C O Bond Research Articles

Design of Pt@Sn core–shell nanocatalysts for highly selective hydrogenation of cinnamaldehyde to prepare cinnamyl alcohol

The selective hydrogenation of cinnamaldehyde (CAL) to prepare cinnamyl alcohol (COL) is challenging as the unwanted hydrogenation of CC bond in CAL is thermodynamically more favorable than the hydrogenation of CO bond. We herein designed core–shell structured nanoparticles (NPs) that consisted of Pt cores and Sn shells to catalyze the CAL to COL conversion. By simply changing the amount of Sn precursor, we generated Pt@Sn NPs with different Sn shell thickness and catalytic performance. Among the samples, Pt@Sn/SiO2 with Pt/Sn of 1/1 achieved the highest CAL conversion (87.2 %) as well as the COL selectivity (95.4 %), which were 5-fold and 6-fold, respectively, higher than those of Pt/SiO2. This catalyst was also applicable to the hydrogenation of other α, β-unsaturated aldehyde and unsaturated carbonyl compounds. Both experiments and theoretical calculations indicated that the strong Pt-Sn interaction and the partial coverage of Pt by Sn facilitated their adsorption of CO bonds, thus enhancing the conversion of CAL and the selectivity towards COL.

Unravelling the synergy of platinum-oxygen vacancy in CoOx for modulating hydrogenation performance

Constructing high-efficiency catalysts with high activity and selectivity is the long-term pursuit in heterogeneous catalysis field. Metal–oxygen vacancy (Ov) synergy provides a promising route to realizing the goal. In this study, the Pt/CoOx catalysts with Pt–Ov dual sites are designed by atomic layer deposition (ALD) for selective hydrogenation of cinnamaldehyde, and the Ov property, Pt size and the spatial relationship of Pt and CoOx can be well modulated. Experimental and theoretical investigations indicate that the substrate and hydrogen can be activated on Ov and Pt nanoparticles, respectively. The Ov introduced by ALD not only preferentially activates CO bond of CALD to achieve high selectivity to CALA, but also enhances the ability to dissociate hydrogen on Pt nanoparticles through Pt-Ov electron transfer. Importantly, the optimized Pt40/CoOx-Ov catalysts with suitable Ov coordination and Pt sizes (2.5 nm) show lower adsorption energy for reactant molecules, obtaining significantly enhanced activity with a turnover frequency value of 202.5 molCALD·molPt-1·min−1 and obviously improved selectivity of desired products (93 %). This work offers a fundamental understanding of Pt–Ov synergy toward hydrogenation of unsaturated compounds.

Microwave-assisted synthesis of carbon quantum dots and their integration with TiO2 nanotubes for enhanced photocatalytic degradation

This study demonstrates the successful synthesis of carbon quantum dots (CQDs) using the microwave method. Additionally, the hydrothermal method is employed to synthesize CQDs-decorated TiO2 nanotubes (CQDs@TNT) from CQDs decorated TiO2 (CQDs@TiO2). The CQDs induce the quantum confinement effect, observed by employing fluorescence spectroscopy (FL). The decoration of CQDs also results in a 2.92 eV reduction in the band gap in CQDs@TNT. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) reveals the elemental composition of both CQDs and TiO2, including TiO, CO, Ti-O-C, CC, and CO bonds. XRD spectroscopy confirms a reduction in crystallite size and negative microstrain due to compressive strength. The degradation study demonstrates the remarkable photocatalytic activity and stability of CQDs@TNT in the presence of tetracycline (TC) as the target pollutant under simulated visible light. The time dependence of the photodegradation of TC is also studied, and the system is found to be following pseudo second-order kinetics.

Material and microbial perspectives on understanding the role of biochar in mitigating ammonia inhibition during anaerobic digestion

With the increasing adoption of carbon-based strategies to enhance methanogenic processes, there is a growing concern regarding the correlation between biochar properties and its stimulating effects on anaerobic digestion (AD) under ammonia inhibition. This study delves into the relevant characteristics and potential mechanisms of biochar in the context of AD system under ammonia inhibition. The introduction of optimized biochar, distinguished by rich CO bond, abundant defect density, and high electronic capacity, resulted in a significant reduction in the lag period of anaerobic digestion system under 5.0 g/L ammonia stress, approximately by around 63 % compared to the control one. Biochar helps regulate the community structure, promotes the accumulation of acetate-consuming bacteria, in the AD system under ammonia inhibition. More examinations show that biochar promotes direct interspecies electron transfer in AD system under ammonia inhibition, as evidenced by diminished levels of bound electroactive extracellular polymeric substances, increased abundance of electroactive bacteria, and notably, the up-regulation of direct interspecies electron transfer associated genes, including the conductive pili and Cytochrome C genes, as revealed by meta-transcriptomic analysis. Additionally, gene expression related to proteins associated with ammonium detoxification were found to be up-regulated in systems supplemented with biochar. These findings provide essential evidence and insights for the selection and potential engineering of effective biochar to enhance AD performance under ammonia inhibition.

Surface optimization of nanodiamonds using non-thermal plasma

Sensitive local monitoring of intracellular processes by quantum sensing utilizing nitrogen-vacancy (NV) centers in nanodiamonds (NDs), would greatly advance cell biology and medicine. However, NDs still fall behind in sensitivity compared to bulk diamond because of their much shorter NV relaxation times. As suggested in theoretical studies, prolongation of NV relaxation times should be achievable by surface optimization creating mixed H/O surface termination consisting of hydrogen atoms, hydroxyl groups, and C–O–C ether bridges. Here we target such chemistry by employing a non-thermal plasma (NTP) in a point-to-plain discharge configuration in aqueous solution. We have devised a set of experiments with different types of nanodiamond samples (of HPHT or detonation origin and with an H- or O-terminated surface) and four working gases (air, O2, He, and H2). Using FTIR, we have found that NTP modification induces a relative increase of O–H and C–H bonds with respect to CO bonds. We have observed the biggest changes in FTIR spectra and the greatest decrease in zeta potential with oxidized NDs (both detonation and HPHT) and hydrogen as the working gas. NV electron spin relaxation times of thus modified HPHT NDs indicate an improvement of the T1 time by ∼17%–∼29% and the T2 time prolongation of 40%.

Investigation of the pH-mediated fabrication process of pure and polyethyleneimine-crosslinked graphene oxide membranes for desalination and heavy metal ion separation

Graphene oxide (GO) membranes have been extensively investigated and employed in separating various ions and molecules due to their superior physicochemical properties. However, the inconsistency in their pore structure, difficulty in the precise tuning of their d-spacing, and instability in aqueous solution – especially at extreme pH values – might hinder their separation efficiency. In this research, we systematically investigated the pH-mediated fabrication process of graphene oxide membranes and evaluated the properties of the resulting membranes. Findings from scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) analyses show that a higher fabrication pH results in a thicker GO layer and an enlarged d-spacing due to the deprotonation of the GO's carboxyl groups. Furthermore, pH-assisted crosslinking between polyethyleneimine (PEI) and GO sheets were facilitated and the chemical analysis results suggest that in acidic environments, the dominant reaction involves C–N bond formation at the basal plane, whereas under alkaline conditions, N–CO (amide) bond formation at the edges is more prevalent. This, in return, accordingly shifted the trend in SEM and XRD, where a thinner GP layer and a decreased d-spacing were observed at a higher fabrication pH due to the deprotonation of the incorporated PEI's amine groups. These findings contributed to the nanofiltration (NF) performance of the membranes against different inorganic salts and heavy metal ions. It was discovered that the GPpH11 membrane formed at pH 11 has the highest Pb2+ rejection of >95%, making it a suitable material for heavy metal ions removal.

Coordination complexes of reduced organic dye isoviolanthrone with transition metals and lanthanides [Mn(II), Dy(III), Gd(III), Nd(III)

The reduction of a vat dye isoviolanthrone to the dianion state in the presence of metal-containing compounds yields binuclear coordination complexes. Two manganese(II) acetylacetonate units coordinate to isoviolanthrone2− (L) in {(K+)cryptand}2{[MnII(acac)2]2⋅L}2– (1) with an average Mn–O bond length of 2.022(2) Å. Dysprosium(III)- or gadolinium(III)-2,2,6,6-tetramethyl-3,5-heptanedionate (TMHD) units form {(K+)cryptand}2{[MIII(TMHD)3]2⋅L}2− (M = DyIII for 2 and GdIII for 3) with the length of the M−O bonds of 2.193(3) and 2.254(4) Å, respectively. Tris(cyclopentadienyl)neodymium(III) forms {(Cs+)cryptand}2{[Cp3NdIII]2⋅L}2–⋅C6H4Cl2 (4) with the Nd–O bonds of 2.264(2) and 2.308(2) Å length. The formation of isoviolanthrone2− is supported by their optical spectra, disappearance of the bands of the CO vibrations in the IR-spectra as well as elongation of the CO bonds in 1–4. High-spin (S = 5/2) MnII atoms in 1 have exchange interaction of J = − 0.122 cm−1 at g = 1.98. Lanthanides have weaker coupling through isoviolanthrone2− in 2 and 3 with J = − 0.029 and D = − 0.004 cm−1 for DyIII and J = 0.0019 cm−1 for GdIII. Complex 4 with two Cp3NdIII species demonstrates the χMT value of 2.33 emu⋅K/mol at 300 K, and this value is lower than the theoretically calculated value of 3.39 emu⋅K/mol. The decrease of χMT is observed in the whole 300–1.9 K range providing negative Weiss temperatures of –32 K. That is explained by magnetic behavior of Cp3NdIII similar to pristine Cp3NdIII. Complexes comprising MnII, GdIII, and NdIII show electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) signals. Zero-field splitting (ZFS) is observed from MnII and GdIII allowing the estimation of zero-field splitting parameter D as − 0.047 and E close to 0 cm−1 for 1 and − 0.033 and − 0.020 cm−1 for 3. Complex 4 with NdIII manifests an asymmetric two-component EPR signal without ZFS. Weak antiferromagnetic couplings are explained by diamagnetism of isoviolanthrone2− and rather long distances between the metal centers of 15.47–16.25 Å. This study shows that the dianions of organic dyes are promising bidentate ligands for preparation of coordination complexes with d- and f-block metal ions.

Keratin-based bioplastics extracted from chicken feathers: Effect of chitosan concentration on the structural, chemical bonding, and mechanical properties of bioplastics

Keratin was synthesized by alkaline hydrolysis from chicken feathers and then continue by casting method for producing bioplastics with additional various amounts of chitosan as a filler, polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) and glycerol as a plasticizer. The main purpose is analysis the effect of chitosan on the structural properties using quantitative analysis of X-ray diffraction (XRD) spectra, chemical bonding by Fourier transforms infrared (FTIR) spectra, and mechanical properties by texture analyser to the keratin-based bioplastics. Biodegradation of bioplastics was analysed from the loss of weight by burying in the soil. It's found that, the additional of chitosan (0 %, 2 %, 5 %, and 8 %) increased the crystallinity of bioplastics by 11.83 %, 11.12 %, 18.99 %, and 17.03 %, respectively, but decreasing tensile strength and elasticity of bioplastics. Degradation of bioplastic keratin-based shows that the addition of chitosan can reduce the degradation time which is directly proportional to the loss of CO bonds. The highest degradation rate is 89.29 % in 49 days for keratin-based bioplastics with 8 % chitosan, indicated that high potential for future production.

Theoretical study on the effect of oxidation states of phosphorus flame retardants on their mode of action

Polymers are ubiquitous and find applications in various facets of daily life and industrial production. However, the fire incidents induced by polymers jeopardize the safety of human life and property. Improving the fire resistance of polymeric materials through halogen-free flame retardants has become a prominent direction guided by the regulatory framework. In this paper, the decomposition pathways and mechanisms of five phosphorus-containing flame retardants, PPh3, DPPO, PDPP, TPPO and TPP, were investigated. The reaction pathways primarily encompassed the generation of PO, PO2, PO3, PO4, phenyl, and phenoxy radicals. Through a comprehensive analysis of the dissociation energies of P-C, P-O, and CO bonds under diverse chemical environments, phenoxy radicals was the principal decomposition products, with the cleavage of P-O bonds being the predominant choice. Increasing phosphorus oxidation states favors the accumulation of a carbon layer, tending to retard flame propagation through condensed-phase mechanisms. Phosphorus oxidation states primarily facilitated secondary dissociation reactions. The presence of oxygen favored the cleavage of P-C bonds, offering diverse flame retardant mechanisms that concurrently mitigated flame spread. This work provided an in-depth exploration of the flame retardant mechanisms of phosphorus-containing agents and summarized the impact of phosphorus oxidation states on flame retardants.

Computational insights into the reaction mechanism of the synthesis of quinazoline derivatives via the cyclocondensation reaction between methyl 2-amino-4-(2-diethylaminoethoxy)-5-methoxybenzoate and formamide

In this work, the cyclocondensation reaction mechanism between methyl 2-amino-4-(2-diethylaminoethoxy)-5-methoxybenzoate (MAD, 1) and formamide (FME, 2) was theoretically explored at the DFT level using the B3LYP/6-311++G(d,p) computational method. The two paths (a and b) involved in this reaction take place through four steps. CDFT results show the most favourable electrophilic/nucleophilic interaction between the C3 electrophilic center of MAD (1) and the N4 nucleophilic center of FME (2). Activation energy analysis predicts the formation of quinazoline derivative as the main product, in reasonable agreement with experimental results. BET allowed a deeper understanding of the reaction mechanism by revealing the existence of four structural stability domains (SSD) during the processes of CN and OH bond formation. The bond process is as follows: depopulation of V(N) basin with the formation of first CN bond (appearance of V(C,N) basin), cleavage of NH bond with the creation of V(N) and V(H) monosynaptic basins, and finally the appearance of V(H,O) disynaptic basin related to the OH bond. In the case of dehydration, the transition from SSD-I to SSD-II corresponds to the cleavage of the CO bond, whose electron population is transferred to the V(O3) basin. The cleavage of N7-H9 bond with the formation of V(N) and V(H) basins is the first stage, followed by the formation of the OH bond as the second stage.

High-efficiency photocatalytic CO2 reduction enabled by interfacial Ov and isolated Ti3+ of g-C3N4/TiO2 Z-scheme heterojunction

Exploring the real force that drives the separation of Coulomb-bound electron-hole pairs in the interface of heterojunction photocatalysts can establish a clear mechanism for efficient solar energy conversion efficiency. Herein, the formation of oxygen vacancy (Ov) and isolated Ti3+ was precisely regulated at the interface of g-C3N4/TiO2 Z-scheme heterojunction (g-C3N4/Ov-Ti3+-TiO2) by optimizing the opening degree of the calcination system, showing excellent production rate of CO and CH4 from CO2 photoreduction under visible light. This photocatalytic system also exhibited prominent stability. Combining theoretical calculation and characterization, the introduction of Ov and isolated Ti3+ on the interface could construct a charge transfer channel to break the forbidden transition of n → π*, improving the separation process of photoexcited electron-hole pairs. The photoexcited electrons weakened the covalent interaction of CO bonds to promote the activation of adsorbed inert CO2 molecules, significantly reducing the energy barrier of the rate-limiting step during CO2 reduction. This work demonstrates the great application potential of reasonably regulating heterojunction interface for efficient photocatalytic CO2 reduction.

Stabilization of unique Zr>4+ species in NiFe2O4 nanocrystals for unprecedented catalytic transfer hydrogenation reaction

Stabilization of transition metal species (like Zr>4+) with increasingly positive charge density at oxide surfaces is highly important for intrinsically improving catalytic performance for many uses like catalytic transfer hydrogenation (CTH) reaction, which however remains inaccessible. Here, we showcase a water-quenching strategy that stably achieves Zr>4+ species at surfaces of prototype spinel oxide NiFe2O4. Systematic investigation unveils that these Zr>4+species were precisely incorporated into surface octahedral Ni sites of NiFe2O4. The local electronic structure was thus regulated. As a consequence, there simultaneously appear electron depletion (Zr>4+) and accumulation (O2-) at the resulted sites, which play the distinct roles as Lewis acid-base sites in (i) facilitating O-H bond dissociation and CO bond activation, (ii) enhancing the interaction and bonding with substrate molecules, and (iii) reducing the energy barrier for hydrogen transfer process. The resulting catalysts exhibit superior catalytic performance and stability in the CTH reaction of biomass-derived carbonyls and representative aldehydes/ketones, especially the reduction of furfural to furfuryl alcohol with a yield of 90.7% under 120 ℃ for 3 h. This work provides new insights into optimizing catalytic activity in metal oxides by stabilizing transition metal species with unexpectedly positive charge density.

Hydrodeoxygenation of furfural to 2-methylfuran over Cu-Co confined by hollow carbon cage catalyst enhanced by optimized charge transfer and alloy structure

Hydrodeoxygenation of furfural over non-noble metal catalyst is an effective route to synthesis 2-methylfuran, but the reaction is often hampered by the low activity and selectivity of the catalyst. Herein, a bimetallic catalyst with CuCo alloy encapsulated in a hollow nitrogen-doped carbon cages (CuCo/NC) are fabricated by using ZIF-67 as a sacrificial template, which exhibited superior catalytic performance and a full conversion of furfural with a 95.7 % selectivity towards 2-methylfuran was achieved at an under relatively mild reaction conditions (150 ℃, 1.5 MPa H2 and 4.0 h). The characterizations and density functional theory calculations clearly evidenced that the introduced Cu species acts as a switch to regulate the activity and selectivity of the catalyst via two aspects. On the one hand, the Cu species perturb the Co electronic structure leading to adsorption configuration of furfural change from flat to vertical on the catalyst surface, which successfully hindered the hydrogenation of furan ring, resulting high selectivity towards 2-methylfuran. On the other hand, the formed CuCo (111) sites promotes the dissociation of hydrogen, cleavage of the CO bond and reduces the diffusion barrier of hydrogen so as to advance the formation of 2-methylfuran. This work may provide a feasible strategy for the design of nanoalloy catalyst for the hydrodeoxygenation of biomass platforms to value-added chemicals.

Bimetallic Synergy Enables Silole Insertion into THF and the Synthesis of Erbium Single-Molecule Magnets.

The potassium silole K2 [SiC4 -2,5-(SiMe3 )2 -3,4-Ph2 ] reacts with [M(η8 -COT)(THF)4 ][BPh4 ] (M=Er, Y; COT=cyclo-octatetraenyl) in THF to give products that feature unprecedented insertion of the nucleophilic silicon centre into a carbon-oxygen bond of THF. The structure of the major product, [(μ-η8 : η8 -COT)M(μ-L1 )K]∞ (1M ), consists of polymeric chains of sandwich complexes, where the spiro-bicyclic silapyran ligand [C4 H8 OSiC4 (SiMe3 )2 Ph2 ]2- (L1 ) coordinates to potassium via the oxygen. The minor product [(μ-η8 : η8 -COT)M(μ-L1 )K(THF)]2 (2M ) features coordination of the silapyran to the rare-earth metal. In forming 1M and 2M , silole insertion into THF only occurs in the presence of potassium and the rare-earth metal, highlighting the importance of bimetallic synergy. The lower nucleophilicity of germanium(II) leads to contrasting reactivity of the potassium germole K2 [GeC4 -2,5-(SiMe3 )2 -3,4-Me2 ] towards [M(η8 -COT)(THF)4 ][BPh4 ], with intact transfer of the germole occurring to give the coordination polymers [{η5 -GeC4 (SiMe3 )2 Me2 }M(η8 -COT)K]∞ (3M ). Despite the differences in reactivity induced by the group 14 heteroatom, the single-molecule magnet properties of 1Er , 2Er and 3Er are similar, with thermally activated relaxation occurring via the first-excited Kramers doublet, subject to effective energy barriers of 122, 80 and 91 cm-1 , respectively. Compound 1Er is also analysed by high-frequency dynamic magnetic susceptibility measurements up to 106 Hz.

Ni@C nanocatalysts for the highly efficient hydrogenation of maleic anhydride to γ-butyrolactone

Core-shell Ni@C catalysts with a uniform grain size distribution were synthesised via a simple hydrothermal method followed by pyrolysis carbonisation, and their catalytic performance for the liquid-phase hydrogenation of maleic anhydride (MA) was investigated herein. When the pyrolysis temperature was 350 °C, the resulting Ni@C catalyst (Ni@C-350) possessed abundant Ni/NiO heterostructures and a carbon surface layer. Among the analysed catalysts, Ni@C-350 demonstrated the lowest apparent activation energy for the hydrogenation of CC bonds (Ea = 34.3 KJ/mol) and CO bonds (Ea = 65.18 KJ/mol), yielding an MA conversion of 100 % and a γ-butyrolactone (GBL) selectivity of 99.89 % under mild reaction conditions (200 °C, 3 MPa hydrogen pressure, and 0.05 g catalyst). Furthermore, the Ni@C-350 catalyst exhibited high stability, with the yield of GBL above 95 % after five consecutive usage cycles. Ni@C-350 significantly outperformed other previously reported catalysts for the liquid-phase hydrogenation of MA.

Leaching of catalyst platinum from cured silicone elastomers: A preliminary study for comparing reagents

Addition curing systems involve two-part silicones which require the mixture of a silicone polymer with a catalyst to initiate the cure. Platinum is the most commonly used metal catalyst for addition curing of silicones by hydrosilylation which involves the crosslinking by the addition reaction of silicon hydride species to unsaturated bonds, mainly CC, but also CO or CN double bonds. After crosslinking of the polymers, the platinum catalyst cannot be recovered but remains in the silicone materials throughout the entire product life. In the end, platinum is disposed of together with the silicones and is thus lost to the value chain. The overall objective of this work was to develop a recycling process for the recovery of platinum from addition-cured silicone elastomers. In the first step, this was achieved by efficient digestion methods and by optimizing the leaching processes for exemplary commercial silicone elastomer products. Two different silicone materials were investigated, both of which were crosslinked with a platinum catalyst. The initial Pt content in the tested samples was 12.6 ± 0.2 mg/kg for a commercial silicone impression material and 6.3 ± 0.5 mg/kg for a silicone baking mold, measured by graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrometry (GF-AAS). Samples were first frozen with liquid nitrogen to improve brittleness and then crushed with a simple food processor to obtain a silicone granule. Various acid mixtures, mainly based on sulfuric acid, were investigated as digestion methods in order to extract platinum from the silicone network. These had different effects on the dissolution behavior of silicone samples and the amount of platinum extracted in each case. The amount of platinum leached from the filtrate of the digested samples in each case was measured by ICP-OES to evaluate the efficiency of different leaching mixtures. In addition, the dissolved platinum species present in the solutions was identified by UV/VIS as tetrachloridoplatinate(II) complex. The best platinum leaching results so far were obtained with two methods, both of which used a leaching mixture based on sulfuric acid and hexamethyldisiloxane (M2). In the presence of hydrochloric acid, 9.6 ± 1.6 mg platinum/kg was leached from the silicone impression material and 4.2 ± 0.8 mg platinum/kg from the silicone baking mold. With the additional use of aqua regia instead of hydrochloric acid, 10.4 ± 2.8 mg platinum/kg was extracted from the silicone impression material and 4.8 ± 1.0 mg platinum/kg was extracted from the silicone baking mold. These methods were replicated with n = 3. Using statistical evaluation methods (F-test, t-test, and confidence interval), no significant difference was found between these two best methods. Recovery of platinum(0) from leach mixtures has not yet been achieved due to high dilution and very low platinum concentration in samples and will be part of another study.

How do the main components influence the VOCs emission characteristics and formation pathways during moso bamboo heat treatment?

Bamboo heat treatment will cause plenty of release of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) into the atmosphere which are important precursors for ozone (O3) formation. In this study, dewaxed bamboo was heat-treated at 180 °C for 2 h to investigate the emission characteristics and the formation pathways of VOCs during heat treatment by removing different main components. The results showed that aldehydes (22.61%–57.54%) and esters (14.64%–38.88%) are the primary VOCs released during heat treatment. These compounds mainly originate from the degradation of hemicellulose, lignin, cellulose, and the linkage bonds between them in bamboo. During the bamboo heat treatment, the degradation of CO, CH, and CO bonds in hemicellulose results in the release of 5-hydroxymethylfurfural, 3-furfural, and 1-(+)-ascorbic acid 2,6-dihexadecanoate. The breakage of benzene ring group and the CO and CH bonds of lignin leading to the emission of VOCs including m-Formylphenol, Vanillin, and Syringaldehyde. The degradation of aliphatic CH, CC, and CO bonds in the amorphous region of cellulose contributes to an enhanced release of alcohols, olefins, and alkanes. It is calculated that acids (28.92%–59.47%), esters (10.10%–22.03%) and aldehydes (17.88%–39.91%) released during heat treatment contributed more to Ozone Formation Potential (OFP).

Mechanism of initial activation of carbon–oxygen bonds for deoxidation of acetic acid

Producing valuable fuel-ranged hydrocarbons from cellulosic biomass is an effective approach to addressing potential energy issues. However, the cellulose-derived bio-oil may contain carboxylic acid components that contribute to the unfavorable acidic and corrosive nature, which necessitates upgrading through the hydrodeoxygenation (HDO) treatment using heterogeneous catalysis. Here, we performed reactive force-field molecular dynamics (ReaxFF-MD) to study the hydrogenolysis, dehydrogenation and decarboxylation mechanisms of the acetic acid model compound on the Ni-based catalyst. Comparative analysis of the activation of C–O and C=O bonds was presented, followed by an examination of the associative desorption of H2 and the dynamic evolution of main intermediates. Furthermore, the conversion pathways of key intermediates were determined and four main pathways for ethanol generation and the temperature-response mechanism for coking formation were proposed. This mechanism diagram explains the strong effects of a hydrogen environment in biomass-related reactions, highlighting the dynamic mechanism of selective hydrogenation and deoxygenation of carbon–oxygen bonds.

Biomass substrate-derived graphene-like N-doped porous carbon nanosheet-supported PtCo nanocatalyst for efficient and selective hydrogenation of unsaturated furanic aldehydes

Unsaturated furanic aldehydes are derived from lignocellulosic biomass resources and subsequently used to produce valuable chemicals. However, the highly efficient, selective hydrogenation of the biomass-derived unsaturated furan CO bond remains challenging. Here we report that graphene-like nitrogen doped porous carbon (GNPC) nanosheets are synthesized from carbon-rich, sustainable, and renewable biomass precursors (glucose, fructose and 5-hydroxymethylfurfural, HMF) with high surface areas, large pore volumes and narrow mesopores. GNPC derived from HMF is an excellent catalyst support for PtCo nanoparticles with ultrafine nanoparticles size and homogeneous distributions. This catalyst is highly efficient for hydrogenation of biomass-derived furan-based unsaturated aldehydes, with high yields, to the corresponding unsaturated alcohols under mild conditions. This design strategy should further allow the development of selective, simple, green heterogeneous catalysts for challenging chemical transformations.

Exploring flow reactor pyrolysis of branched OMEs: Insights into multi-sidechain effects on pyrolysis chemistry of CH3OCH3-n(OCH3)n (n = 1–3)

Oxymethylene ethers (OMEs) have received great attention due to their carbon-neutral nature and advantageous properties as alternative transportation fuels or fuel additives. Previous studies focused on the combustion of linear OMEs with the chemical formula of CH3O(CH2O)mCH3 (m ≥ 0), while a deep understanding of the combustion of branched OMEs with the chemical formula of CH3OCH3-n(OCH3)n (0 ≤ n ≤ 3) is still absent. In this work, the flow reactor pyrolysis of dimethoxymethane (DMM, n = 1), trimethoxymethane (TMM, n = 2), and tetramethoxymethane (TeMM, n = 3) is investigated using gas chromatography, with special attention given to the multi-sidechain effects on the pyrolysis chemistry. A pyrolysis model of branched OMEs is developed and validated against the new pyrolysis data. Modeling analysis is performed to provide insights into the pyrolysis chemistry of the three branched OMEs and the multi-sidechain effects. Unimolecular decomposition and H-abstraction reactions are found to be two major types of fuel decomposition pathways, with the former dominating TMM decomposition, the latter dominating DMM decomposition, and both contributing almost equally to TeMM decomposition. Sensitivity analysis shows that CO bond dissociation is the most sensitive reaction to fuel decomposition in DMM pyrolysis, while methanol elimination is the most sensitive reaction in TMM and TeMM pyrolysis. Among the three fuels, DMM has the lowest pyrolysis reactivity and produces the least abundant methanol. In contrast, TMM is observed with the highest pyrolysis reactivity and produces the most abundant methanol. Theoretical calculations reveal that TMM and DMM have the lowest and highest energy barriers of methanol elimination reactions, which determines the order of their pyrolysis reactivities and methanol formation trends. As a result, DMM pyrolysis occurs at higher temperature regions where the CO bond dissociation and H-abstraction reactions are preferred, while TMM pyrolysis occurs at lower temperature region where methanol elimination dominates.