Substrate-Adapted Active Site Self-Evolving Reconfiguration Boosting Catalytic Effect on Acetylene Semi-Hydrogenation

Area of Science:

• Heterogeneous catalysis
• Materials science
• Chemical engineering

Background:

• Developing catalysts with adaptable active sites for specific reactions is a significant challenge.
• Conventional catalyst preparation involves iterative design, synthesis, and evaluation.
• Acetylene semi-hydrogenation requires precise control over catalyst active sites for high selectivity.

Purpose of the Study:

• To demonstrate a new strategy for creating adaptive catalysts through self-evolving active sites.
• To engineer a catalyst for acetylene semi-hydrogenation that utilizes reactants for active site reconfiguration.
• To overcome limitations of traditional catalyst preparation methods.

Main Methods:

• Utilized a metastable copper single atom (Cu1) precursor as a structural seed.
• Subjected the precursor to moderate operational conditions, allowing self-evolving reconfiguration.
• Employed reactants (H2 and acetylene) as the medium to induce active site reconstruction.

Main Results:

• The Cu1 precursor transformed into an active catalyst featuring cooperative Cu1 and copper nanocluster (Cun) ensemble sites.
• Achieved 100% acetylene conversion with 96% ethylene selectivity at a record-low temperature of 120 °C.
• Demonstrated robust catalyst durability exceeding 30 hours.

Conclusions:

• The spontaneous active site self-evolving reconfiguration strategy enables the construction of adaptive catalysts.
• This approach yields superior performance in acetylene semi-hydrogenation compared to conventional methods.
• Offers a new paradigm for intelligent catalyst engineering and design.