中的作用,并对其在催化氨硼烷水解释氢中所存在的问题以及今后的发展进行了总结和展望。

Co_(0.5)Cu_(0.5)/CNR催化剂制备及其氨硼烷水解制氢性能研究

以硝酸钴和硝酸铜制备溶液A,苯二甲酸(PTA)和N,N-二甲基甲酰胺(DMF)制备溶液B,两种溶液通过溶剂热法制备Co/Cu拉瓦希尔骨架系列材料(Co/Cu-MIL前驱体),进一步直接碳化前驱体制备出MOFs衍生物,即双金属碳纳米棒(CoxCu_(1-x)/CNR)催化剂。通过SEM、TEM、XRD、XPS等表征手段探究其形貌和组成。结果表明,Co/Cu-MIL经过高温焙烧后成功得到CoxCu_(1-x)/CNR,当x=0.5、溶剂热温度为120℃、焙烧温度为650℃时得到的催化剂催化活性最优,Co_(0.5)Cu_(0.5)/CNR催化剂催化氨硼烷(AB)水解制氢的TOF值为2718.21 h^(-1),反应的活化能为51.64 kJ/mol,且催化剂的循环稳定性较好,在循环10次后催化活性虽然有所下降,但对AB仍然保持100%的转化率。

Co基催化材料在氨硼烷水解释氢中的应用

从提高Co基催化材料在氨硼烷水解释氢中的催化性能的角度出发,综述了不同类型Co基催化材料在释氢反应中的应用,阐明了Co基催化材料的设计思路以及在反应中的催化作用机制,并对Co基催化材料在催化氨硼烷水解释氢中所存在的问题以及今后的发展进行了总结和展望。

h-BN中子探测器制备及中子响应

h-BN具有高的反应截面和高效率直接探测中子的优势,在中子探测技术领域具有潜在的应用场景。分析了三步脱氢法生长h-BN的低气压化学沉积机理,对于生长高质量的h-BN晶体,氨硼烷前驱体的升华温度是一个重要的参数。通过优化氨硼烷前驱体的升华温度,利用LPCVD外延生长技术在蓝宝石衬底上外延生长了高质量的h-BN。XRD表征技术表明,优化氨硼烷前驱体的升华温度能够显著改善h-BN晶体质量。利用半导体制备工艺在h-BN上完成了中子探测器的制备,在中子源照射下,在不同的氨硼烷升华温度下,获得了单个中子的电信号。中子响应测试结果表明,当设定温度分别为165℃和170℃时,获得了2.088 V和2.16 V的电压信号,电荷收集效率分别达到了87%和90%,实验中所测量的电压值与理论预期值呈现出良好的一致性。本实验结果对未来晶圆级和高质量h-BN晶体生长提供了实验数据,并为h-BN中子探测器大规模商业化应用提供关键的技术支撑。

PdCo/准NH2-Ce-BDC串联催化氨硼烷脱氢和苯乙炔加氢

催化苯乙炔半加氢制备苯乙烯是优化聚苯乙烯生产的重要过程,而高活性、高选择性加氢催化剂的制备对抑制苯乙炔过度加氢、提高苯乙烯收率具有重要意义。本文设计氨硼烷脱氢与苯乙炔选择性加氢串联,以准NH_(2)-Ce-BDC为载体,负载PdCo纳米粒子为催化剂。XRD、XPS、CO-DRIFTS等结果表明,PdCo催化剂中金属和准NH_(2)-Ce-BDC载体之间具有协同效应,同时PdCo合金化调控了Pd电子状态,缺电子态Pd更有利于对反应底物苯乙炔的吸附。更重要的是,串联反应中氨硼烷原位产氢提高了活性氢传质效率,从而促进了催化反应的进行。