Plasma-plasmonics synergy in the Ga-catalyzed growth of Si-nanowires

This paper reports on the growth of Si nanowires (NWs) by SiH₄/H₂ plasmas using the non-noble Ga-nanoparticles (NPs) catalysts. A comparative investigation of conventional Si-NWs vapour–liquid–solid (VLS) growth catalyzed by Au NPs is also reported. We investigate the use of a hydrogen plasma and of a SiH₄/H₂ plasma for removing Ga oxide shell and for enhancing the Si dissolution into the catalyst, respectively. By exploiting the Ga NPs surface plasmon resonance (SPR) sensitivity to their surface chemistry, the SPR characteristic of Ga NPs has been monitored by real time spectroscopic ellipsometry in order to control the hydrogen plasma/Ga NPs interaction and the involved processes (oxide removal and NPs dissolution by volatile gallium hydride). Using in situ laser reflectance interferometry the metal catalyzed Si NWs growth process has been investigated to find the effect of the plasma activation on the growth kinetics. The role of atomic hydrogen in the NWs growth mechanism and, in particular, in the SiH₄ dissolution into the catalysts, is discussed. We show that while Au catalysts because of the re-aggregation of NPs yields NWs that do not correspond to the original size of the Au NPs catalyst, the NWs grown by the Ga catalyst retains the diameter dictated by the size of the Ga NPs. Therefore, the advantage of Ga NPs as catalysts for controlling NWs diameter is demonstrated.     

Adsorbed p-Aminothiophenol Molecules on Platinum Nanoparticles Improve Electrocatalytic Hydrogen Evolution

Electrocatalytic hydrogen evolution is an important approach to produce clean energy, and many electrocatalysts (e.g., platinum) are developed for hydrogen production. However, the electrocatalytic efficiency of commonly used metal catalysts needs to be improved to compensate their high cost. Herein, the electrocatalytic efficiency of platinum nanoparticles (PtNPs) in hydrogen evolution is largely improved via simple surface adsorption of sub-monolayer p-aminothiophenol (PATP) molecules. The overpotential goes down to 86.1 mV, which is 50.2 mV lower than that on naked PtNPs. This catalytic activity is even better than that of 20 wt.% Pt/C, despite the much smaller active surface area of PATP-adsorbed PtNPs than Pt/C. It is theoretically and experimentally confirmed that the improved electrocatalytic activity in hydrogen evolution can be attributed to the change in electronic structure of PtNPs induced by surface adsorption of PATP molecules. More importantly, this strategy can also be used to improve the electrocatalytic activity of palladium, gold, and silver nanoparticles. Therefore, this work provides a simple, convenient, and versatile method for improving the electrocatalytic activity of metal nanocatalysts. This surface adsorption strategy may also be used for improving the efficiency of many other nanocatalysts in many reactions.     

Ultrahigh Mass Activity Pt Entities Consisting of Pt Single atoms,Clusters, and Nanoparticles for Improved Hydrogen Evolution Reaction

Platinum is one of the best-performing catalysts for the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER). However, high cost and scarcity severely hinder the large-scale application of Pt electrocatalysts. Constructing highly dispersed ultrasmall Platinum entities is thereby a very effective strategy to increase Pt utilization and mass activities, and reduce costs. Herein, highly dispersed Pt entities composed of a mixture of Pt single atoms, clusters, and nanoparticles are synthesized on mesoporous N-doped carbon nanospheres. The presence of Pt single atoms, clusters, and nanoparticles is demonstrated by combining among others aberration-corrected annular dark-field scanning transmission electron microscopy, X-ray absorption spectroscopy, and electrochemical CO stripping. The best catalyst exhibits excellent geometric and Pt HER mass activity, respectively ≈4 and 26 times higher than that of a commercial Pt/C reference and a Pt catalyst supported on nonporous N-doped carbon nanofibers with similar Pt loadings. Noteworthily, after optimization of the geometrical Pt electrode loading, the best catalyst exhibits ultrahigh Pt and catalyst mass activities (56 ± 3 A mg⁻¹_Pt and 11.7 ± 0.6 A mg⁻¹_Cat at −50 mV vs. reversible hydrogen electrode), which are respectively ≈1.5 and 58 times higher than the highest Pt and catalyst mass activities for Pt single-atom and cluster-based catalysts reported so far.     

Sustainable Hydrothermal Carbonization Synthesis of Iron/Nitrogen‐Doped Carbon Nanofiber Aerogels as Electrocatalysts for Oxygen Reduction

It is urgent to develop new kinds of low‐cost and high‐performance nonprecious metal (NPM) catalysts as alternatives to Pt‐based catalysts for oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) in fuel cells and metal–air batteries, which have been proved to be efficient to meet the challenge of increase of global energy demand and CO₂ emissions. Here, an economical and sustainable method is developed for the synthesis of Fe, N codoped carbon nanofibers (Fe–N/CNFs) aerogels as efficient NPM catalysts for ORR via a mild template‐directed hydrothermal carbonization (HTC) process, where cost‐effective biomass‐derived d (+)‐glucosamine hydrochloride and ferrous gluconate are used as precursors and recyclable ultrathin tellurium nanowires are used as templates. The prepared Fe/N‐CNFs catalysts display outstanding ORR activity, i.e., onset potential of 0.88 V and half‐wave potential of 0.78 V versus reversible hydrogen electrode in an alkaline medium, which is highly comparable to that of commercial Pt/C (20 wt% Pt) catalyst. Furthermore, the Fe/N‐CNFs catalysts exhibit superior long‐term stability and better tolerance to the methanol crossover effect than the Pt/C catalyst in both alkaline and acidic electrolytes. This work suggests the great promise of developing new families of NPM ORR catalysts by the economical and sustainable HTC process.     

Quaternary pyrite-structured nickel/cobalt phosphosulfide nanowires on carbon cloth as efficient and robust electrodes for water electrolysis

The strategy of element substitution is an effective way to tune the electronic structures of the active sites in catalysts,thereby leading to improvements in both the catalytic activity and stability.Herein,we design and synthesize pyrite-type nickel/phosphorus co-doped CoS2 nanowires on carbon cloth (NiCoPS/CC) as efficient and durable electrodes for water electrolysis.Introduction of nickel and phosphorus produced stepwise and superb enhancement of the performance of the electrodes in the hydrogen evolution reaction due to regulation of the electronic structures of the active sites of the catalyst and accelerated charge transfer over a wide pH range (0-14).The NiCoPS/CC electrodes also delivered a nearly undecayed catalytic current density of 10 mA.cm-2 at a low overpotential of 230 mV for oxygen evolution due to in situ formation of surficial Ni-Co oxo/hydroxide in 1.0 M KOH.Thus,the NiCoPS/CC electrodes gave rise to a catalytic current density of 10 mA.cm-2 for overall water splitting at potentials as low as 1.54 V during operation over 100 h in 1.0 M KOH with a Faradic efficiency of ～100％.     

Dual-Metal Interbonding as the Chemical Facilitator for Single-Atom Dispersions

Atomically dispersed catalysts, with maximized atom utilization of expensive metal components and relatively stable ligand structures, offer high reactivity and selectivity. However, the formation of atomic-scale metals without aggregation remains a formidable challenge due to thermodynamic stabilization driving forces. Here, a top-down process is presented that starts from iron nanoparticles, using dual-metal interbonds (Rh Fe bonding) as a chemical facilitator to spontaneously convert Fe nanoparticles to single atoms at low temperatures. The presence of Rh Fe bonding between adjacent Fe and Rh single atoms contributes to the thermodynamic stability, which facilitates the stripping of a single Fe atom from the Fe nanoparticles, leading to the stabilized single atom. The dual single-atom Rh–Fe catalyst renders excellent electrocatalytic performance for the hydrogen evolution reaction in an acidic electrolyte. This discovery of dual-metal interbonding as a chemical facilitator paves a novel route for atomic dispersion of chemical metals and the design of efficient catalysts at the atomic scale.     

Dislocation-Strained IrNi Alloy Nanoparticles Driven by Thermal Shock for the Hydrogen Evolution Reaction

Designing high-performance and low-cost electrocatalysts is crucial for the electrochemical production of hydrogen. Dislocation-strained IrNi nanoparticles loaded on a carbon nanotube sponge (DSIrNi@CNTS) driven by unsteady thermal shock in an extreme environment are reported here as a highly efficient hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) catalyst. Experimental results demonstrate that numerous dislocations are kinetically trapped in self-assembled IrNi nanoparticles due to the ultrafast quenching and different atomic radii, which can induce strain effects into the IrNi nanoparticles. Such strain-induced high-energy surface structures arising from bulk defects (dislocations), are more likely to be resistant to surface restructuring during catalysis. The catalyst exhibits outstanding HER activity with only 17 mV overpotential to achieve 10 mA cm⁻² in an alkaline electrolyte with fabulous stability, exceeding state-of-the-art Pt/C catalysts. These density functional theory results demonstrate that the electronic structure of as-synthesized IrNi nanostructure can be optimized by the strain effects induced by the dislocations, and the free energy of HER can be tuned toward the optimal region.     

Pt Single Atoms on CrN Nanoparticles Deliver Outstanding Activity and CO Tolerance in the Hydrogen Oxidation Reaction

The large-scale application of proton exchange membrane fuel cells is currently hampered by high cost of commercial Pt catalysts and their susceptibility to poisoning by CO impurities in H₂ feed. In this context, the development of CO-tolerant electrocatalysts with high Pt atom utilization efficiency for hydrogen oxidation reaction (HOR) is of critical importance. Herein, Pt single atoms are successfully immobilized on chromium nitride nanoparticles by atomic layer deposition method, denoted as Pt SACs/CrN. Electrochemical tests establish Pt SACs/CrN to be a very efficient HOR catalyst, with a mass activity that is 5.7 times higher than commercial PtRu/C. Strikingly, the excellent performance of Pt SACs/CrN is maintained after introducing 1000 ppm of CO in H₂ feed. The excellent CO-tolerance of Pt SACs/CrN is related to weaker CO adsorption on Pt single atoms. This work provides guidelines for the design and construction of active and CO-tolerant catalysts for HOR.     

Catalytic wet air oxidation of chlorophenols over supported ruthenium catalysts

A series of noble metal (Pt, Pd, Ru) loaded zirconia catalysts were evaluated in the catalytic wet air oxidation (CWAO) of mono-chlorophenols (2-CP, 3-CP, 4-CP) under relatively mild reaction conditions. Among the investigated noble metals, Ru appeared to be the best to promote the CWAO of CPs as far as incipient-wetness impregnation was used to prepare all the catalysts. The position of the chlorine substitution on the aromatic ring was also shown to have a significant effect on the CP reactivity in the CWAO over 3wt.% Ru/ZrO(2). 2-CP was relatively easier to degradate compared to 3-CP and 4-CP. One reason could be the higher adsorption of 2-CP on the catalyst surface. Further investigations suggested that 3wt.% Ru/ZrO(2) is a very efficient catalyst in the CWAO of 2-CP as far as high 2-CP conversion and TOC abatement could still be reached at even lower temperature (393K) and lower total pressure (3MPa). Additionally, the conversion of 2-CP was demonstrated to increase with the initial pH of the 2-CP solution. The dechlorination reaction is promoted at higher pH. In all cases, the adsorption of the reactants and the reaction intermediates was shown to play a major role. All parameters that would control the molecule speciation in solution or the catalyst surface properties would have a key effect.     

Ru-B催化剂催化NaBH4水解制氢研究

利用化学浸渍-还原法制备出了Ru-B催化剂,考察了催化剂的制备条件和反应条件对Ru-B催化剂催化NaBH4水解制氢性能的影响。结果表明:当活性组分前体RuCl3·6H2O和还原剂NaBH4的物质的量比为1∶7,还原温度为303K时,制得的Ru-B催化剂催化NaBH4水解制氢性能最佳。当催化剂浓度为0.17g/L,反应温度为303K,NaBH4浓度为0.22mol/L,NaOH浓度为0.01mol/L,转速为540r/min时,Ru-B催化剂催化NaBH4水解产氢的速率可达1740mL H2/(min·g)。还发现Ru-B催化剂催化NaBH4水解产氢的速率与催化剂用量呈线性关系,计算得到Ru-B催化剂催化NaBH4水解产氢反应的活化能为23.58kJ/mol。     

沿[111]方向择优生长Pt/Ti电极制备及析氯电催化活性

针对目前低浓度氯化钠电解过程中存在的氧化物尺寸稳定阳极(DSA)使用寿命短以及Pt电极使用量高的问题, 本研究通过磁控溅射法制备了具有沿[111]方向择优生长的Pt/Ti电极。SEM结果显示, 磁控Pt表面平整, 分散均匀, 粒度大小为10 nm; 通过XPS表征, 未见到基体Ti的特征峰, 说明其表面覆盖度好。电化学循环伏安曲线(CV)显示, 磁控Pt的电化学面积最小, 仅为1.08 cm², 接近电极表观面积; 磁控Pt氧区吸附电量和氢区吸附电量的比仅为0.83, 说明其对氧吸附能力较差, 不利于发生析氧反应。在单位电化学面积上, 当电极电势为1.6 V时, 磁控Pt的析氯电流达到0.085 A/cm², 分别是电沉积Pt和热分解Pt的3.27和49.0倍, 说明磁控Pt单位活性位点上具有很高的析氯反应活性。在此基础上, 进一步研究表明磁控Pt电极析氯反应的Tafel斜率为44.3 mV/dec, 其析氯反应机理符合Volmer-Heyrovsky机理, 速控步骤为电化学复合脱附步骤。     

NiFe-植酸复合物的室温制备及其全解水电催化性能

制备高稳定性、高活性双功能催化剂用于全解水制氢是氢能源大规模商业化应用的重要环节之一。本文以植酸(PA)、六水合氯化铁(FeCl₃·6H₂O)和六水合氯化镍(NiCl₂·6H₂O)为原料,采用两步室温浸渍法在泡沫镍(NF)上制备了片状无定形植酸-镍铁双金属复合材料(NiFe-PA)。采用线性扫描伏安法(LSV)考察了NiFe-PA修饰NF电极(NiFe-PA/NF)在碱性条件(1.0 mol/L KOH)的电解水催化性能。实验结果表明：由于NiFe双金属之间的协同效应,NiFe-PA/NF作为双功能催化剂显示出优越的析氧和析氢性能。NiFe-PA/NF电极在50 mA·cm^-2电流密度下析氧反应的过电位仅需220 mV;在10 mA·cm^-2电流密度下的析氢反应的过电位为135 mV。将NiFe-PA/NF组装成双电极系统用于全解水,达到10 mA·cm^-2电流密度的电池电压仅需1.61 V,低于贵金属催化剂体系RuO₂     

Effect of the nanosized TiO2 particles in Pd/C catalysts as cathode materials in direct methanol fuel cells

Pd-TiO2/C catalysts were prepared by impregnating titanium dioxide (TiO2) on carbon-supported Pd (Pd/C) for use as the catalyst for the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) in direct methanol fuel cells (DMFCs). Transmission electron microscope (TEM), scanning electron microscope (SEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) analyses were carried to confirm the distribution, morphology and structure of Pd and TiO2 on the carbon support. In fuel cell test, we confirmed that the addition of TiO2 nanoparticles make the improved catalytic activity of oxygen reduction. The electrochemical characterization of the Pd-TiO2/C catalyst for the ORR was carried out by cyclic voltammetry (CV) in the voltage window of 0.04 V to 1.2 V with scan rate of 25 mV/s. With the increase in the crystallite size of TiO2, the peak potential for OH(ads) desorption on the surface of Pd particle shifted to higher potential. This implies that TiO2 might affect the adsorption and desorption of oxygen molecules on Pd catalyst. The performance of Pd-TiO2/C as a cathode material was found to be similar to or better performance than that of Pt/C.     

Preparation of a platinum electrocatalyst by coaxial pulse arc plasma deposition

Abstract

We have developed a new method of preparing Pt electrocatalysts through a dry process. By coaxial pulse arc plasma deposition (CAPD), highly ionized metal plasma can be generated from a target rod without any discharged gases, and Pt nanoparticles can be deposited on a carbon support. The small-sized Pt nanoparticles are distributed over the entire carbon surface. From transmission electron microscopy (TEM), the average size of the deposited Pt nanoparticles is estimated to be 2.5 nm, and their size distribution is narrow. Our electrocatalyst shows considerably improved catalytic activity and stability toward methanol oxidation reaction (MOR) compared with commercially available Pt catalysts such as Pt black and Pt/carbon (PtC). Inspired by its very high efficiency toward MOR, we also measured the catalytic performance for oxygen reduction reaction (ORR). Our PtC catalyst shows a better performance with half-wave potential of 0.87 V, which is higher than those of commercially available Pt catalysts. The higher performance is also supported by a right-shifted onset potential. Our preparation is simple and could be applied to other metallic nanocrystals as a novel platform in catalysis, fuel cells and biosensors.     

A Simple and Effective Principle for a Rational Design of Heterogeneous Catalysts for Dehydrogenation of Formic Acid

Efficient and selective dehydrogenation of formic acid is a key challenge for a fuel‐cell‐based hydrogen economy. Though the development of heterogeneous catalysts has received much progress, their catalytic activity remains insufficient. Moreover, the design principle of such catalysts are still unclear. Here, experimental and theoretical studies on a series of mono‐/bi‐metallic nanoparticles supported on a NH₂‐N‐rGO substrate are combined for formic acid dehydrogenation where the surface energy of a metal is taken as a relevant indicator for the adsorption ability of the catalyst for guiding catalyst design. The AuPd/NH₂‐N‐rGO catalyst shows record catalytic activity by reducing the energy barrier of rate controlling steps of formate adsorption and hydrogen desorption. The obtained excellent results both in experiments and simulations could be extended to other important systems, providing a general guideline to design more efficient catalysts.     

Mn掺杂Co-Al金属氢氧化物的制备及其全解水电化学性能

以Co基氢氧化物为基础用异质元素掺杂方式引入Mn并与Co协同,制备出Mn掺杂Co-Al层状双金属氢氧化物(Mn-CoAl LDH).在1 mol/L的KOH碱性电解质中,电流密度达到10 mA·cm-2时Mn-CoAl LDH的全解水电势为1.66V,其性能远优于Co-A1层状双金属氢氧化物(CoAl LDH)、Ni2...     

Enhancing Tungsten Oxide Gasochromism with Noble Metal Nanoparticles: The Importance of the Interface

Crystalline tungsten trioxide (WO₃) thin films covered by noble metal (gold and platinum) nanoparticles are synthesized via wet chemistry and used as optical sensors for gaseous hydrogen. Sensing performances are strongly influenced by the catalyst used, with platinum (Pt) resulting as best. Surprisingly, it is found that gold (Au) can provide remarkable sensing activity that tuned out to be strongly dependent on the nanoparticle size: devices sensitized with smaller nanoparticles display better H₂ sensing performance. Computational insight based on density functional theory calculations suggested that this can be related to processes occurring specifically at the Au nanoparticle-WO₃ interface (whose extent is in fact dependent on the nanoparticle size), where the hydrogen dissociative adsorption turns out to be possible. While both experiments and calculations single out Pt as better than Au for sensing, the present work reveals how an exquisitely nanoscopic effect can yield unexpected sensing performance for Au on WO₃, and how these performances can be tuned by controlling the nanoscale features of the system.     

Dual Electronic Modulations on NiFeV Hydroxide@FeOx Boost Electrochemical Overall Water Splitting

Nickel-iron based hydroxides have been proven to be excellent oxygen evolution reaction (OER) electrocatalysts, whereas they are inactive toward hydrogen evolution reaction (HER), which severely limits their large-scale applications in electrochemical water splitting. Herein, a heterostructure consisted of NiFeV hydroxide and iron oxide supported on iron foam (NiFeV@FeO_x/IF) has been designed as a highly efficient bifunctional (OER and HER) electrocatalyst. The V doping and intimate contact between NiFeV hydroxide and FeO_x not only improve the entire electrical conductivity of the catalyst but also afford more high-valence Ni which serves as active sites for OER. Meanwhile, the introduction of V and FeO_x reduces the electron density on lattice oxygen, which greatly facilitates desorption of H_ads. All of these endow the NiFeV@FeO_x/IF with exceptionally low overpotentials of 218 and 105 mV to achieve a current density of 100 mA cm⁻² for OER and HER, respectively. More impressively, the electrolyzer requires an ultra-low cell voltage of 1.57 V to achieve 100 mA cm⁻² and displays superior electrochemical stability for 180 h, which outperforms commercial RuO₂||Pt/C and most of the representative catalysts reported to date. This work provides a unique route for developing high-efficiency electrocatalyst for overall water splitting.     

Porous Cobalt–Nickel Hydroxide Nanosheets with Active Cobalt Ions for Overall Water Splitting

Low‐cost and high‐performance catalysts are of great significance for electrochemical water splitting. Here, it is reported that a laser‐synthesized catalyst, porous Co_0.75Ni_0.25(OH)₂ nanosheets, is highly active for catalyzing overall water splitting. The porous nanosheets exhibit low overpotentials for hydrogen evolution reaction (95 mV@10 mA cm^?2) and oxygen evolution reaction (235 mV@10 mA cm^?2). As both anode and cathode catalysts, the porous nanosheets achieve a current density of 10 mA cm^?2 at an external voltage of 1.56 V, which is much lower than that of commercial Ir/C‐Pt/C couple (1.62 V). Experimental and theoretical investigations reveal that numerous Co³⁺ ions are generated on the pore wall of nanosheets, and the unique atomic structure around Co³⁺ ions leads to appropriate electronic structure and adsorption energy of intermediates, thus accelerating hydrogen and oxygen evolution.     

Preparation of nanosized Pt-Au alloy catalyst and its activity in methanol oxidation

The alloy catalyst has been widely used because it will be able to improve the activity and selectivity of the single metal catalyst in a given chemical reaction. In this study, the preparation and characteristics of nanosized Pt and Au particles on alumina and their catalytic activity were described. Nanosized Pt-Au catalysts were prepared by impregnation (IMP) method and deposition (DP) method using alumina or ZnO/Al2O3 as support. The size of Pt and Au particles were observed by transmission electron microscopy (TEM), energy dispersive spectroscope (EDS), and X-ray diffraction (XRD). Catalytic activity for oxidation of methanol was measured using a flow reactor. It could be seen that the Pt particle size and dispersion in the alloy catalysts was rarely influenced by preparation methods and Au particles coated by deposition method were well dispersed. TEM images showed that Au particles were well dispersed in the Pt/Au/ZnO/Al2O3 catalyst of which Au particles was supported by deposition method. The catalytic activity for methanol are given in the order of Pt-Au[IMP]/ZnO/Al2O3 > Pt[IMP]/Au[DP]/ZnO/Al2O3 > Au[DP]/Pt[IMP]/ZnO/Al2O3 > Pt-Au[DP]/ZnO/Al2O3. Therefore, Au particle size was doing not play an important role in increasing the oxidation activity, but the Au particles may promote the methanol oxidation.