Recent advances in cobalt phosphide-based materials for electrocatalytic water splitting:From catalytic mechanism and synthesis method to optimization design

Electrochemical water splitting has long been considered an effective energy conversion technology for trans-ferring intermittent renewable electricity into hydrogen fuel,and the exploration of cost-effective and high-performance electrocatalysts is crucial in making electrolyzed water technology commercially viable.Cobalt phosphide(Co-P)has emerged as a catalyst of high potential owing to its high catalytic activity and durability in water splitting.This paper systematically reviews the latest advances in the development of Co-P-based materials for use in water splitting.The essential effects of P in enhancing the catalytic performance of the hydrogen evolution reaction and oxygen evolution reaction are first outlined.Then,versatile synthesis techniques for Co-P electrocatalysts are summarized,followed by advanced strategies to enhance the electrocatalytic performance of Co-P materials,including heteroatom doping,composite construction,integration with well-conductive sub-strates,and structure control from the viewpoint of experiment.Along with these optimization strategies,the understanding of the inherent mechanism of enhanced catalytic performance is also discussed.Finally,some existing challenges in the development of highly active and stable Co-P-based materials are clarified,and pro-spective directions for prompting the wide commercialization of water electrolysis technology are proposed.

One-pot synthesis of bimetallic CeCu-SAPO-34 for high-efficiency selective catalytic reduction of nitrogen oxides with NH_(3) at low temperature

NH_(3) selective catalytic reduction(SCR) has been widely recognized as a promising technique for reducing nitrogen oxides from diesel vehicle exhausts. High-efficiency SCR catalysts that could perform at low temperatures are essential to denitration. In this work, a series of bimetallic CeCu-SAPO-34 molecular sieves were synthesized by one-step hydrothermal method. The Ce Cu-SAPO-34 maintained good crystallinity and a regular hexahedron appearance of Cu-SAPO-34 after introducing Ce species, while exhibiting a higher specific surface area and pore volume. The as-prepared CeCu-SAPO-34 with 0.02%(mass) Ce constituent exhibited the best catalytic activity below 300℃ and a maximum NO_(x) conversion of 99% was attained;the NO_(x) removal rates of more than 68% and 94% were achieved at 150℃ and 200℃, respectively. And the introduction of cerium species in Cu-SAPO-34 improves the low-temperature hydrothermal stability of the catalyst towards NH_(3)-SCR reaction. Additionally, the introduced Ce species could enhance the formation of abundant weak Br?nsted acid centers and promote the synergistic effect between CuO grains and isolated Cu^(2+) to enhance the redox cycle, which benefit the NH_(3)-SCR reaction.This work provides a facile synthesis method of high-efficiency SCR denitration catalysts towards diesel vehicles exhaust treatment under low temperature.

Synthesis of a chabazite-supported copper catalyst with full mesopores for selective catalytic reduction of nitrogen oxides at low temperature

A series of meso‐microporous copper‐supporting chabazite molecular sieve（CuSAPO‐34） catalysts with excellent performance in low‐temperature ammonia selective catalytic reduction（NH3‐SCR）have been synthesized via a one‐pot hydrothermal crystallization method. The physicochemical properties of the catalysts were characterized by scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, N2 adsorption‐desorption measurements, X‐ray diffraction, 27 Al magic angle spinning nuclear magnetic resonance, diffuse reflectance ultraviolet‐visible spectroscopy, inductively coupled plasma‐atomic emission spectroscopy, X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy, temperature‐programmed reduction measurements, and electron paramagnetic resonance analysis. The formation of micro‐mesopores in the Cu‐SAPO‐34 catalysts decreases diffusion resistance and greatly improves the accessibility of reactants to catalytic active sites. The main active sites for NH3‐SCR reaction are the isolated Cu^2＋ species displaced into the ellipsoidal cavity of the Cu‐SAPO‐34 catalysts.

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.

Synthesis of cerium-doped MCM-48 molecular sieves and its catalytic performance for selective oxidation of cyclohexane

Cerium-doped MCM-48 molecular sieves were synthesized hydrothermally and characterized by X-ray diffraction, nitrogen adsorption, transmission electron microscope, FT-IR spectroscopy, UV-visible spectroscopy, and Raman spectroscopy. The results showed that all the samples held the structure of MCM-48, and Ce could enter the framework of MCM-48. However, when Ce/Si molar ratio in the sampies was high （0.04 or 0.059）, there were CeO2 crystallites as secondary phase in the extraframework of MCM-48. Ce-doped MCM-48 was a very efficient catalyst for the oxidation of cyclohexane in a solvent-free system with oxygen as an oxidant. In the conditions of 0.5 MPa 02 and 413 K for 5 h, the conversion of cyclohexane was 8.1% over Ce-MCM-48-0.02, the total selectivity of cyclohexanol and cyclohaxnone was 98.7%. With an increase of Ce content, the conversion of cyclohexane and the selectivity to cyclohexanol decreased somewhat, but the selectivity to cyclohexanone increased.

Electrochemical synthesis of catalytic materials for energy catalysis

Electrocatalysis is a process dealing with electrochemical reactions in the interconversion of chemical energy and electrical energy.Precise synthesis of catalytically active nanostructures is one of the key challenges that hinder the practical application of many important energy‐related electrocatalytic reactions.Compared with conventional wet‐chemical,solid‐state and vapor deposition synthesis,electrochemical synthesis is a simple,fast,cost‐effective and precisely controllable method for the preparation of highly efficient catalytic materials.In this review,we summarize recent progress in the electrochemical synthesis of catalytic materials such as single atoms,spherical and shaped nanoparticles,nanosheets,nanowires,core‐shell nanostructures,layered nanomaterials,dendritic nanostructures,hierarchically porous nanostructures as well as composite nanostructures.Fundamental aspects of electrochemical synthesis and several main electrochemical synthesis methods are discussed.Structure‐performance correlations between electrochemically synthesized catalysts and their unique electrocatalytic properties are exemplified using selected examples.We offer the reader with a basic guide to the synthesis of highly efficient catalysts using electrochemical methods,and we propose some research challenges and future opportunities in this field.

Synthesis of mesoporous high‐silica zeolite Y and their catalytic cracking performance

Mesoporous high‐silica zeolite Y with advantages of improved accessibility of acid sites and mass transport properties is highly desired catalytic materials for oil refinery,fine chemistry and emerg‐ing biorefinery.Here,we report the direct synthesis of mesoporous high‐silica zeolite Y(named MSY,SiO_(2)/Al2O_(3)≥9.8)and their excellent catalytic cracking performance.The obtained MSY mate‐rials are mesoporous single crystals with octahedral morphology,abundant mesoporosity and ex‐cellent(hydro)thermal stability.Both the acid concentration and acid strength of H‐form MSY are obviously higher than those of commercial ultra‐stable Y(USY),which should be attributed to the uniform Al distribution of MSY zeolite.The H‐MSY displays an obviously reduced deactivation rate and improved catalytic activity in the cracking reaction of bulky 1,3,5‐triisopropylbenzene(TIPB),as compared with its mesoporogen‐free counterpart and USY.In addition,H‐MSY was investigated as catalyst for the cracking of industrial heavy oil.The MSY‐based catalyst(after aging at 800 oC in 100%steam for 17 h)exhibits superior conversion(7.64%increase)and gasoline yield(16.37%increase)than industrial fluid catalytic cracking(FCC)catalyst under the investigated conditions.

Microwave-induced synthesis and characterization of nanometer Ce_(0.5)Zr_(0.5)O_2 solid solution for the acidic catalytic reaction

Ce0.5Zr0.5O2 solid solution was successfully synthesized using cerium nitrate, zirconium nitrate, and urea as raw materials by the microwave irradiation method and characterized by X-ray diffraction, fluorescence spectrum, transmission electron microscopy, and infrared spectrum. Its acid catalytic activity was evaluated in the esterification reaction of acetic acid and n-butyl alcohol. The results show that Ce0.5Zr0.5O2 solid solution has cubic fluorite structure, and its particle diameter is in the nanometer scale. As a sort of solid acid, it possesses a higher acid catalytic activity and can be easily separated from reaction liquids. It can be used for several times, and basically, its activity keeps constant. The proton acid sites and Lewis acid sites exist in the structure of Ce0.5Zr0.5O2 solid solution.

Synthesis of biomorphic hierarchical CeO_2 microtube with enhanced catalytic activity

A biomorphic CeO2microtube with multiple-pore structure was fabricated by using the cotton as biotemplate,throughcerium nitrate solution infiltration and thermal decomposition.Field emission scanning electron microscope(FESEM),powder X-raydiffraction(XRD),transmission electron microscope(TEM),N2adsorption?desorption isotherms,temperature-programmedreduction(TPR)and CO oxidation were used to characterize the samples.The results indicated that the synthesized products werecomposed of crystallites with grain size about9nm and exhibited a fibrous morphology similar to the original template andpossessed a specific surface area(BET)of62.3m2/g.Compared with the conventional CeO2particles,the synthesized materialsshowed a superior catalytic activity for CO oxidation.For the synthesized fibrous CeO2,the CO conversion at320°C was above90%and a100%CO conversion was obtained at410°C.

A facile one-pot hydrothermal synthesis as an efficient method to modulate the potassium content of cryptomelane and its effects on the redox and catalytic properties

Cryptomelane has been widely applied as catalyst in oxidation reactions due to its excellent redox properties and low cost.Here,a novel one-pot hydrothermal synthesis using a potassium permanganate aqueous solution as precursor and ethanol as reducing agent has successfully been developed to obtain cryptomelane nano-oxides.This synthetic route makes it possible to control the amount of potassium incorporated into the structure of the cryptomelane by selecting the appropriate synthesis temperature and ethanol initial concentration.Taking advantage of this approach,the effect of potassium concentration on the structural stability and reducibility of the cryptomelane,which are poorly discussed in the literature,has been studied.We have observed that samples with low content of potassium(~11%)show high conversions of CO to CO2 especially at low temperatures.The lower activity of the samples with high K contents(~16%)can be ascribed to the beneficial effect of K on the structural stability of cryptomelane in detriment of labile oxygen on cryptomelane surface.

Optimizing the Synthesis of Ethyl tert-Butyl Ether in Continuous Catalytic Distillation Column Using New Ion Exchange Resin Catalyst

Liquid phase synthesis of one of the important fuel oxygenate, ethyl tert-butyl ether （ETBE）, from etha-nol and tert-butyl alcohol （TBA） has been studied in catalytic distillation column （CDC） using ion exchange resin catalyst CT-145H. A packed CDC of 1.2 m height and 50 mm diameter with indigenously developed reactive sec-tion packing was used to generate experimental data. Effect of different key variables on product purity in distillate, was investigated to find the optimum operating conditions for ETBE synthesis. The optimum conditions for 0.2 kg·s-1 of ethanol feed were found：reboiler duty of 375 W, molar feed ratio of 1︰1.3 of reactants, and reflux ratio of 7. Concentration profiles for each component along each column section at optimum conditions were also drawn. Neither output nor input multiplicity was observed at experimental conditions.

Synthesis of carbon nanofibers by ethanol catalytic combustion technique

A general, simple and economic synthetic method for synthesizing carbon nanofibers was presented. In the method, ethanol was employed as carbon source; metal salts such as nickel nitrate, ferric nitrate and ferric chloride were used as catalyst precursor respectively; copper plate was employed as the support material. A lot of products were obtained by catalytic combustion deposition of ethanol vapor. Then the as-prepared carbon nanofibers were characterized by field-emission scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, Raman spectroscopy, energy dispersion X-ray spectroscopy and selected-area electron diffractometry. By analyzing the results of characterization, the conclusions are as follows: 1) the large catalyst particles tend to form large-diameter CNFs, small catalyst particles are inclinable to form small-diameter CNFs; 2) the morphology of the catalyst can affect the final morphology of the CNFs. Moreover, the possible growth mechanisms were proposed and the degree of graphitization of samples was estimated by Raman spectroscopy characterization.

Top-down synthesis strategies: Maximum noble-metal atom efficiency in catalytic materials

Top‐down synthesis has been used to prepare catalytic materials with nanometer sizes,but fabricating atomically dispersed metal catalysts remains a challenge because surface single metal atoms are prone to aggregation or coalescence.A top‐down strategy is used to synthesize atomically dispersed metal catalysts,based on supported Ag nanoparticles.The changes of the geometric and electronic structures of the Ag atoms during the top‐down process are studied using the in situ synchrotron X‐ray diffraction technique,ex situ X‐ray absorption spectroscopy,and transmission electron microscopy.The experimental results,coupled with the density functional theory calculations,demonstrate that the electronic perturbation of the Ag frontier orbitals,induced by the Ag‐O interactions at the perimeter of the metal‐support interface,is the driving force of the top‐down process.The top‐down synthesis has two important functions:to increase the number of catalytic active sites and to facilitate the study of complex reaction mechanisms(e.g.,formaldehyde oxidation)by developing single‐site model catalysts.

Catalytic kinetics of dimethyl ether one-step synthesis over CeO_2–CaO–Pd/HZSM-5 catalyst in sulfur-containing syngas process

CeO_2–CaO–Pd/HZSM-5 catalyst was prepared for the dimethyl ether(DME) one-step synthesis in a continuous fixed-bed micro-reactor from the sulfur-containing syngas. The catalytic stability over hybrid catalyst of CeO_2–CaO–Pd/HZSM-5 was investigated to ensure that the kinetics experimental results were not significantly influenced by induction period and catalytic deactivation. A large number of kinetic data points(40 sets) were obtained over a range of temperature(240–300 °C), pressure(3–4 MPa), gas hourly space velocity(GHSV)(2000–3000 L·kg^(-1)·h^(-1)) and H_2/CO mole ratio(2–3). Kinetic model for the methanol synthesis reaction and the dehydration of methanol were obtained separately according to reaction mechanism and Langmuir–Hinshelwood mechanism. Regression parameters were investigated by the method combining the simplex method and Runge–Kutta method. The model calculations were in appropriate accordance with the experimental data.

A Study of Synthesis, Immobilization and Catalytic Capability of Metalloporphyrin

A stepwise synthesis method was used to immobilize tetrachloro tetramethyl porphyrins in the supercages of NaCoX molecular sieve. The immobilized porphyrin was characterized by means of UV Vis, IR, DTA, SEM and EPR. A comparision was made for the activities among tetrachloro tetramethyl porphyrins, its cobalt(Ⅱ) complex, NaCoX molecular sieve and the immobilized porphyrin as catalysts in the oxidation reaction of styrene and p cresol. The stability and catalytic capability of the metalloporphyrin is increased after the combination of porphyrin with molecular sieve. In addition, this new type of catalyst tetrachloro tetramethyl porphyrin immobilized in the supercages of NaCoX molecular sieve not only possesses the advantages of both porphyrin and molecular sieve, but also makes up for their respective deficiencies. The experimental results confirmed that both the stability and catalytic capability of metalloporphyrin immobilized in the supercages of molecular sieve are increased.

Stereoselective synthesis of 3-butylphtalide via CBS catalytic reduction

Optically active 3-butylphtalide of high enantiomeric excesses (up to 93% e.e.) was synthesized from the reduction of o-pentanoylbenzoic ester with borane using B-methyloxyoxazaborolidine (1b) as the chiral catalyst.

Salt-Assisted Combustion Synthesis of NdCoO_3 Nanoparticles and Their Catalytic Properties in Thermal Decomposition of Ammonium Perchlorate

Highly dispersed perovskite NdCoO3 nanoparticles were prepared by a novel salt-assisted combustion process. The effects of NaCl content and calcination temperature on the characteristics of the products were characterized by X-Ray Diffraction (XRD), Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM) and BET surface area measurement. The facile introduction of NaCl in the conventional combustion synthesis process was found to result in the formation of well-dispersed perovskite nanoparticles and increase specific surface areas of the resultants from 1.7 to 43.2 m2·g-1. The catalytic properties of the typical NdCoO3 samples for thermal decomposition of ammonia perchlorate (AP) and their correlation with the NdCoO3 microstructure were investigated by Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC). The DSC results indicate that the addition of the amorphous NdCoO3 nanoparticles to AP incorporates two small exothermic peaks of AP into a strong exothermic peak, decreases the temperature of the AP exothermic peak to 314.0 ℃ by reduction of 138.3 ℃ and increases the apparent decomposition heat from 515 J·g-1 to over 1441 J·g-1, showing the intense catalytic activity for thermal decomposition of AP. It is also clear that the catalytic activity of the resultant NdCoO3 is related to their microstructure. According to Kissinger′s method, the kinetics parameters of the thermal decomposition of AP catalyzed by the as-prepared NdCoO3 samples were calculated to account for the order of their catalytic activity.

Catalytic Synthesis of Tert-Butyl Acetate by Nd_2O_3/Al_2O_3-Nd_2O_3/ZnO

Nd2O3 was used to support Al2O3 and ZnO to prepare a supported solid base catalyst and investigate the effect of catalyst and reaction conditions on the synthesis of tert-butyl acetate. The composited oxide of Nd2O3/Al2O3-Nd2O3/ZnO exhibited excellent catalytic activity for the synthsis of tert-butyl acetate. The molar ratio of tert-butanol to acetic anhydride is 3∶1, the catalyst in total amount of reactant nearly 0.5%, and reaction time 6 h. With the above conditions, yield of the reaction could reach to 65%. The structure of product were verified by the FT-IR, Element analysis, and MS, which proved that the product was tert-butyl acetate.

Preface to special column on visible‐light‐driven catalytic organic synthesis

Visible‐light‐driven organic reactions have emerged as important and promising strategies for the construction of various value‐added compounds under mild conditions owing to the advantages of operation simplicity and high efficiency.The development of novel reaction procedures for the synthesis of significant molecules and useful building blocks for further applications is highly desirable.The importance of photocatalysis motivates us to organize the special column of“visible‐light‐driven catalytic organic synthesis”,which contains 4 papers including 1 article,2 communications,and 1 review.

Reaction in situ found in the synthesis of a series of lanthanide sulfate complexes and investigation on their structure, spectra and catalytic activity

A series of lanthanide sulfates coordination complexes, Ln2(SO4)3(H2O)8 (Ln = Pr (1), Nd (2), Tb (3), Sm (4), Dy (5), Gd (7), Ho (8)), and EuK(SO4)2 (6), were constructed by the reaction in situ of lanthanide ions (Ln3+) with flexible dodecanedioic acid and rigid aromatic 5-sulfosalicylic acid under hydrothermal conditions. All of them were characterized by elemental analysis, IR spectroscopy, and single-crystal X-ray diffraction. The crystal structures and coordination modes of metal centers and sulfate ions, as well as the novel reaction mechanism and different conditions of lanthanide ions and 5-sulfosalicylic acid to form the series of lanthanide sulfate complexes, were discussed in detail. Solid-state properties for these crystalline materials, such as thermal stability and powder X-ray diffraction have been investigated. Additionally, the photoluminescent characterizations of the complexes 3, 4, 5 and 6, and the catalytic properties of all the complexes about cyclohexane being oxidized into cyclohexanone/cyclohexanol were investigated and compared.