Application of Heterogenous Catalysis with TiO2 Photo Irradiated by Sunlight and Latter Activated Sludge System for the Reduction of Vinasse Organic Load

Vinasse is the main residue generated during alcohol, sugar and blue rum production by fermentation process. This residue is effluent that could cause serious environmental pollution due to high organic load when is not treated adequately. The aim of this work consists of evaluating the efficiency and application of heterogeneous photocatalysis with TiO2, followed by a biological treatment (activated sludge system) to reduce organic load in the referred effluent. Complete factorial designs indicated the best experimental conditions subsequent to photacatalytic and biological treatments providing a reduction of non-purgeable organic carbon (NPOC) as a variable response. After the photocatalytic process, the sample from the best experiment condition was treated by a biological process in order to verify the degradation efficiency of the effluent organic matter studied according to the hybrid system (Advanced Oxidation Process—Acti- vated Sludge System). This system, which presented more efficiency, had a photochemical treatment of 180 minutes carried out in aerated solutions, pH 9 and effluent in natura, while the biological treatment was performed at pH 8 and sludge concentration of 5 gL–1. The reduction of biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) was >80%.

Efficient homogenous catalysis of CO_(2) to generate cyclic carbonates by heterogenous and recyclable polypyrazoles

The cycloaddition between CO_(2)and epoxides to produce cyclic carbonate is an attractive and efficiency pathway for the utilization of CO_(2)as C1 source.The development of catalyst to mediate cycloaddition between CO_(2)and epoxides at low temperature and pressure is still a challenge.Herein,a series of polypyrazoles with glass transition temperature(T_(g))in the range of 42.3-52.5℃ were synthesized and served as catalyst to mediate the cycloaddition of CO_(2)and epoxides by the assistant of tetrabutylammonium bromide.The catalytic behaviors of polypyrazole on the model cycloaddition of CO_(2)to epichlorohydrin,including the reaction parameters optimization and versatility were investigated in detail,and excellent yield(99.9%)and selectivity(99%)were obtained under the optimized reaction conditions of70℃ and 1.0 MPa for 6.0 h.Noteworthily,the polypyrazole acts as homogeneous catalyst during reaction(higher than T_(g)).And under room temperature,polypyrazoles can be easily separated and recovered,which is a promising feature of a heterogeneous catalyst.Furthermore,the reaction mechanism was proposed.The DFT calculation suggested that the formation of hydrogen bond between pyrazole and epoxide greatly reduced the energy barrier,which play an important role in promoting CO_(2)cycloaddition.

Cooperative catalysis of Co single atoms and nanoparticles enables selective CAr-OCH_(3) cleavage for sustainable production of lignin-based cyclohexanols

In this work,a dual-size MOF-derived Co catalyst(0.2Co_(1-NPs)@NC)composed of single atoms(Co_(1))and highly dispersed nanoparticles(Co NPs)was prepared by in-situ Zn evaporation for the highperformance conversion of lignin-derived o-methoxyphenols(lignin oil)to cyclohexanols(up to 97%yield)via cascade demethoxylation and dearomatization.Theoretical calculations elaborated that the dual-size Co catalyst exhibited a cooperative effect in the selective demethoxylation process,in which the Co NPs could initially dissociate hydrogen at lower energies while Co1remarkably facilitated the cleavage of the C_(Ar)-OCH_(3)bond.Moreover,the intramolecular hydrogen bonds formed in the omethoxy-containing phenols were found to result in a decrease in the bond energy of the C_(Ar)-OCH_(3)bond,which was more prone to be activated by the dual-size Co sites.Notably,the pre-hydrogenated intermediate(e.g.,2-methoxycyclohexanol from guaiacol)is difficult to undergo demethoxylation,indicating that the selective C_(Ar)-OCH_(3)bond cleavage is a prerequisite for the synthesis of cyclohexanols.The 0.2Co_(1-NPs)@NC catalyst was highly recyclable with a neglect decline in activity during five consecutive cycles.This cooperative catalytic strategy based on the metal size effect opens new avenues for biomass upgrading via enhanced C-O bond cleavage of high selectivity.

Efficient hydrogenolysis of fructose to 1,2-propanediol over bifunctional Ru-WO_(x)-MgO_(y) catalysts under mild reaction conditions via enhancing the chemoselective cleavage of C-C bonds

Selective conversion of fructose to 1,2-propanediol(1,2-PDO)is considered as a sustainable and cost-effective alternative to petroleum-based processes,however,this approach still faces challenges associated with low efficiency and harsh reaction conditions.Here,we have successfully synthesized a novel bifunctional Ru-WO_(x)-MgO_(y) catalyst through a facile'one-pot'solvothermal method.Remarkably,this catalyst exhibits exceptional catalytic performances in the conversion of fructose to 1,2-PDO under mild reaction conditions.The yield of 1,2-PDO is up to 56.2%at 140°C for 4 h under an ultra-low hydrogen pressure of only 0.2 MPa,surpassing the reported results in recent literature(below 51%).Comprehensive characterizations and density functional theory(DFT)calculations reveal that the presence of oxygen vacancies in the Ru-WO_(x)-MgO_(y) catalyst,serving as active acidic sites,facilitates the chemoselective cleavage of C-C bonds in fructose,which leads to the generation of active intermediates and ultimately resulted in the high yield of 1,2-PDO.

Synergy of heterogeneous Co/Ni dual atoms enabling selective C-O bond scission of lignin coupling with in-situ N-functionalization

Selective cleavage of Csp^(2)-OCH_(3)bond in lignin without breaking other types of C-O bonds followed by N-functionalization is fascinating for on-purpose valorization of biomass.Here,a Co/Ni-based dual-atom catalyst CoNiDA@NC prepared by in-situ evaporation and acid-etching of metal species from tailor-made metal–organic frameworks was efficient for reductive upgrading of various lignin-derived phenols to cyclohexanols(88.5%–99.9%yields),which had ca.4 times higher reaction rate than the single-atom catalyst and was superior to state-of-the-art heterogeneous catalysts.The synergistic catalysis of Co/Ni dual atoms facilitated both hydrogen dissociation and hydrogenolysis steps,and could optimize adsorption configuration of lignin-derived methoxylated phenols to further favor the Csp^(2)-OCH_(3)cleavage,as elaborated by theoretical calculations.Notably,the CoNi_(DA)@NC catalyst was highly recyclable,and exhibited excellent demethoxylation performance(77.1%yield)in real lignin monomer mixtures.Via in-situ cascade conversion processes assisted by dual-atom catalysis,various high-value N-containing chemicals,including caprolactams and cyclohexylamines,could be produced from lignin.

Effect of BaNH,CaNH,Mg3N2 on the activity of Co in NH3 decomposition catalysis

Development of active and non-noble metal-based catalyst for H2 production via NH3 decomposition is crucial for the implementation of NH3 as a H2 carrier.Co-based catalysts have received increasing attention because of its high intrinsic activity and moderate cost.In this work,we examined the effect of BaNH,CaNH and Mg3 N2 on the catalytic activity of Co in the NH3 decomposition reaction.The H2 formation rate ranks the order as Co-BaNH>Co-CaNH>Co-Mg3 N2≈Co/CNTs within a reaction temperature range of 300-550℃.It is worth pointing out that the H2 formation rate of Co-BaNH at 500℃reaches20 mmolH2 gcat-1 min-1,which is comparable to those of the active Ru/Al2 O3(ca.17 mmolH2 gcat-1 min1)and Ru/AC(21 mmolH2 gcat-1 min-1)catalysts under the similar reaction conditions.In-depth research shows that Co-BaNH exhibits an obviously higher intrinsic activity and much lower Ea(46.2 kJ mol-1)than other Co-based catalysts,suggesting that BaNH may play a different role from CaNH,Mg3 N2 and CNTs during the catalytic process.Combined results of XRD,Ar-TPD and XAS show that a[Co-N-Ba]-like intermediate species is likely formed at the interface of Co metal and BaNH,which may lead to a more energy-efficient reaction pathway than that of neat Co metal for NH3 decomposition.

Heterogeneous catalysis under flow for the 21st century fine chemical industry

Due to metal leaching and poor catalyst stability, the chemical industry's fine chemical and pharmaceutical sectors have been historically reluctant to use supported transition metal catalysts to manufacture fine chemicals and active pharmaceutical ingredients. With the advent of new generation supported metal catalysts and flow chemistry, we argue in this study, this situation is poised to quickly change. Alongside heterogenized metal nanoparticles, both single-site molecular and single-atom catalyst will become ubiquitous. This study offers a critical outlook taking into account both technical and economic aspects.

Recent progress on synthesis of ZIF-67-based materials and their application to heterogeneous catalysis

In recent years,an increasing amount of interest has been dedicated to the synthesis and application of ZIF-67-based materials due to their exceptionally high surface area,tunable porosity,and excellent thermal and chemical stabilities.This review summarizes the latest strategies of synthesizing ZIF-67-based materials by exploring the prominent examples.Then,the recent progress in the applications of ZIF-67-based materials in heterogeneous catalysis,including catalysis of the redox reactions,addition reactions,esterification reactions,Knoevenagel condensations,and hydrogenation-dehydrogenation reactions,has been elaborately discussed.Finally,we end this work by shedding some light on the large-scale industrial production of ZIF-67-based materials and their applications in the future.

Recent advances in non-thermal plasma(NTP)catalysis towards C1 chemistry

C1 chemistrymainly involves the catalytic transformation of C1molecules(i.e.,CO,CO2,CH4 and CH3OH),which usually encounters thermodynamic and/or kinetic limitations.To address these limitations,non-thermal plasma(NTP)activated heterogeneous catalysis offers a number of advantages,such as relatively mild reaction conditions and energy efficiency,in comparison to the conventional thermal catalysis.This review presents the state-of-the-art for the application of NTP-catalysis towards C1 chemistry,including the CO2 hydrogenation,reforming of CH4 and CH3OH,and water-gas shift(WGS)reaction.In the hybrid NTP-catalyst system,the plasma-catalyst interactions aremultifaceted.Accordingly,this reviewalso includes a brief discussion on the fundamental research into themechanisms of NTP activated catalytic C1 chemistry,such as the advanced characterisation methods(e.g.,in situ diffuse reflectance infrared Fourier transform spectroscopy,DRIFTS),temperatureprogrammed plasma surface reaction(TPPSR),kinetic studies.Finally,prospects for the future research on the development of tailor-made catalysts for NTP-catalysis systems(which will enable the further understanding of its mechanism)and the translation of the hybrid technique to practical applications of catalytic C1 chemistry are discussed.

Solid-state NMR studies of sulfonated SBA-15 and the synergistic catalysis of fructose into 5-hydroxymethylfurfural with dimethyl sulfoxide

Sulfonic acid functionalized mesoporous SBA-15 was prepared using the grafting method.The structure and acid properties were comprehensively characterized using multi-nuclear and quantitative probe molecule solid-state NMR(SSNMR),together with powder X-ray diffraction(XRD),scanning electron microscope(SEM),transmission electron microscopy(TEM),N2 adsorption-desorption techniques.Its catalytic performance in the conversion of fructose to 5-hydroxymethylfurfural(HMF)in dimethyl sulfoxide(DMSO)was studied.Catalyst dosage,reaction time,reaction temperature and solvent effect have been investigated.A high yield of HMF up to 93%was obtained at a relatively low temperature of 373 K for 180 min.The Brønsted acid of SBA-15_SO3H together with the solvent DMSO was found to synergistically catalyze the reaction.The catalyst preserved most of its activity after five times reuse and the catalytic activity can be recovered by H2O2 process.

One-pot synthesis of 2,5-bis(hydroxymethyl)furan from biomass derived 5-(chloromethyl)furfural in high yield

5-(Chloromethyl)furfural(CMF),as a new platform molecular,has become a hot topic in the field of biorefinery.Herein,the one-pot conversion of CMF to 2,5-bis(hydroxymethyl)furan(BHMF)in the water phase was demonstrated for the first time.A 91%BHMF yield was obtained over Ru/Cu Oxcatalyst,and BHMF was mainly produced by the consecutive hydrolysis and hydrogenation of CMF with 5-hydroxymethylfurfural(HMF)as an intermediate.Kinetic studies revealed that the conversion of HMF to BHMF was the rate-determining step.Remarkably,the characterizations and density functional theory(DFT)calculations further revealed the lower electron density of Ru NPs in Ru/Cu Oxcatalyst,resulting in a larger adsorption energy and a smaller free energy difference for the formation of alcohols.The present findings offered a new pathway for biomass-derived diol production through CMF as a potential source.

Selective sulfur conversion with surface engineering of electrocatalysts in a lithium-sulfur battery

The sluggish kinetics of multiphase sulfur conversion with homogeneous and heterogeneous electrochemical processes,causing the“shuttle effect”of soluble polysulfide species(PSs),is the challenges in terms of lithium-sulfur batteries(LSBs).In this paper,a Mn_(3)O_(4-x) catalyst,which has much higher activity for heterogeneous reactions than for homogeneous reactions(namely,preferentialactivity catalysts),is designed by surface engineering with rational oxygen vacancies.Due to the rational design of the electronic structure,the Mn_(3)O_(4-x) catalyst prefers to accelerate the conversion of Li2S4 into Li_(2)S_(2)/Li_(2)S and optimize Li_(2)S deposition,reducing the accumulation of PSs and thus suppressing the“shuttle effect.”Both density functional theory calculations and in situ X-ray diffraction measurements are used to probe the catalytic mechanism and identify the reaction intermediates of MnS and Li_(y)Mn_(z)O_(4-x) for fundamental understanding.The cell with Mn_(3)O_(4-x) delivers an ultralow attenuation rate of 0.028% per cycle over 2000 cycles at 2.5 C.Even with sulfur loadings of 4.93 and 7.10mg cm^(-2) in a lean electrolyte(8.4μL mg s^(-1)),the cell still shows an initial areal capacity of 7.3mAh cm^(-2).This study may provide a new way to develop preferential-activity heterogeneous-reaction catalysts to suppress the“shuttle effect”of the soluble PSs generated during the redox process of LSBs.

Titanium-rich TS-1 zeolite for highly efficient oxidative desulfurization

The exploration of highly efficient catalysts based on nano-sized Ti-rich titanosilicate zeolites with controllable active titanium species is of great importance in zeolite catalytic reactions.Herein,we reported an efficient and facile synthesis of nano-sized Ti-rich TS-1(MFI)zeolites by replacing tetrabutyl orthotitanate(TBOT)with tetrabutyl orthotitanate tetramer(TBOT-tetramer)as the titanium source.The introduced TBOT-tetramer slowed down the zeolite crystallization process,and accordingly balanced the rate of incorporating Ti and the crystal growth and inhibited the massive formation of anatase species.Notably,the prepared Ti-rich TS-1 zeolite sample had a Si/Ti as low as 27.6 in contrast to conventional one with a molar ratio of 40.The TBOT-tetramer endowed the titanosilicate zeolites with enriched active titanium species and enlarged external surface area.It also impeded the formation of anatase species,resulting in superior catalytic behavior toward the oxidative desulfurization of dibenzothiophene compared with the conventional TS-1 zeolite counterpart prepared with TBOT.

For more and purer hydrogen-the progress and challenges in water gas shift reaction

The water gas shift(WGS) reaction is a standard reaction that is widely used in industrial hydrogen production and removal of carbon monoxide. The improved catalytic performance of WGS reaction also contributes to ammonia synthesis and other reactions. Advanced catalysts have been developed for both high and low-temperature reactions and are widely used in industry. In recent years, supported metal nanoparticle catalysts have been researched due to their high metal utilization. Low-temperature catalysts have shown promising results, including high selectivity, high shift rates, and higher activity potential. Additionally, significant progress has been made in removing trace CO through the redox reaction in electrolytic cell. This paper reviews the development of WGS reaction catalysts, including the reaction mechanism, catalyst design, and innovative research methods. The catalyst plays a crucial role in the WGS reaction, and this paper provides an instant of catalyst design under different conditions. The progress of catalysts is closely related to the development of advanced characterization techniques.Furthermore, modifying the catalyst surface to enhance activity and significantly increase reaction kinetics is a current research direction. This review goals to stimulate a better understanding of catalyst design, performance optimization, and driving mechanisms, leading to further progress in this field.

Surface reconstruction,modification and functionalization of natural diatomites for miniaturization of shaped heterogeneous catalysts

Since the discovery of mesoporous silica in 1990s,there have been numerous mesoporous silica-based nanomaterials developed for catalytic applications,aiming at enhanced catalytic activity and stability.Recently,there have also been considerable interests in endowing them with hierarchical porosities to overcome the diffusional limitation for those with long unimodal channels.Present processes of making mesoporous silica largely rely on chemical sources which are relatively expensive and impose environmental concerns on their processes.In this regard,it is desirable to develop hierarchical silica supports from natural minerals.Herein,we present a series of work on surface reconstruction,modification,and functionalization to produce diatomite-based catalysts with original morphology and macro-meso-micro porosities and to test their suitability as catalyst supports for both liquid-and gas-phase reactions.Two wet-chemical routes were developed to introduce mesoporosity to both amorphous and crystalline diatomites.Importantly,we have used computational modeling to affirm that the diatomite morphology can improve catalytic performance based on fluid dynamics simulations.Thus,one could obtain this type of catalysts from numerous natural diatoms that have inherently intricate morphologies and shapes in micrometer scale.In principle,such catalytic nanocomposites acting as miniaturized industrial catalysts could be employed in microfluidic reactors for process intensification.

Kinetics of the direct reaction between ozone and phenol by high-gravity intensified heterogeneous catalytic ozonation

In this study,high-gravity intensified heterogeneous catalytic ozonation is utilized for treatment of phenol-containing wastewater,and the kinetics of the direct reaction between ozone and phenol in the presence of excess tertiary butanol(TBA)is investigated.It is revealed that the direct reaction between ozone and phenol in the rotating packed bed(RPB)follows the pseudo-first-order kinetics with a reaction rate constant higher than that in the conventional bubbling reactor(BR).Under different conditions of temperature,initial pH,high-gravity factor,and gaseous ozone concentration,the apparent reaction rate constant varies in the range of 0.0160–0.115 min-1.An empirical power-exponential model is established to characterize the effects of these parameters on the direct reaction between ozone and phenol by high-gravity intensified heterogeneous catalytic ozonation.

Nitrogen and phosphorus co-doped activated carbon induces high density Cu^(+)active center for acetylene hydrochlorination

This work aims to solve the problems of low reaction activity of Cu-based catalysts and agglomeration of active centers in acetylene hydrochlorination.Cu-based catalysts supported by NAP co-doped activated carbon(AC)with different content(mCu-xNP/AC)were manufactured and applied in the acetylene hydrochlorination reaction.It was found that the doping of carriers N and P induced the transformation of Cu^(2+)to Cu^(+),and the catalytic activity was markedly improved.Under the optimal reaction temperature of 220℃,the gas hourly space velocity(GHSV)of C_(2)H_(2)was 90 h^(-1)and V_(HCl):V_(C_(2)H_(2))was 1.15.The initial activity of the 5%Cu-30 NP/AC catalyst reached 95.59%.Through some characterization methods showed the addition of N and P improved the dispersion of Cu in carbon,which increased the ratio of Cu^+/Cu^(2+).The measurement results confirmed that the chemisorption capacity of mCu-xNP/AC for C_(2)H_(2)decreased slightly,and the chemisorption capacity for HCl increased significantly,which was the reason for the increased activity of the catalyst.The conclusion provides a reference for the development of acetylene hydrochlorination Cu catalyst.

Mesoporous poly(ionic liquid)s with dual active sites for highly efficient CO_(2)conversion

Atmospheric CO_(2)concentrations are soaring due to the continued use of fossil fuels in energy production,an anthropogenic activity that is playing a leading role in global warming.Thus,research aimed at the capture and conversion of CO_(2)into value-added products,such as cyclic carbonates,is booming.While CO_(2)is an abundant,cheap,non-toxic,and readily accessible Cl feedstock,its thermodynamic stability necessitates the development of highly efficient catalysts that are able to promote chemical reactions under mild conditions.In this work,a novel mesoporous poly(ionic liquid)with dual active sites was synthesized through a facile method that involves co-polymerization,post-synthetic metalation,and supercritical CO_(2)drying.Due to a high density of nucleophilic and electrophilic sites,the as-prepared poly(ionic liquid),denoted as P2D-4BrBQA-Zn,offers excellent performance in a CO_(2)cycloaddition reaction using epichlorohydrin as the substrate(98.9%conversion and 96.9%selectivity).Moreover the reaction is carried out under mild,solvent-free,and additive-free conditions.Notably,P2D-4BrBQA-Zn also efficiently promotes the conversion of various other epoxide substrates into cyclic carbonates.Overall,the catalyst is found to have excellent substrate compatibility,stability,and recyclability.

Acidic Magnetic Biocarbon-Enabled Upgrading of Biomass-Based Hexanedione into Pyrroles

Sustainable acquisition of bioactive compounds from biomass-based platform molecules is a green alternative for existing CO_(2)-emitting fossil-fuel technologies.Herein,a core–shell magnetic biocarbon catalyst functionalized with sulfonic acid(Fe3O4@SiO_(2)@chitosan-SO_(3)H,MBC-SO_(3)H)was prepared to be efficient for the synthesis of various N-substituted pyrroles(up to 99% yield)from bio-based hexanedione and amines under mild conditions.The abundance of Bronsted acid sites in the MBC-SO_(3)H ensured smooth condensation of 2,5-hexanedione with a variety of amines to produce N-substituted pyrroles.The reaction was illustrated to follow the conventional Pall-Knorr coupling pathway,which includes three cascade reaction steps:amination,loop closure and dehydration.The prepared MBC-SO_(3)H catalyst could effectively activate 2,5-hexanedione,thus weakening the dependence of the overall conversion process on the amine nucleophilicity.The influence of different factors(e.g.,reaction temperature,time,amount of catalyst,molar ratio of substrates,and solvent type)on the reaction activity and selectivity were investigated comprehensively.Moreover,the MBC-SO_(3)H possessed excellent thermochemical stability,reusability,and easy separation due to the presence of magnetic core-shell structures.Notably,there was no activity attenuation after 5 consecutive catalytic experiments.This work demonstrates a wide range of potential applications of developing functionalized core-shell magnetic materials to construct bioactive backbones from biomass-based platform molecules.

Recent advances on surface metal hydrides studied by solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy

Metal hydrides (MeH) on solid surfaces, i.e., surface MeH, are ubiquitous but criticalspecies in heterogeneous catalysis, and their intermediate roles have been proposed innumerous reactions such as (de)hydrogenation and alkanes activation, etc., however, thedetailed spectroscopic characterizations remain challenging. Solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance (ssNMR) spectroscopy has become a powerful tool in surface studies, asit provides access to local structural characterizations at atomic level from multipleviews, with comprehensive information on chemical bonding and spatial structures. Inthis review, we summarized and discussed the latest research developments on thesuccessful application of ssNMR to characterize surface MeH species on solid catalystsincluding supported single-site heterogeneous catalysts, bulk metal oxides and metalmodified zeolites. We also discussed the opportunities and challenges in this field, aswell as the potential application/development of state-of-the-art ssNMR technologies toenable further exploration of metal hydrides in heterogeneous catalysis.