Chinese Journal of Catalysis ›› 2022, Vol. 43 ›› Issue (4): 898-912.DOI: 10.1016/S1872-2067(21)63933-5

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Rational design and precise manipulation of nano-catalysts

Qinggang Liu, Junguo Ma, Chen Chen*()   

  1. Department of Chemistry, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China
  • Received:2021-07-29 Accepted:2021-07-29 Online:2022-03-05 Published:2021-09-06
  • Contact: Chen Chen
  • About author:Chen Chen received his BS degree from the Department of Chemistry, Beijing Institute of Technology in 2006, and his PhD degree from the Department of Chemistry, Tsinghua University in 2011. After the postdoctoral work at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, he joined the Department of Chemistry at Tsinghua University as an Associate Professor in 2015, and was promoted to Professor with tenure in 2021. His research interests are focused on nanomaterials for catalysis and sustainable energy. His name is in the lists of Highly Cited Researchers 2021 from Clarivate. He joined the Editorial Board of Chinese Journal of Catalysis in 2020.
  • Supported by:
    National Key R&D Program of China(2016YFA0202801);National Key R&D Program of China(2017YFA0700101);National Natural Science Foundation of China(21925202);National Natural Science Foundation of China(21872076);National Natural Science Foundation of China(22008136);Beijing Natural Science Foundation(JQ18007);Tsinghua University Initiative Scientific Research Program

Abstract:

Nano-catalysis plays a vital role in the chemical transformations and significantly impacts the booming modern chemical industry. The rapid technological enhancements have resulted in serious energy and environmental issues, which are currently spurring the exploration of the novel nano-catalysts in diverse fields. In order to develop the efficient nano-catalysts, it is essential to understand their fundamental physicochemical properties, including the coordination structures of the active centers and substrate-adsorbate interactions. Subsequently, the nano-catalyst design with precise manipulation at the atomic level can be attained. In this account, we have summarized our extensive investigation of the factors impacting nano-catalysis, along with the synthetic strategies developed to prepare the nano-catalysts for applications in electrocatalysis, photocatalysis and thermocatalysis. Finally, a brief conclusion and future research directions on nano-catalysis have also been presented.

Key words: Nano-catalysis, Single-atom catalysts, Water splitting, Oxygen reduction reaction, CO2 reduction reaction, Silane oxidation, Benzene oxidation, N-formylation