In-situ spectroscopic insights into the dual-site synergistic electrocatalytic mechanism of propylene epoxidation over single-Ag-atom catalyst.
basic_science · Level V
Where this comes from
- Record sourced from PubMed, PMID 41387447.
- Also identified by DOI 10.1038/s41467-025-67338-8 and PMC identifier 12819394.
- Licence recorded as CC BY-NC-ND.
- Because redistribution is not established, this page shows the abstract only. Follow the links below for the full text.
Abstract
The electrochemical oxidation of propylene presents a promising strategy for propylene oxide (PO) synthesis, but is severely hindered by the complex reaction pathways and the low PO selectivity. In this work, a series of Ag-decorated FeOOH catalysts is designed to elucidate the reaction mechanism of the electrochemical propylene oxidation reaction for PO electrosynthesis. An optimal Faradaic efficiency of PO of 32.0% is achieved over the single-Ag-atom decorated FeOOH catalyst (Ag<sub>1</sub>-FeOOH) at 2.4 V versus reversible hydrogen electrode. The in-situ attenuated total reflectance surface-enhanced infrared absorption spectroscopy and in-situ <sup>57</sup>Fe Mössbauer spectroscopy measurements combined with density functional theory calculations reveal the dual-site synergistic catalytic mechanism for electrochemical propylene epoxidation over Ag<sub>1</sub>-FeOOH, where single-Ag-atom sites catalyze water oxidation to generate reactive oxygen species, while the adjacent Fe sites serve as adsorption sites for propylene activation. This study provides clear insights into the dual-site synergistic electrocatalytic mechanism of propylene epoxidation and sheds light on the rational design of single-atom catalysts for electrochemical organic synthesis.