Computational spectroscopy and DFT investigations into nitrogen and oxygen bond breaking and bond making processes in model deNOx and deN2O reactions

Mechanisms for deNOx and deN2O Processes on FAU Zeolite with a Bimetallic Cu-Fe Dimer in the Presence of a Hydroxyl Group-DFT Theoretical Calculations

In this paper, a detailed mechanism is discussed for two processes: deNOx and deN2O. An FAU catalyst was used for the reaction with Cu-Fe bimetallic adsorbates represented by a dimer with bridged oxygen. Partial hydration of the metal centres in the dimer was considered. Ab initio calculations based on the density functional theory were used. The electron parameters of the structures obtained were also analysed. Visualisation of the orbitals of selected structures and their interpretations are presented. The presented research allowed a closer look at the mechanisms of processes that are very common in the automotive and chemical industries. Based on theoretical modelling, it was possible to propose the most efficient catalyst that could find potential application in industry-this is the FAU catalyst with a Cu-O-Fe bimetallic dimer with a hydrated copper centre. The essential result of our research is the improvement in the energetics of the reaction mechanism by the presence of an OH group, which will influence the way NO and NH3 molecules react with each other in the deNOx process depending on the industrial conditions of the process. Our theoretical results suggest also how to proceed with the dosage of NO and N2O during the industrial process to increase the desired reaction effect.

Hydrogen-Bond-Assisted Adsorption of Nitric Oxide on Various Metal-Loaded ZSM-5 Zeolites

Understanding the characteristics of nitric oxide (NO) adsorption on metal-loaded zeolites is a prerequisite for developing efficient catalysts for NO abatement reactions. In this study, we probed the effect of the hydrogen bond that exists between adsorbed NO and Brønsted acid sites (BAS) in various metal-loaded ZSM-5 zeolites (M-ZSM-5, wherein M = Fe, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, Pd, Ag, and Au) by using density functional theory calculations. The presence of a hydrogen bond has altered the NO adsorption energies significantly; appreciable stabilization via hydrogen bonding is noted for NO complexes of Zn, Fe, and Co, and reasonable stabilization is obtained for Ni and Cu complexes, whereas an anomalous effect of a hydrogen bond is identified in Ag, Pd, and Au species. Moderate weakening of the N-O bond in all NO-adsorbed complexes primarily due to a hydrogen bond has been realized in terms of Mayer bond order and quantum theory of atoms in molecules topological analyses; N-O bond activation follows the order Ag < Pd < Au < Ni < Cu < Co < Fe < Zn. We obtained a good correlation between hydrogen bond distance and molecular electrostatic potential at the O atom (V_O) of NO adsorbed on BAS-free M-ZSM-5; which suggests that V_O can be considered as a key descriptor to infer the strength of a hydrogen bond between the adsorbed NO and M-ZSM-5 with BAS. Finally, the energy decomposition analysis in combination with natural orbitals for chemical valence has provided the qualitative aspects of electron back-donation from the metal to the antibonding molecular orbital of NO; this back-donation is quite impressive in hydrogen-bond-assisted NO adsorption. We expect that the findings of this study will open up the possibility of the design of BAS-containing metal-loaded zeolites for the catalytic mitigation of NO.

Computational investigation of N2O adsorption and dissociation on the silicon-embedded graphene catalyst: A density functional theory perspective

One of the encouraging processes to protect the environment is the catalytic conversion of N₂O and other harmful greenhouse gases. Employing heteroatom dopants into the Graphene structure for this conversion is an attractive technique owing to its relatively low price and the very low destructive impacts. DFT was applied to explore fundamental and principal reactions of N₂O adsorption and dissociation over the Silicon-embedded Graphene catalyst to contribute to the search for green catalysts in the conversion of toxic gases into less harmful ones. Forming a surface peroxy group O₂^2-, N₂O bond cleavage and oxygen atom transfer were theoretically investigated. It is found that the N₂O molecule requires +0.52, +0.88 and + 0.4 eV of activation energies through mentioned three reactions, respectively, to adsorb and decompose to N₂ and O₂. The parallel, lying-atop-011 and flat were stable forms with adsorption energies of -0.20 (-4.65), -0.19 (-4.53) and -0.18 (-4.46) and -0.19 eV (-4.53 kcal/mol), respectively. The achieved outcomes reveal that Silicon-embedded Graphene has a high potential to be used as a more efficient and green catalyst for the catalytic conversion of the air polluting gases in comparison to the Selenium-doped Graphene, Fe⁺, Manganese-embedded Graphene and Magnesium oxide (MgO) catalysts.

Optimization of N2O decomposition activity of CuO–CeO2 mixed oxides by means of synthesis procedure and alkali (Cs) promotion

The fine-tuning of CuO–CeO₂ mixed oxides by means of synthesis procedure (co-precipitation) and alkali promotion (1.0 at Cs per nm²) towards highly active deN₂O catalysts is demonstrated.

Trends in Strong Chemical Bonding in C2, CN, CN-, CO, N2, NO, NO+, and O2

The strong chemical bonds between C, N, and O play a central role in chemistry, and their formation and cleavage are critical steps in very many catalytic processes. The close-lying molecular orbital energies and large correlation effects pose a challenge to electronic structure calculations and have led to different bonding interpretations, most notably for C₂. One way to approach this problem is by strict benchmark comparison of related systems. This work reports reference electronic structures and computed bond dissociation enthalpies D₀ for C₂, CN, CN^-, CO, N₂, NO, NO⁺, O₂ and related systems C₂⁺ and C₂^- at chemical accuracy (∼1 kcal/mol or 4 kJ/mol) using CCSD(T)/aug-cc-pV5Z, with additional benchmarks of HF, MP2, CCSD, explicitly correlated F12 methods, and four density functionals. Very large correlation and basis set effects are responsible for up to 93% of total D₀. The order of the molecular orbitals 1π_u and 3σ_g changes, as seen in textbooks, depending on total and effective nuclear charge. Linear trends are observed in 2σ_u-2σ_g orbital splitting (R² = 0.91) and in D₀ of C₂, C₂^-, and C₂⁺ (R² = 0.99). The correlation component of D₀ of C₂ is by far the largest (∼93%) due to a poor HF description. Importantly, density functional theory fails massively in describing this series consistently in both limits of effective nuclear charge, and Hartree-Fock exchange or meta functionals do not remedy this 100 kJ/mol error, which should thus be addressed in future density functional developments as it affects very many studies involving cleavage or formation of these bonds.

Si-doped graphene: an ideal sensor for NO- or NO2-detection and metal-free catalyst for N2O-reduction

Exploring and evaluating the potential applications of two-dimensional graphene is an increasingly hot topic in graphene research. In this paper, by studying the adsorption of NO, N(2)O, and NO(2) on pristine and silicon (Si)-doped graphene with density functional theory methods, we evaluated the possibility of using Si-doped graphene as a candidate to detect or reduce harmful nitrogen oxides. The results indicate that, while adsorption of the three molecules on pristine graphene is very weak, Si-doping enhances the interaction of these molecules with graphene sheet in various ways: (1) two NO molecules can be adsorbed on Si-doped graphene in a paired arrangement, while up to four NO(2) molecules attach to the doped graphene with an average adsorption energy of -0.329 eV; (2) the N(2)O molecule can be reduced easily to the N(2) molecule, leaving an O-atom on the Si-doped graphene. Moreover, we find that adsorption of NO and NO(2) leads to large changes in the electronic properties of Si-doped graphene. On the basis of these results, Si-doped graphene can be expected to be a good sensor for NO and NO(2) detection, as well as a metal-free catalyst for N(2)O reduction.

Co2+/Co0 redox couple revealed by EPR spectroscopy triggers preferential coordination of reactants during SCR of NOx with propene over cobalt-exchanged zeolites

Catalytic reduction of NOx with propene over Co2+ -exchanged beta and ZSM-5 zeolites occurs with formation of zero-valent cobalt; NOx preferentially adsorbed on Co2+ plays the role of a metal reducing agent while ligation of propene is favored for Co(0) centers.