Abstract
The rational design of high-temperature endurable Cu-based catalysts is a long-sought goal since they are suffering from significant sintering. Establishing a barrier on the metal surface by the classical strong metal-support interaction (SMSI) is supposed to be an efficient way for immobilizing nanoparticles. However, Cu particles were regarded as impossible to form classical SMSI before irreversible sintering. Herein, we fabricate the SMSI between sputtering reconstructed Cu and flame-made LaTiO2 support at a mild reduction temperature, exhibiting an ultra-stable performance for more than 500 h at 600 °C. The sintering of Cu nanoparticles is effectively suppressed even at as high as 800 °C. The critical factors to success are reconstructing the electronic structure of Cu atoms in parallel with enhancing the support reducibility, which makes them adjustable by sputtering power or decorated supports. This strategy will extremely broaden the applications of Cu-based catalysts at more severe conditions and shed light on establishing SMSI on other metals.
Highlights
The rational design of high-temperature endurable Cu-based catalysts is a long-sought goal since they are suffering from significant sintering
For SP-Cu/La-doped TiO2 compound made by FSP (LaTiO2)-500R, Cu particles could hardly be distinguished from support in transmission electron microscopy (TEM) images (Fig. 1c and Supplementary Fig. 2) but were clearly observed from the annular dark-field (ADF) scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM) images with an average particle size around 2.3 nm and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) elemental mapping (Supplementary Fig. 3), confirming the existence of Cu particles
The invisible Cu particles were caused by the reduction of Cu contrast via the coverage of the Ti oxides layer on their surface, which has a great effect on TEM rather than STEM
Summary
The rational design of high-temperature endurable Cu-based catalysts is a long-sought goal since they are suffering from significant sintering. Cu particles were oxidized in the air when encapsulation was removed during oxidation and low-temperature reduction treatments for the same catalyst (SP-Cu/LaTiO2-ROR).
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
