Enhanced Catalytic Performance of a Ce/V Oxo Cluster through Confinement in Mesoporous SBA-15

Cerium(III) Phosphinate and Cerium(IV) Phosphostibonate Acting as Catalysts for Mild, Selective Sulfoxidation

A Ce(III) phosphinate and a Ce(IV) phosphostibonate have been assembled by the reaction of a phosphinic acid and phosphostibonate with Ce(III) salts. Single crystal X-ray diffraction (SCXRD) studies reveal the formation of a rare triangular Ce(III) oxo-cluster [CeIII3(Ph3CHPO2)]6Cl3(CH3OH)(H2O)8] (1) and a fascinating hexanuclear oxo-cluster containing Ce(IV) ions [CeIV6 (p-ClC6H4SbV)4(μ4-O)4(μ3-O)4(t-BuPO3)8(μ2-OCH3)8] (2). The molecular architecture of 2 showcased an interesting correlation with platonic solids, wherein the Ce(IV), Sb(V), and P(V) ions were found to be present in vertices of an octahedron, a tetrahedron, and a cube, respectively. Under mild conditions, 1 and 2 exhibited the capability to act as catalysts for sulfoxidation in the presence of hydrogen peroxide, with 1 acting as a homogeneous catalyst and 2 acting as a heterogeneous catalyst. Both 1 and 2 showed high conversion for various substrates, with 1 showing moderate selectivity while 2 showcased high selectivity. Moreover 1 and 2 catalyzed the oxidation of 2-chloroethyl ethyl sulfide (CEES) to nontoxic 2-chloroethyl ethyl sulfoxide (CEESO) with high selectivity.

Design of Supported Metal Catalysts and Systems for Propane Dehydrogenation

Propane dehydrogenation (PDH) is currently an approach for the production of propylene with high industrial importance, especially in the context of the shale gas revolution and the growing global demands for propylene and downstream commodity chemicals. In this Perspective article, we comprehensively summarize the recent advances in the design of advanced catalysts for PDH and the new understanding of the structure-performance relationship in supported metal catalysts. Furthermore, we discuss the gaps between fundamental research and practical industrial applications in the catalyst developments for the PDH process. In particular, we overview some critical issues regarding catalyst regeneration and the compatibility of the catalyst and reactor design. Finally, we make perspectives on the future directions of PDH research, including the efforts toward achieving a unified understanding of the structure-performance relationship, innovation in reactor engineering, and translation of the knowledge accumulated on PDH studies to other important alkane dehydrogenation reactions.

Design, Synthesis, Magnetic Properties, and Hydrogen Evolution Reaction of a Butterfly-like Heterometallic Trinuclear [CuII2MnII] Cluster

A novel heterometallic trinuclear cluster [CuII2MnII(cpdp)(NO3)2(Cl)] (1) has been designed and synthesized by employing a molecular library approach that uses CuCl2·2H2O and Mn(NO3)2·4H2O as inorganic metal salts and H3cpdp as a multifunctional organic scaffold (H3cpdp = N,N'-bis[2-carboxybenzomethyl]-N,N'-bis[2-pyridylmethyl]-1,3-diaminopropan-2-ol). This heterometallic cluster has emerged as an unusual ferromagnetic material and promising electrocatalyst for hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) in the domain of inorganic and materials chemistry. Crystal structure analysis establishes the structural arrangement of 1, revealing a butterfly-like topology with an unusual seven-coordinated Mn(II) center. Formation of this cluster is accomplished by a self-assembly process through functionalization of 1 with one μ2:η1:η1-nitrate and two μ2:η2:η1-benzoate groups via the CuII(μ2-NO3)CuII} and {CuII(μ2-O2CC6H5)MnII} linkages, respectively. Variable-temperature SQUID magnetometry revealed the coexistence of ferromagnetic and antiferromagnetic interactions in 1. The observed magnetic behavior in 1 is unexpected because of a large Cu-O-Mn angle with a value of 132.05°, indicating that the correlation between coupling constants and the structural parameters is a multifactor problem. This cluster shows excellent electrocatalytic performance for the HER attaining a current density of 10 mA/cm2 with a Tafel slope of 183 mV dec-1 at a 310 mV overpotential value. Essentially, cluster 1 shows exceptional electrochemical stability at ambient temperature, accompanied by minimal degradation of the current density as examined by chronoamperometric studies. Density functional theory calculations establish the mechanistic insight into the HER process, indicating that the CuII-OCO-MnII site is the active site for formation of molecular hydrogen.

A Cubic Tinkertoy-like Heterometallic Cluster with a Record Magnetocaloric Effect

Clusters showing a giant magnetocaloric effect (MCE) are of interest as molecular coolants for magnetic refrigeration. Herein, we report two heterometallic clusters, denoted as Gd152Ni14@Cl24 and Sm152Ni8, just to highlight their inorganic core motifs, obtained by ligand-controlled co-hydrolysis of Ni2+ and Ln3+ (Ln = Gd, Sm) in the presence of N-(2-hydroxyethyl)iminodiacetic acid (H2HEIDA). Both clusters display fascinating cubic Tinkertoy-like structures, with the core motifs being built of multiple metallic shells of Platonic and Archimedean polyhedra. The isothermal magnetic entropy change─a direct measurement of MCE─was determined to be 52.65 J·kg-1·K-1 at 2.5 K and 7.0 T for the Gd-containing cluster; this value is the highest known for any molecular clusters so far reported.