Tuning the catalytic selectivity in electrochemical CO2 reduction on copper oxide-derived nanomaterials

Electrochemical conversion of CO₂ to hydrocarbons can relieve both environmental and energy stresses. However, electrocatalysts for this reaction usually suffer from a poor product selectivity and a large overpotential. Here we report that tunable catalytic selectivity for hydrocarbon formation could be achieved on Cu nanomaterials with different morphologies. By tuning the electrochemical parameters, either Cu oxide nanowires or nanoneedles were fabricated and then electrochemically reduced to the corresponding Cu nanomaterials. The Cu nanowires preferred the formation of C₂H₄, while the Cu nanoneedles favored the production of more CH₄, rather than C₂H₄. Our work provides a facile synthetic strategy for preparing Cu-based nanomaterials to achieve selective CO₂ reduction.     

零价铁还原和过硫酸盐氧化联合降解水中硝基苯

将零价铁(Fe0)的还原和过硫酸盐(persulfate,PS)的高级氧化技术结合用于水中难降解有机污染物硝基苯的去除.研究结果表明,Fe0在常温常压下可将硝基苯还原生成苯胺,随着Fe0投加量的增加,硝基苯还原为苯胺的速率逐渐增大.PS本身对硝基苯氧化作用不明显,但在Fe0与PS二者联合体系中,硝基苯和苯胺同时被去除,而且随着PS投加量的增加二者被去除的速度也随之增加.在Fe0还原和PS氧化联合处理硝基苯的体系中可能存在两个过程,一是Fe0还原硝基苯产生苯胺和二价铁离子Fe2+,二是Fe2+催化PS产生强氧化性的硫酸根自由基将苯胺氧化降解.     

Removal of toluene from air streams by cobalt-copper bimetallic catalysts supported on sepiolite

Abstract

Oxidative removal of toluene using copper and cobalt bimetallic catalysts with varying molar ratios supported on sepiolite was investigated. The catalysts prepared by a deposition precipitation method and were characterized using X-ray diffraction, nitrogen adsorption-desorption, field emission scanning electron microscopy, H₂-temperature-programmed reduction, transmission electron microscope, and inductive coupled plasma atomic emission spectroscopy. The species supported on sepiolite are Co₃O₄, CuO, and CuCo₂O₄. The activities of the tested catalysts increased in the order 0Co-4Cu/Sep <1Co-3Cu/Sep <4Co-0Cu/Sep <1Co-1Cu/Sep <3Co-1Cu/Sep. The latter exhibiting 90% toluene oxidative degradation at 288?°C within 15?h, having high selectivity towards CO₂, and being stable at 300?°C up to 15?h. In conclusion, this study showed that sepiolite has excellent properties as a support.     

Al_2O_3负载Pd-Cu催化剂催化1,2-二氯乙烷加氢脱氯性能

采用共浸渍法制备了一系列Al2O3负载金属Pd、Cu催化剂.通过元素分析（ICP）、氮气吸脱附（BET）、X射线粉末衍射（XRD）、透射电镜（TEM）等技术对催化剂进行了表征,并以1,2-二氯乙烷气相加氢脱氯为探针反应,考察了Pd-Cu/Al2O3催化剂的钯铜比、反应温度、反应时间等因素对催化活性以及反应产物乙烯选择性的影响.结果发现,提高Cu负载量可在催化剂中形成Pd-Cu合金,并促进催化剂对乙烯的选择性.此外,当温度为250℃,Pd、Cu负载量分别为0.78%和1.9%时的Pd-Cu/Al2O3催化剂对1,2-二氯乙烷的催化加氢脱氯效果最佳,最终产物乙烯的选择性可达到80%以上.     

Highly effective visible-photocatalytic hydrogen evolution and simultaneous organic pollutant degradation over an urchin-like oxygen-doped MoS2/ZnIn2S4 composite

● An urchin-like OMS/ZIS composite was fabricated by a facile solvothermal method. ● The OMS/ZIS exhibits superior photocatalytic H₂ evolution for organics degradation. ● A probable mechanism of dual-functional photocatalysis was proposed in detail. ● This work provides an inspiration for rational design of dual-functional catalysts. Achieving hydrogen production and simultaneous decomposition of organic pollutants through dual-functional photocatalytic reactions has received increasing attention due to the environmentally friendly and cost-effective characteristics of this approach. In this work, an urchin-like oxygen-doped MoS₂/ZnIn₂S₄ (OMS/ZIS) composite was fabricated for the first time using a simple solvothermal method. The unique microstructure with abundant active sites and fast charge transfer channels further shortened the charge migration distance and compressed carrier recombination. The obtained composite exhibited an efficient H₂ evolution reaction rate of 12.8 mmol/g/h under visible light, which was nearly times higher than pristine ZnIn₂S₄, and the apparent quantum efficiency was 14.9% (420 nm). The results of the simultaneous photocatalytic H₂ evolution and organic pollutant decomposition test were satisfactory, resulting in decomposition efficiencies of resorcinol, tetracycline, and bisphenol A that reached 41.5%, 63.5%, and 53.0% after 4 h, respectively, and the highest H₂ evolution rate was 672.7 μmol/g/h for bisphenol A. Furthermore, natural organic matter (NOM) abundantly found in actual water was adopted as an electron donor for H production under simulated sunlight irradiation, indicating the promising practicability of simultaneous hydrogen evolution and NOM decomposition. Moreover, the mechanisms of the dual-purpose photocatalytic reactions, as well as the synergistic effect between the molecular structures of the organic pollutants and the corresponding adsorption behavior on the photocatalyst surface were illustrated in detail. These obtained results may serve as an inspiration for the rational design of highly efficient, dual-functional photocatalysts in the future.     

Electrocatalytic reduction of nitrate using Pd-Cu modified carbon nanotube membranes

● Pd-Cu modified CNT membranes were prepared successfully by electrodeposition method. ● The deposition voltage and deposition time were optimized for Pd-Cu co-deposition. ● NO₃⁻-N was removed efficiently from water by Pd-Cu modified CNT membranes. ● The presence of dissolved oxygen did not affect the nitrate reduction performance. ● Mass transfer rate was promoted significantly with the increase in membrane flux. Excessive nitrate in water is harmful to the ecological environment and human health. Electrocatalytic reduction is a promising technology for nitrate removal. Herein, a Pd-Cu modified carbon nanotube membrane was fabricated with an electrodeposition method and used to reduce nitrate in a flow-through electrochemical reactor. The optimal potential and duration for codeposition of Pd and Cu were −0.7 V and 5 min, respectively, according to linear scan voltammetry results. The membrane obtained with a Pd:Cu ratio of 1:1 exhibited a relatively high nitrate removal efficiency and N₂ selectivity. Nitrate was almost completely reduced (~99 %) by the membrane at potentials lower than −1.2 V. However, −0.8 V was the optimal potential for nitrate reduction in terms of both nitrate removal efficiency and product selectivity. The nitrate removal efficiency was 56.2 %, and the N₂ selectivity was 23.8 % for the Pd:Cu=1:1 membrane operated at −0.8 V. Nitrate removal was enhanced under acidic conditions, while N₂ selectivity was decreased. The concentrations of Cl⁻ ions and dissolved oxygen showed little effect on nitrate reduction. The mass transfer rate constant was greatly improved by 6.6 times from 1.14 × 10⁻³ m/h at a membrane flux of 1 L/(m²·h) to 8.71 × 10⁻³ m/h at a membrane flux of 15 L/(m²·h), which resulted in a significant increase in the nitrate removal rate from 13.6 to 133.5 mg/(m²·h). These findings show that the Pd-Cu modified CNT membrane is an efficient material for nitrate reduction.     

Nanoscale zero-valent iron supported on biochar for the highly efficient removal of nitrobenzene

• Biochar supported nanoscale zero-valent iron composite (nZVI/BC) was synthesized. • nZVI/BC quickly and efficiently removed nitrobenzene (NB) in solution. • NB removal by nZVI/BC involves simultaneous adsorption and reduction mechanism. • nZVI/BC exhibited better catalytic activity, stability and durability than nZVI. The application of nanoscale zero-valent iron (nZVI) in the remediation of contaminated groundwater or wastewater is limited due to its lack of stability, easy aggregation and iron leaching. To address this issue, nZVI was distributed on oak sawdust-derived biochar (BC) to obtain the nZVI/BC composite for the highly efficient reduction of nitrobenzene (NB). nZVI, BC and nZVI/BC were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). For nZVI/BC, nZVI particles were uniformly dispersed on BC. nZVI/BC exhibited higher removal efficiency for NB than the simple summation of bare nZVI and BC. The removal mechanism was investigated through the analyses of UV-Visible spectra, mass balance and XPS. NB was quickly adsorbed on the surface of nZVI/BC, and then gradually reduced to aniline (AN), accompanied by the oxidation of nZVI to magnetite. The effects of several reaction parameters, e.g., NB concentration, reaction pH and nZVI/BC aging time, on the removal of NB were also studied. In addition to high reactivity, the loading of nZVI on biochar significantly alleviated Fe leaching and enhanced the durability of nZVI.     

Novel synthetic approaches and TWC catalytic performance of flower-like Pt/CeO2

A novel Ultrasonic Assisted Membrane Reduction （UAMR）-hydrothermal method was used to prepare flower-like Pt/CeO2 catalysts. The texture, physical/chemical properties, and reducibility of the flower-like Pt/CeO2 catalysts were characterized by X-Ray Diffraction （XRD）, Scanning Electron Microscope （SEM）, Transmission Electron Microscope （TEM）, N2 adsorption, and hydrogen temperature programmed reduction （HE-TPR） techniques. The catalytic performance of the catalysts for treating automobile emission was studied relative to samples prepared by the conventional wetness impregnation method. The Pt/CeO2 catalysts fabricated by this novel method showed high specific surface area and metal dispersion, excellent three-way catalytic activity, and good thermal stability. The strong interaction between the Pt nanoparticles and CeO2 improved the thermal stability. The Ce4＋ ions were incorporated into the surfactant chains and the Pt nanoparticles were stabilized through an exchange reaction of the surface hydroxyl groups. The SEM results demonstrated that the Pt/CeO2 catalysts had a typical three-dimensional （3D） hierarchical porous struc- ture, which was favorable for surface reaction and enhanced the exposure degree of the Pt nanoparticles. In brief, the flower-like Pt/CeO2 catalysts prepared by UAMR-hydrothermal method exhibited a higher Pt metal dispersion, smaller particle size, better three-way catalytic activity, and improved thermal stability versus conven- tional materials.     

Efficient dechlorination of 2,4-dichlorophenol in an aqueous media with a mild pH using a Pd/TiO2NTs/Ti cathode

In this study, palladium-loaded titania nanotubes was fabricated on a titanium plate (Pd/TiO₂NTs/Ti) for efficient electrodechlorination of 2,4-chlorophenol with a mild pH condition. The nature of Pd/TiO₂NTs/Ti electrodes was characterized by field-emission scanning electron microscope (FESEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and cyclic voltammetry (CV) techniques. The characterization results indicated the generation of Pd⁰ nanoparticles which were evenly dispersed on titania nanotubes arrays on the Pd/TiO₂NTs/Ti surface. An effective degradation efficiency of up to 91% was achieved within 60 min at cathode potential of −0.7 V (vs. SCE) and initial pH of 5.5. The effects of the applied cathode potential and initial pH on the degradation efficiency were studied. A near neutral condition was more favorable since very low and very high pHs were not conducive to the dechlorination process. Furthermore, the intermediates analysis showed that the Pd/TiO₂NTs/Ti electrode could completely remove chlorine from 2, 4-dichlorophenol since only phenol was detected as the byproduct and the concentration of released chlorine ions indicated near-complete dechlorination. This work presents a good alternative technique for eliminating persistent chlorophenols in polluted wastewater without maintaining strong acidic environment.     

Catalytic reduction of water pollutants: knowledge gaps,lessons learned,and new opportunities

● Advances, challenges, and opportunities for catalytic water pollutant reduction. ● Cases of Pd-based catalysts for nitrate, chlorate, and perchlorate reduction. ● New functionalities developed by screening and design of catalytic metal sites. ● Facile catalyst preparation approaches for convenient catalyst optimization. ● Rational design and non-decorative effort are essential for future work. In this paper, we discuss the previous advances, current challenges, and future opportunities for the research of catalytic reduction of water pollutants. We present five case studies on the development of palladium-based catalysts for nitrate, chlorate, and perchlorate reduction with hydrogen gas under ambient conditions. We emphasize the realization of new functionalities through the screening and design of catalytic metal sites, including (i) platinum group metal (PGM) nanoparticles, (ii) the secondary metals for improving the reaction rate and product selectivity of nitrate reduction, (iii) oxygen-atom-transfer metal oxides for chlorate and perchlorate reduction, and (iv) ligand-enhanced coordination complexes for substantial activity enhancement. We also highlight the facile catalyst preparation approach that brought significant convenience to catalyst optimization. Based on our own studies, we then discuss directions of the catalyst research effort that are not immediately necessary or desirable, including (1) systematic study on the downstream aspects of under-developed catalysts, (2) random integration with hot concepts without a clear rationale, and (3) excessive and decorative experiments. We further address some general concerns regarding using H₂ and PGMs in the catalytic system. Finally, we recommend future catalyst development in both “fundamental” and “applied” aspects. The purpose of this perspective is to remove major misconceptions about reductive catalysis research and bring back significant innovations for both scientific advancements and engineering applications to benefit environmental protection.     

修复硝基苯污染底泥的活性覆盖材料筛选

针对硝基苯污染底泥修复的活性覆盖技术,筛选了适合阻断底泥中硝基苯释放的还原剂和吸附剂.采用的零价铁可迅速将难生物降解的硝基苯还原为苯胺,提高其生物可降解性,有利于将污染物彻底去除.零价铁对硝基苯的还原反应速率随着零价铁剂量的提高而提高,反应速率常数≥>10.001 min~(-1).吸附试验结果表明,在煤渣、活性炭、焦炭以及硅藻土几种常见的吸附剂中,活性炭具有最佳的吸附能力,但是其价格昂贵,不适于大规模应用.而廉价易得的煤渣对硝基苯及其降解产物苯胺具有良好的吸附性能,对硝基苯和苯胺的最大理论吸附量达到924.9 mg·kg~(-1)和1692.2 mg·kg~(-1).因此提出以煤渣为吸附基质,并添加一定比例零价铁的复合活性覆盖材料,为硝基苯污染底泥修复提供一种新的方向和基本参数.     

土壤污染物的释放速率及阻隔措施的研究

本文测定了硝基苯,苯胺,萘和苯酚从土壤向大气释放的速度,这些污染物一开始都有较高的释放速率,几天后污染物的释放速率下降。清洁的粘土和水泥板覆盖在污染的土地上能有效地防止污染物向大气释放,可用于土壤的修复。     

Promotional effect of ion-exchanged K on the low-temperature hydrothermal stability of Cu/SAPO-34 and its synergic application with Fe/Beta catalysts

• K⁺ hinder the structural degradation of Cu/SAPO-34 under humid condition<100°C. • K⁺ on Cu/SAPO-34 brings lower acidity and inferior SCR activity at high temperature. • Fe/Beta was used to compensate the low activity of Cu/SAPO-34 at high temperature. • The hybrid catalysts with KCu/SAPO-34 and Fe/Beta show a great potential for using. K ions were introduced onto Cu/SAPO-34 catalysts via the ion-exchange process in order to improve their stability under low-temperature hydrothermal aging. The changes in structure and copper-species contents of these catalysts upon hydrothermal aging were probed in order to investigate their effects on selective catalytic reduction (SCR) activity. For the fresh Cu/SAPO-34 catalysts, K ions had little influence on the chabazite framework but effected their acidities by exchanging with acid sites. After hydrothermal aging, the structural integrity and amount of active sites decreased on pure Cu/SAPO-34. While the K-loaded catalysts showed improved chabazite structure, acidity, and active site conservation with increasing K loading. However, although the 0.7 wt% K catalyst maintained the same crystallinity, active site abundance, and low-temperature SCR activity as the fresh catalyst upon aging, an apparent decrease in SCR activity at high temperature was observed because of the inevitable decrease in the number of Brönsted acid sites. To compensate for the activity disadvantage of K-loaded Cu/SAPO-34 at high temperature, Fe/Beta catalysts were co-employed with K-loaded Cu/SAPO-34, and a wide active temperature window of SCR activity was obtained. Thus, our study reveals that a combined system comprising Fe/Beta and K-loaded Cu/SAPO-34 catalysts shows promise for the elimination of NO_x in real-world applications.     

Catalytic wet air oxidation of phenol,nitrobenzene and aniline over the multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) as catalysts

Wet air oxidation (WAO) is one of effective technologies to eliminate hazardous, toxic and highly concentrated organic compounds in the wastewater. In the paper, multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs), functionalized by O₃, were used as catalysts in the absence of any metals to investigate the catalytic activity in the catalytic wet air oxidation (CWAO) of phenol, nitrobenzene (NB) and aniline at the mild operating conditions (reaction temperature of 155°C and total pressure of 2.5 MPa) in a batch reactor. The MWCNTs were characterized with scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), gas adsorption measurements (BET), fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The functionalized MWCNTs showed good catalytic performance. In the CWAO of phenol over the functionalized MWCNTs, total phenol removal was obtained after 90 min run, and the reaction apparent activation energy was ca. 40 kJ·mol^-1. The NB was not removed in the CWAO of single NB, while ca. 97% NB removal was obtained and 40% NB removal was attributed to the catalytic activity after 180 min run in the presence of phenol. Ca. 49% aniline conversion was achieved after 120 min run in the CWAO of aniline.     

Optimizing synthesis conditions of nanoscale zero-valent iron (nZVI) through aqueous reactivity assessment

Nanoscale iron particles (nZVI) is one of the most important engineered nanomaterials applied to environmental pollution control and abatement. Although a multitude of synthesis approaches have been proposed, a facile method to screen the reactivity of candidate nZVI materials produced using different methods or under varying synthesis conditions has yet been established. In this study, four reaction parameters were adjusted in the preparation of borohydride-reduced nZVI. The reductive properties of the resultant nanoparticles were assayed independently using two model aqueous contaminants, Cu(II) and nitrate. The results confirm that the reductive reactivity of nZVI is most sensitive to the initial concentration of iron precursor, borohydride feed rate, and the loading ratio of borohydride to ferric ion during particle synthesis. Solution mixing speed, in contrast, carries a relative small weight on the reactivity of nZVI. The two probing reactions (i.e., Cu(II) and nitrate reduction) are able to generate consistent and quantitative inference about the mass-normalized surface activity of nZVI. However, the nitrate assay is valid in dilute aqueous solutions only (50 mg·L⁻¹ or lower) due to accelerated deactivation of iron surface at elevated nitrate concentrations. Additional insights including the structural and chemical makeup of nZVI can be garnered from Cu(II) reduction assessments. The reactivity assays investigated in this study can facilitate screening of candidate materials or optimization of nZVI production parameters, which complement some of the more sophisticated but less chemically specific material characterization methods used in the nZVI research.     

Environmentally benign NiAlCe-hydrotalcite for efficient synthesis of benzoin ethyl ether

Benzoin ethyl ether is traditionally synthesized in two steps of initial condensation followed by etherification, using toxic cyanide catalysts and enzymes. Here, we show that an environmentally benign NiAlCe-hydrotalcite catalyst is highly efficient for one-step synthesis of benzoin ethyl ether. We synthesized NiAlCe-hydrotalcite catalysts by a modified coprecipitation method. 99.3 % selectivity was achieved at 63.7 % conversion of benzaldehyde on the NiAlCe-hydrotalcite catalyst with a Ni²⁺/Al³⁺/Ce³⁺ ratio of 22:10:1. Moreover, NiAlCe-hydrotalcite catalysts maintained stable activities over three consecutive runs.     

六铝酸盐负载CuO催化还原NO性能

采用共沉淀法制备了LaAl12O19六铝酸盐载体,采用等体积浸渍法制备了不同负载量的CuO/LaAl12O19催化剂,并对其进行了XRD、H2-TPR和BET表征,考察了催化剂对CH4选择催化还原NO的性能.结果表明,CuO的负载并未改变六铝酸盐载体的结构,Cu在载体上以Cu2+的形式存在,活性组分CuO与载体LaAl12O19之间存在协同作用;CuO/LaAl12O19催化剂对CH4选择催化还原NO表现出良好活性,所制备的催化剂均能使NO的转化率达到99%;其中负载量为1.0 wt%的CuO/LaAl12O19催化剂的活性最好,完全反应温度T99%为560℃,且在80 h稳定性试验中表现出了良好的高温活性和热稳定性.     

ZrO2掺杂的V2O5/TiO2催化剂表征及催化还原NOx

采用共沉淀法制备出不同锆掺杂量的钛锆复合载体(TiO2-ZrO2),运用XRD和BET研究其微观结构,结果显示钛锆物质的量之比1∶1时复合载体具有最大的比表面积,可达256.01 m.2g-1.以此为载体制备了V2O5/TiO2-ZrO2催化剂,并添加少量CeO2对其改性.采用XRD、BET、H2-TPR、原位FT-IR等手段研究其活性组分的表面分散状态、氧化还原特性和表面酸性.结果显示,V2O5高度分散在载体上;与纯V2O5相比,复合载体上V2O5的还原峰向低温方向发生了偏移;催化剂表面包含了大量的B酸和L酸.模拟氨气催化还原NO(NH3-SCR)的脱硝反应活性测试表明,V2O5/TiO2-ZrO2催化剂具有较好的热稳定性和较宽的活性窗口,少量CeO2的加入提高了催化剂的低温活性.     

Semi-closed synthesis of nitrogen and oxygen Co-doped mesoporous carbon for selective aqueous oxidation

Heteroatom-doped meso/micro-porous carbon materials are conventionally produced by harsh carbonization under an inert atmosphere involving specific precursors, hard/soft templates, and heteroatom-containing agents. Herein, we report a facile synthesis of N and O co-doped meso/micro-porous carbon (NOMC) by template-free carbonization of a small-molecule precursor in a semi-closed system. The semi-closed carbonizaiton process yields hydrophilic NOMCs with large surface area in a high yield. The porous structure as well as the elemental composition of NOMCs can be modulated by changing the holding time at a particular temperature. NOMCs as metal-free heterogeneous catalysts can selectively oxidize benzyl alcohol and its derivatives into aldehydes/ketones with>85％conversion in aqueous solution, which is much higher than that of the control sample obtained in tube furnace (21％conversion), mainly due to their high N content, high percentage of pyridinic N, and large surface area. The presence of O-containing moieties also helps to improve the hydrophilicity and dispersion ability of catalysts and thus facilitates the mass transfer process during aqueous oxidation. The NOMC catalysts also dispayed excellent activity for a wide range of substrates with a selectivity of>99％.