Coordination-induced bond weakening of water at the surface of an oxygen-deficient polyoxovanadate cluster

Location of dopant dictates proton-coupled electron transfer mechanism in vanadium-substituted polyoxotungstates

Heterometal doping in polyoxometalates (POMs) is a useful strategy to impart modular reactivity by leveraging control over the physicochemical properties of the resulting materials. The dopant can occupy different position(s) within the POM that may affect the mechanism and/or outcome of a desired reaction. In this work, we illustrate that substituting one tungsten atom with vanadium in [PVoutW11O40]4- (PVoutW11) modulates the basicity of a bridging μ2-O2- ligand, increasing the strength of the O-H bond formed upon addition of the first proton-electron pair to the cluster by >20 kcal mol-1 over that of its homometallic congener. The reaction of PVoutW11 with an H-atom donor of weaker bond dissociation free energy results in the successful isolation of singly reduced, singly protonated cluster 1e-/1H+-PVoutW11; kinetic analysis of the reaction of PVoutW11 with hydrazobenzene reveals that H-atom uptake proceeds via a concerted proton-electron transfer mechanism. By contrast, the centrally substituted [VinW12O40]3- (VinW12) decouples the proton from electron transfer, leading to differential reactivity of 5,10-hydrophenazine to give the products of electron transfer. These results highlight that the proton-coupled electron transfer reactivity of heterometal-substituted metal oxides critically depends on the physical accessibility of dopants to the hydrogen donor.

Nucleation Roadmap of Reduced Polyoxovanadate-Alkoxide Clusters

Polyoxovanadate-alkoxides are a growing family of earth-abundant first-row transition metal polynuclear species highly promising for their tunable redox properties. The speciation and nucleation chemical space of these species is divided into two groups: 1) fully oxidized V(V) monomeric precursors that aggregate into Lindqvist-type clusters and 2) reduced V(IV) precursors forming cyclic structures. The nucleation of cyclic polyoxovanadate-alkoxides with varying alkyl chain lengths, the impact of the presence of templating anions, and their subsequent evolution to the Lindqvist-type congener were studied by using density functional theory. The evolution of cyclic polyoxovanadate-alkoxides to oxygen-vacant cluster structures was found to be endergonic, in agreement with previous experimental work. Moreover, the reactivity with traces of water in alcohol solvents was confirmed to be the main thermodynamic driving force toward the formation of the mixed-valent Lindqvist-type polyoxovanadate species.

Engineering mechanisms of proton-coupled electron transfer to a titanium-substituted polyoxovanadate-alkoxide

Metal oxides are promising catalysts for small molecule hydrogen chemistries, mediated by interfacial proton-coupled electron transfer (PCET) processes. Engineering the mechanism of PCET has been shown to control the selectivity of reduced products, providing an additional route for improving reductive catalysis with metal oxides. In this work, we present kinetic resolution of the rate determining proton-transfer step of PCET to a titanium-doped POV, TiV5O6(OCH3)13 with 9,10-dihydrophenazine by monitoring the loss of the cationic radical intermediate using stopped-flow analysis. For this reductant, a 5-fold enhanced rate (k PT = 1.2 × 104 M-1 s-1) is accredited to a halved activation barrier in comparison to the homometallic analogue, [V6O7(OCH3)12]1-. By switching to hydrazobenzene as a reductant, a substrate where the electron transfer component of the PCET is thermodynamically unfavorable (ΔG ET = +11 kcal mol-1), the mechanism is found to be altered to a concerted PCET mechanism. Despite the similar mechanisms and driving forces for TiV5O6(OCH3)13 and [V6O7(OCH3)12]1-, the rate of PCET is accellerated by 3-orders of magnitude (k PCET = 0.3 M-1 s-1) by the presence of the Ti(iv) ion. Possible origins of the accelleration are considered, including the possibility of strong electronic coupling interactions between TiV5O6(OCH3)13 with hydrazobenzene. Overall, these results offer insight into the governing factors that control the mechanism of PCET in metal oxide systems.

Molecular Models of Atomically Dispersed Uranium at MoS2 Surfaces Reveal Cooperative Mechanism of Water Reduction

Single atoms of uranium supported on molybdenum sulfide surfaces (U@MoS2) have been recently demonstrated to facilitate the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) through electrocatalysis. Theoretical calculations have predicted uranium hydroxide moieties bound to edge-sulfur atoms of MoS2 as a proposed transition state involved in the HER process. However, the isolation of relevant intermediates involved in this process remains a challenge, rendering mechanistic hypotheses unverified. The present work describes the isolation and characterization of a uranium-hydroxide intermediate on molybdenum sulfide surfaces using [(Cp*3Mo3S4)UCp*], a molecular model of a reduced uranium center supported at MoS2. Mechanistic investigations highlight the metalloligand cooperativity with uranium involved in the water activation pathway. The corresponding uranium-oxo analogue, [(Cp*3Mo3S4)Cp*U(═O)], was also accessed from the hydroxide cluster via hydrogen atom transfer and from [(Cp*3Mo3S4)UCp*] through an alternative direct oxygen atom transfer. These results provide an atomistic perspective on the reactivity of low-valent uranium at molybdenum sulfide surfaces toward water, modeling key intermediates associated with the HER of U@MoS2 catalysts.

O2 reduction via proton-coupled electron transfer by a V(III) aquo on a polyoxovanadate-alkoxide cluster

We report the transfer of H-atoms from a reduced polyoxovanadate alkoxide [nOct4N][V6O6(OH2)(OMe)12] via concerted proton-electron transfer. Oxygen reduction is compared between bridging and terminal O-H bonds revealing similar mechanisms, providing new insight to design criteria for metal-oxide electrocatalysts that faciliate oxygen reduction by concerted-proton electron transfer.

Selective Hydrogenation of Azobenzene to Hydrazobenzene via Proton-Coupled Electron Transfer from a Polyoxotungstate Cluster

In this report, we describe proton-coupled electron transfer (PCET) reactivity at the surface of the Keggin-type polyoxotungstate cluster [nBu4N]3[PWVI12O40] (PW12) in acetonitrile. Bond dissociation free energies (BDFEs) of the O-H groups generated upon reduction of PW12 in the presence of acid are determined through the construction of a potential-pKa diagram. The surface O-H bonds are found to be weak (BDFE(O-H)avg < 48 kcal mol-1), comparable to the BDFE of H2. This is consistent with the observed formation of H2 upon addition of a suitably strong organic acid, H2NPh2+ (pKa MeCN = 5.98), to the reduced form of the cluster. The one-electron reduced form of PW12 is isolated and used in conjunction with acid to realize the stoichiometric semihydrogenation of azobenzene via PCET from the surface of the reduced cluster.

Heterometal Dopant Changes the Mechanism of Proton-Coupled Electron Transfer at the Polyoxovanadate-Alkoxide Surface

The transfer of two H-atom equivalents to the titanium-doped polyoxovanadate-alkoxide, [TiV5O6(OCH3)13], results in the formation of a V(III)-OH2 site at the surface of the assembly. Incorporation of the group (IV) metal ion results in a weakening of the O-H bonds of [TiV5O5(OH2)(OCH3)13] in comparison to its homometallic congener, [V6O6(OH2)(OCH3)12], resembling more closely the thermodynamics reported for the one-electron reduced derivative, [V6O6(OH2)(OCH3)12]1-. An analysis of early time points of the reaction of [TiV5O6(OCH3)13] and 5,10-dihydrophenazine reveals the formation of an oxidized substrate, suggesting that proton-coupled electron transfer proceeds via initial electron transfer from substrate to cluster prior to proton transfer. These results demonstrate the profound influence of heterometal dopants on the mechanism of PCET with respect to the surface of the assembly.

Surface ligand length influences kinetics of H-atom uptake in polyoxovanadate-alkoxide clusters

The uptake of hydrogen atoms (H-atoms) at reducible metal oxide nanocrystal surfaces has implications in catalysis and energy storage. However, it is often difficult to gain insight into the physicochemical factors that dictate the thermodynamics and kinetics of H-atom transfer to the surface of these assemblies. Recently, our research group has demonstrated the formation of oxygen-atom (O-atom) defects in polyoxovanadate-alkoxide (POV-alkoxide) clusters via conversion of surface oxido moieties to aquo ligands, which can be accomplished via addition of two H-atom equivalents. Here, we present the dependence of O-atom defect formation via H-atom transfer at the surface of vanadium oxide clusters on the length of surface alkoxide ligands. Analysis of H-atom transfer reactions to low-valent POV-alkoxide clusters [V6O7(OR)12]1- (R = Me, Et, nPr, nBu) reveals that the length of primary alkoxide surface ligands does not significantly influence the thermodynamics of these processes. However, surface ligand length has a significant impact on the kinetics of these PCET reactions. Indeed, the methoxide-bridged cluster, [V6O7(OMe)12]1- reacts ∼20 times faster than the other derivatives evaluated. Interestingly, as the aliphatic linkages are increased in size from -C2H5 to -C4H9, reaction rates remain consistent, suggesting restricted access to available ligand conformers as a result of the incompatibility of the aliphatic ligands and acetonitrile may buffer further changes to the rate of reaction.

Making Heterometallic Metal-Metal Bonds in Keggin-Type Polyoxometalates by a Six-Electron Reduction Process

Polyoxometalates (POMs) represent a promising class of molecular electron reservoirs. However, their multielectron reduction gives rise to intricate physical-chemical phenomena that must be fully understood for their future use in energy-storage devices. Herein, we show that bulk electrolysis of the archetypal Keggin-type POM [Si(W^VI₂Mo^VIO₁₀)(W^VI₃O₁₀)₃]^4- in aqueous solution leads to the six-electron-reduced derivative [Si(W^IV₂Mo^IVO₇(H₂O)₃)(W^VI₃O₁₀)₃]^4- (notated SiW₁₁Mo-VI') in which the mixed-metal triad acts as a storage unit for six electrons and six protons. X-ray diffraction analysis and multinuclear NMR (¹⁸³W and ⁹⁵Mo) studies reveal that this electron-rich species represents the first example of POMs containing heterometallic metal-metal bonds between addenda centers. This electron-rich POM can be further reduced through multielectronic events, while its full oxidation restores the structure of the oxidized parent ion. Remarkably, the formation of SiW₁₁Mo-VI' results from a fast clustering process compared to that observed for the entirely W-based analogue, revealing that the formation of metal-metal bonds in the mixed-metal Mo/W POM is facilitated because the reaction rate is not limited by a slow disproportionation step. Last, we evaluate the supramolecular properties of SiW₁₁Mo-VI' using a method based on the cloud-point measurement of a nonionic surfactant. This investigation demonstrates that the clustering process has dramatic consequences on the solution behavior of the POM, canceling its superchaotropic character due to a local structuring effect of the hydration shell. These fundamental results pave the way for applications using the massive electron-storage properties of mixed-metal POMs.

Regioselectivity of concerted proton-electron transfer at the surface of a polyoxovanadate cluster

Proton-coupled electron transfer (PCET) is an important process in the activation and reactivity of metal oxide surfaces. In this work, we study the electronic structure of a reduced polyoxovanadate-alkoxide cluster bearing a single bridging oxide moiety. The structural and electronic implications of the incorporation of bridging oxide sites are revealed, most notably resulting in the quenching of cluster-wide electron delocalization in the most reduced state of the molecule. We correlate this attribute to a change in regioselectivity of PCET to the cluster surface (e.g. reactivity at terminal vs. bridging oxide groups). Reactivity localized at the bridging oxide site enables reversible storage of a single H-atom equivalent, changing the stoichiometry of PCET from a 2e-/2H+ process. Kinetic investigations indicate that the change in site of reactivity translates to an accelerated rate of e-/H+ transfer to the cluster surface. Our work summarizes the role which electronic occupancy and ligand density play in the uptake of e-/H+ pairs at metal oxide surfaces, providing design criteria for functional materials for energy storage and conversion processes.