Optimizing surface active sites via burying single atom into subsurface lattice for boosted methanol electrooxidation.
basic_science · Level V
Where this comes from
- Record sourced from PubMed, PMID 39747210.
- Also identified by DOI 10.1038/s41467-024-55615-x and PMC identifier 11696567.
- Licence recorded as CC BY-NC-ND.
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Abstract
The precise fabrication and regulation of the stable catalysts with desired performance still challengeable for single atom catalysts. Here, the Ru single atoms with different coordination environment in Ni<sub>3</sub>FeN lattice are synthesized and studied as a typical case over alkaline methanol electrooxidation. The Ni<sub>3</sub>FeN with buried Ru atoms in subsurface lattice (Ni<sub>3</sub>FeN-Ru<sub>buried</sub>) exhibits high selectivity and Faradaic efficiency of methanol to formate conversion. Meanwhile, operando spectroscopies reveal that the Ni<sub>3</sub>FeN-Ru<sub>buried</sub> exhibits an optimized adsorption of reactants along with an inhibited surface structural reconstruction. Additional theoretical simulations demonstrate that the Ni<sub>3</sub>FeN-Ru<sub>buried</sub> displays a regulated local electronic states of surface metal atoms with an optimized adsorption of reactants and reduced energy barrier of potential determining step. This work not only reports a high-efficient catalyst for methanol to formate conversion in alkaline condition, but also offers the insight into the rational design of single atom catalysts with more accessible surficial active sites.