Promoting the Oxygen Evolution Reaction via Morphological Manipulation of a Lamellar Nanorod-Assembled Ni(II)-Pyrazolate Superstructure

Nanoscale pyrazolate-based coordination polymers (CPs) are becoming increasingly popular as electrocatalysts owing to their customizable compositions and structures. However, using them for oxygen evolution reaction (OER) is highly challenging due to their unsatisfactory catalytic efficiency and relatively low stability. Herein, a simple one-step solvothermal process was employed for the fabrication of polycrystalline nickel-pyrazolate [Ni(Pz)] with an unusual lamellar nanorod-assembled microsphere morphology for the first time using ethanol as a green organic solvent via controlling other physical parameters. Meanwhile, the Ni(Pz) structure and morphology are investigated to derive its formation process following the different monomeric feed ratios relying on the metal/ligand interactions of CP. Shaping the Ni(Pz) electrocatalyst in well-oriented lamellar nanorod-assembled microspheres brings the advantage of porosity and high specific surface area, which expedites mass/charge transport and contact with the electrolyte as well as creates less tortuous pathways for charge distribution, thus improving the charge homogeneity. These high-class structural features and polycrystalline nature of Ni(Pz)-E-PVP facilitate amazing catalytic OER activity with a low overpotential of 290 mV at 10 mA cm^-2 and a Tafel slope of only 94 mV dec^-1 beyond the yardstick material (i.e., RuO₂) in alkaline solution. A suite of measurements, entailing X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and density functional theory calculations, suggest that the rich Ni-N₄ moieties in Ni(Pz)-E-PVP are central species providing adsorption sites for OER intermediates. This facile protocol is prophesied to commence the imminent development of noble metal-free, effective, and low-priced electrocatalysts for OER.

Facile Morphology and Porosity Regulation of Zeolite ZSM-5 Mesocrystals with Synergistically Enhanced Catalytic Activity and Shape Selectivity

The morphology and mesoporosity of zeolite are two vital properties to determine its performance in diverse applications involving adsorption and catalysis; while it remains a big challenge for the synthesis and regulation of zeolites with exceptional morphology/porosity only through inorganic-ions-based modification. Herein, by simply optimizing the alkali metal type (K⁺ or Na⁺), as well as alkali/water ratio and crystallization temperature, the zeolite ZSM-5 mesocrystals with diverse mesostructures are simply and controllably prepared via fine-tuning the crystallization mechanism in an organotemplate-free, ions-mediated seed-assisted system. Moreover, the impacts of these key parameters on the evolution of seed crystals, the development and assembly behavior of aluminosilicate species and the solution-phase process during zeolite crystallization are investigated by means of directional etching in NH₄F or NaOH solutions. Except for the morphology/mesoporosity modulation, their physical and chemical properties, such as particle size, microporosity, Si/Al ratio and acidity, can be well maintained at a similar level. As such, the p/o-xylene adsorption and catalytic performance of o-xylene isomerization are used to exhaustively evaluate the synergistically enhanced catalytic activity and shape selectivity of the obtained products. This work demonstrates the possibility of effectively constructing novel zeolite mesostructures by simply altering parameters on simple ions-controlled crystallization and provides good models to inspect the impacts of mesoporosity or morphology on their catalytic performances.

Hydroisomerization of n-Hexadecane Over Nickel-Modified SAPO-11 Molecular Sieve-Supported NiWS Catalysts: Effects of Modification Methods

The complexation-excessive impregnation modification method, which was original in this study, and the ion-exchange method and the in situ modification method were used to synthesize Ni-modified SAPO-11 molecular sieves. With the Ni-modified SAPO-11 samples as support, the corresponding NiWS-supported catalysts for the hydroisomerization of n-hexadecane were prepared. The effects of Ni-modification on SAPO-11 characteristics and the active phase were studied. The structure, morphology, and acidity of SAPO-11, as well as the interaction between active metals and support, the morphology, dispersibility, and stacking number of the active phase, were all changed by Ni-modification methods. The complexation-excessive impregnation modification method deleted a portion of Al from SAPO-11 molecular sieves while simultaneously integrating Ni into the skeletal structure of the surface layer of SAPO-11 molecular sieves, considerably enhancing the acidity of SAPO-11 molecular sieves. Furthermore, during dealumination, ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid generated more mesoporous structures and increased the mesoporous volume of SAPO-11 molecular sieves. Because the complexation-excessive impregnation modification method increased the amount of Ni in the surface framework of the SAPO-11 molecular sieve, it has weakened the interaction between the active phase and the support, improved the properties of the active phase, and greatly improved the hydroisomerization performance of NiW/NiSAPO-11. The yield of i-hexadecane of NiW/NiSAPO-11 increased by 39.3% when compared to NiW/NiSAPO-11. It presented a realistic approach for increasing the acidity of SAPO-11, reducing the interaction between active metals and support, and improving the active phase stacking problem.

Investigation of n-Heptane Hydroisomerization over Alkali-acid-treated Hierarchical Pt/ZSM-22 Zeolites

The design of various hierarchical and morphology ZSM-22 zeolite catalysts is attempted through the post-treatment of different concentrations of NaOH and subsequently, deals with HCl solution including fluosilicic acid (H2SiF6)...

Co-hydrolysis and Seed-Induced Synthesis of Basic Mesoporous ZSM-5 Zeolites with Enhanced Catalytic Performance

For zeolite catalysts, the regulation of active site and pore structure plays an important role in the enhancement of their catalytic performance. In this work, a one-pot and organic template-free co-regulation route is proposed to straightforwardly synthesize basic mesoporous ZSM-5 zeolites with adjustable alkaline-earth metal species. The synthesis pathway combines two decisive strategies: 1) the seed-induced interface assembly growth method and 2) the acidic co-hydrolysis/condensation of aluminosilicate species and alkaline-earth metal (e.g., Mg, Ca, Sr, or Ba) sources. It is interesting that the mesoporous structure was self-evolved through particle-attached seed-interfacial crystallization without the assistance of any template. Meanwhile, the incorporation of alkaline-earth metals species is homogeneous and highly dispersed in the solid products during the whole crystallization process, and finally generate the superior basicity. Catalysis tests of the as-synthesized samples displayed their novel performance in the typical base reaction of Knoevenagel condensation, even for bulky substrates owing to the enhanced diffusion arising from the meso/microporous network. This finding opens new possibilities for facile, cost-effective, and environmentally friendly synthesis of mesoporous high-silica zeolites with tunable acid/base properties, and deepens our understanding of the particle-attached crystallization.

Bifunctional catalysts for the hydroisomerization of n-alkanes: the effects of metal–acid balance and textural structure

The summary of recent advances reveals excellent potentials for the preparation of novel bifunctional catalysts with excellent catalytic performances for n-alkane hydroisomerization.