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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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At least 55 records · Page 3
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2020

Heterogeneous Supramolecular Catalysis through Immobilization of Anionic M 4 L 6 Assemblies on Cationic Polymers

Although most of the currently developed supramolecular catalysts that emulate enzymatic reactivity with unique selectivity and activity through specific host-guest interactions work under homogeneous conditions, enzymes in nature can operate under heterogeneous conditions as membrane-bound enzymes. In order to develop such a heterogeneous system, an immobilized chiral supramolecular cluster Ga 4 1 6 ( 2 ) was introduced into cross-linked polymers with cationic functionalities. These heterogeneous supramolecular catalysts were used in aza-Prins and aza-Cope reactions and successfully applied to continuous-flow reactions. Additionally, they showed high durability and maintained high turnovers for long periods of time. In sharp contrast to the majority of examples of heterogenized homogeneous catalysts, the newly developed catalysts showed enhanced activity and robustness compared to those exhibited by the corresponding soluble cluster catalyst. An enantioenriched cluster was also immobilized to enable asymmetric catalysis, and activity and enantioselectivity of the supported chiral catalyst were maintained during recovery and reuse experiments and under a continuous-flow process. Significantly, the structure of the ammonium cations in the polymers affected stability, reactivity, and enantioselectivity, which is consistent with the hypothesis that the cationic moieties in the polymer support interact with cluster as an exohedral protecting shell, thereby influencing their catalytic performance.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2020

Structure and Reactivity of Single-Site Vanadium Catalysts Supported on Metal–Organic Frameworks

Single-site catalysts with active species anchored over metal–organic framework (MOF) supports have garnered significant interest in recent years. Catalysts with vanadium oxide (VO x ) species immobilized over Zr-NU-1000 and Hf-MOF-808 (which have nodes containing six Zr (IV) or Hf (IV) ions, respectively) were recently characterized experimentally and were reported to be active for the selective oxidation of benzyl alcohol to benzaldehyde. Here, we report a detailed computational investigation of these VO x -incorporated MOF catalysts (V-MOF) by employing density functional theory. Based on the mode of VO x attachment, various structures are explored, and their relative stabilities and computed IR spectral features are reported. Mechanisms for the selective oxidation reaction are investigated. The analysis of electron flow in the turnover-limiting C–H activation step shows that the hydrogen-atom abstraction process involves a concerted proton-coupled electron-transfer mechanism. Here, the results of this study suggest that in addition to the identity of the metal in the node, the MOF node architecture plays a crucial role in driving the catalytic activities of V-MOFs.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2026

Ionic Precursors Transformed Into Vinyl Acetate Synthesis Catalyst via Reaction-Driven Restructuring

Conventional preparation of supported bimetallic catalysts relies on solution-mediated metal salt immobilization and pre-formation of alloy nanoparticles before reaction. Here, we report a fundamentally different synthesis strategy of using a physical mixture of salt precursors to generate an active catalyst during reaction. The catalytic structure is generated in situ from Pd3(OAc)6, Au(OH)3, and KOAc through H2 treatment and reaction-driven restructuring under vinyl acetate monomer (VAM) synthesis conditions. Ascertained from in situ X-ray diffraction and operando infrared spectroscopy analyses, reduction treatment produces segregated Pd and Au domains, and subsequent exposure to a VAM reaction mixture triggers dynamic extraction of Pd from the metal surface. This latter process, mediated by acetate-assisted redox cycles, facilitates Pd migration toward Au domains to form a near-surface localized Pd50Au50 alloy phase. Monometallic Pd domains serve as a reservoir of Pd to the alloy phase, leading to and sustaining a more Pd-enriched active surface and a higher population of accessible Pd sites, compared to a conventionally prepared K-PdAu/SiO2 catalyst. Consequently, this leads to a twofold increase in the VAM formation rate, demonstrating highly active bimetallic catalysts can be generated through the gas-phase treatment of physically mixed ionic precursors.

Cha, Byeong Jun [Rice University]↗
DOE OSTI2021

Highly Selective Carbon-Supported Boron for Oxidative Dehydrogenation of Propane

Bulk boron materials, such as hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN), are highly selective catalysts for the oxidative dehydrogenation of propane (ODHP). Previous attempts to improve the productivity of these systems involved the immobilization of boron on silica and resulted in less selective catalysts. Here, we report that acid-treated, activated carbon-supported boron prepared via incipient wetness impregnation with boric acid (B/OAC) exhibits equal propylene selectivity and improved productivity (kg propylene kg cat -1 hr -1 ) as compared to h-BN. Characterization of the fresh and spent catalysts with infrared, Raman, X-ray photoelectron, and solid-state NMR spectroscopies reveals the presence of oxidized/hydrolyzed boron that is clustered on the surface of the support.

03 NATURAL GAS↗
DOE OSTI2023

Continuous-flow reactor with superior production rate and stability for CO 2 reduction using semiconductor photocatalysts

Semiconductor photocatalyst approaches for solar CO 2 reduction are attractive due to their simplicity but have lagged in efficiency compared to less-integrated photoelectrochemical (PEC) approaches and to electrolysis reactors. We identify poor mass transport and catalyst deactivation as key constraints. To address them, we have developed a continuous-flow photocatalytic reactor system allowing us to control the triple-phase interface on the photocatalyst surface using the liquid and reactant gas flow rates. With the goal of selectively producing CO, the reactor is optimized by controlling the pressure and flow rates of the reactant gas and electrolyte in contact with both sides with the intermediately placed catalyst. In comparison to batch reactors with an immobile photocatalyst bed and gas phase CO 2 or CO 2 purged water, 10–24 times higher production rates are achieved for photocatalysts such as TiO 2 , ZnO, C 3 N 4 , and CdS by simply changing to the designed flow-type photoreactor without any catalyst modification. In addition, CO selectivity (93.2%) and long-term stability (>780 min) using the designed reactor are significantly enhanced compared to using the batch reactors (71.7%, <180 min for reduced 50% activity). Here, we propose that the enhanced mass transport on the photocatalyst surface accelerates the desorption of the initial photolysis product, CO, and prevents the poisoning effect from deactivating photocatalyst activity. This study has the potential to facilitate the utilization of semiconductor-based photocatalytic reactions for achieving superior performance wih gaseous reactants.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2022

Molecular Catalysts with Diphosphine Ligands Containing Pendant Amines

Pendant amines play an invaluable role in chemical reactivity, especially for molecular catalysts based on Earth-abundant metals. As inspired by [FeFe]-hydrogenases, which contain a pendant amine positioned for cooperative bifunctionality, synthetic catalysts have been developed to emulate this multifunctionality through incorporation of a pendant amine in the second coordination sphere. Cyclic diphosphine ligands containing two amines serve as the basis for a class of catalysts that have been extensively studied and used to demonstrate the impact of a pendant base. These 1,5-diaza-3,7-diphosphacyclooctanes, now often referred to as “P 2 N 2 ” ligands, have profound effects on the reactivity of many catalysts. The resulting [Ni(P R 2 N R ´ 2 ) 2 ] 2+ complexes are electrocatalysts for both the oxidation and production of H 2 . Achieving the optimal benefit of the pendant amine requires that it has suitable basicity and is properly positioned relative to the metal center. In addition to the catalytic efficacy demonstrated with [Ni(P R 2 N R ´ 2 )2] 2+ complexes for the oxidation and production of H2, catalysts with diphosphine ligands containing pendant amines have also be demonstrated for a variety of metals for many different reactions, both in solution and immobilized on surfaces. Here, the impact of pendant amines in catalyst design has been demonstrated and continues to expand.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2025

Well-defined Pt(0) heterogeneous hydrosilylation catalysts supported by a surface bound phosphenium

Single atom, low valent transition metals are important for heterogeneous catalysis but are challenging to generate and stabilize in a well-defined manner. Herein, we explored the functionalization of silica with well-defined N-heterocyclic phosphenium (NHP) ions to heterogenize low-valent metals. The surface electro-statically bound [NHP] + coordinate to Pt(0) precursors resulting in well-defined, chemisorbed [(NHP)Pt(0)L n ] + sites. The resulting materials catalyze the hydrosilylation of alkynes and exhibit activities and selectivities that rival the current industry standard homogeneous catalysts. The catalysts leach Pt limiting their recyclability; however, recycling studies support that the high regioselectivities arise from heterogeneous sites and Pt particles do not form on the surface. Here we suspect that this phosphenium-based immobilization strategy will result in stable, tunable, low valent heterogeneous transition metal catalysts in a wider array of catalytic reactions.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2020

Activation of Low-Valent, Multiply M–M Bonded Group VI Dimers toward Catalytic Olefin Metathesis via Surface Organometallic Chemistry

Olefin metathesis is a broadly employed reaction with applications that range from fine chemicals to materials and petrochemicals. The design and investigation of olefin metathesis catalysts have been ongoing for over half a century, with advancements made in terms of activity, stability, and selectivity. Immobilization of organometallic complexes onto solid supports such as silica or alumina is a promising strategy for catalyst heterogenization, often resulting in increased activity and stability. Consequently, a broad range of early transition metal catalysts bearing alkyl, oxide/alkoxide, and amide ligands have been grafted onto silica and their reactivities investigated. In this paper, we report a series of silica-supported tungsten and molybdenum dimers (X 3 M≡MX 3, where M = W and Mo; X = neopentyl, tert-butoxide, and dimethyl amide) and their reactivities toward catalytic olefin metathesis. Dynamic nuclear polarization (DNP)-enhanced solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance (SSNMR), diffuse reflectance infrared Fourier transform (DRIFT), UV resonance Raman, and X-ray absorption (XAS) spectroscopies suggest that upon heterogenization the dimers bind to the surface in a monopodal fashion, with the M≡M triple bond remaining intact. These structural assignments were further corroborated by density functional theory (DFT) calculations. While the homogeneous dimer counterparts are inert, the supported low-valent alkyl W and Mo dimers become active for the disproportionative self-metathesis of propylene to ethylene and butenes and 4-nonene to 4-octene and 5-decene under mild conditions. The lack of activity observed for the free and supported tert-butoxide and dimethyl amide dimers likely suggests that the neopentyl groups are necessary for the formation of a putative alkylidene active species. The difference in reactivity between the free and supported dimers could be explained either by the lowering of the activation barrier of the complex through the electronic effects of the surface or by site isolation of catalytically relevant reactive intermediates.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2022

Durable and Versatile Immobilized Carbonic Anhydrase on Textile Structured Packing for CO 2 Capture

High-performance carbon dioxide (CO 2 )-capture technologies with low environmental impact are necessary to combat the current climate change crisis. Durable and versatile “drop-in-ready” textile structured packings with covalently immobilized carbonic anhydrase (CA) were created as efficient, easy to handle catalysts for CO 2 absorption in benign solvents. The hydrophilic textile structure itself contributed high surface area and superior liquid transport properties to promote gas-liquid reactions that were further enhanced by the presence of CA, leading to excellent CO 2 absorption efficiencies in lab-scale tests. Mechanistic investigations revealed that CO 2 capture efficiency depended primarily on immobilized enzymes at or near the surface, whereas polymer entrapped enzymes were more protected from external stressors than those exposed at the surface, providing strategies to optimize performance and durability. Textile packing with covalently attached enzyme aggregates retained 100% of the initial 66.7% CO 2 capture efficiency over 71-day longevity testing and retained 85% of the initial capture efficiency after 1-year of ambient dry storage. Subsequent stable performance in a 500 h continuous liquid flow scrubber test emphasized the material robustness. Biocatalytic textile packings performed well with different desirable solvents and across wide CO 2 concentration ranges that are critical for CO 2 capture from coal and natural gas-fired power plants, from natural gas and biogas for fuel upgrading, and directly from air.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2025

Workflow for evaluating enzyme immobilization and performance for continuous flow manufacturing

Enzymes have shown promise in various industries due to their functional specificity, catalytic efficiency, and environmental sustainability. These biological catalysts can be a pivotal component of manufacturing pipelines like continuous flow chemistry. For this, there exists a need to robustly immobilize enzymes on solid supports and assess the effects of the solid supports on catalytic performance and stability. Here, we use an industrially relevant model enzyme, C. ensiformis (Jack bean) urease, to demonstrate immobilization and assess performance in the context of continuous flow manufacturing. Various immobilization strategies were screened focusing on immobilization efficiency, protocol simplicity, and urease biocatalyst kinetics. Based on this, CDI-agarose and NHS-agarose resins were identified as the best-performing immobilization strategies for urease. CDI-agarose-urease and NHS-agarose-urease were then scaled up and applied to a large-scale continuous flow reactor to evaluate product yields, operational stability, and long-term stability. These experiments identified differences in stability and performance depending on the immobilization method tested. This highlights the importance of screening immobilization methods and subsequent enzyme performance for each candidate biocatalyst used in manufacturing to promote optimal performance and stability. As such, this work provides a framework for evaluating enzyme biocatalyst immobilization approaches to improve performance and enable transition into industrial processes.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2020

Stabilization of Photocatalytically Active Uranyl Species in a Uranyl–Organic Framework for Heterogeneous Alkane Fluorination Driven by Visible Light

When photoactivated, the uranyl ion is a robust oxidant capable of abstracting hydrogen atoms from nonactivated C–H bonds. Yet, the highly reactive singly reduced [U V O 2 ] + intermediate is unstable with respect to disproportionation to the uranyl dication and insoluble tetravalent uranium phases, which limits the usage of uranyl ions as robust photocatalysts. Herein, we demonstrate that photoactivated uranyl ions can be stabilized by immobilizing and separating them spatially in a uranyl–organic framework heterogeneous catalyst, NU-1301. The visible-light-photoactivated uranyl ions in NU-1301 demonstrated longer-lived U(V) and radicals than those in homogeneous counterparts, as evidenced by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and time-dependent electron paramagnetic resonance, leading to higher turnovers and enhanced stability for the fluorination of nonactivated alkanes.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2023

Intensified Catalytic Conversion of CO2 into High Value Chemicals

The utilization of CO2 produced from power generation plants as a feedstock for creating new valuable products offers a strategy to reduce GHG emissions, offset carbon capture costs, and facilitate the rebalancing of the carbon cycle. After considering the thermodynamic requirement of potential products from CO2 utilization and their market size, formic acid is a desirable target that offers widespread utility in industrial chemical production and chemical energy storage as a liquid fuel. To effectively utilize CO2 from power generation plants, UK proposes an enhanced bimetallic oxide carbon utilization process (EBOCU) that enables electrochemical CO2 conversion to formic acid. The UK intensified electrocatalytic process combines three main components: 1) a novel bimetallic oxide electrocatalyst; 2) a stable electrochemical reactor using robust electrodes; and 3) a pressurized electrochemical reactor. The output from this project showed the economic viability of producing high-value formic acid from CO2 to both offset the cost associated with post-combustion CCS and reduce GHG emissions. This project developed and screened a series engineered catalysts to selectively reduce CO2 directly to formic acid. The best performing catalyst based on formic acid production, stability, and Faradaic efficiency, was immobilized on carbon electrodes, and tested inside a flow through reactor. After lab-scale testing was completed, the experimental data was used to perform a Life-Cycle Analysis (LCA) and conduct an Initial Technical and Economic Feasibility Study. The LCA showed a pathway to a net negative CO2 utilization process with the incorporation of renewable energy, while the TEA showed the potential to produce formic acid below the current commercial price. The UK EBOCU process was successfully demonstrated at the TRL3 level and has a clear pathway to further development and contribution to the nation’s ambitious decarbonization goals.

20 FOSSIL-FUELED POWER PLANTS↗
DOE OSTI2023

Selective Methane Oxidation by Heterogenized Iridium Catalysts

Oxidative methane (CH 4 ) carbonylation promises a direct route to the synthesis of value-added oxygenates such as acetic acid (CH 3 COOH). Here, in this paper, we report a strategy to realize oxidative CH 4 carbonylation through immobilized Ir complexes on an oxide support. Our immobilization approach not only enables direct CH 4 activation but also allows for easy separation and reutilization of the catalyst. Furthermore, we show that a key step, methyl migration, that forms a C–C bond, is sensitive to the electrophilicity of carbonyl, which can be tuned by a gentle reduction to the Ir centers. While the as-prepared catalyst that mainly featured Ir(IV) preferred CH 3 COOH production, a reduced catalyst featuring predominantly Ir(III) led to a significant increase of CH 3 OH production at the expense of the reduced yield of CH 3 COOH.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2021

Noncovalent Immobilization of Pentamethylcyclopentadienyl Iridium Complexes on Ordered Mesoporous Carbon for Electrocatalytic Water Oxidation

The attachment of molecular catalysts to conductive supports for the preparation of solid-state anodes is important for the development of devices for electrocatalytic water oxidation. The preparation and characterization of three molecular cyclopentadienyl iridium(III) complexes, Cp*Ir(1-pyrenyl(2-pyridyl)ethanolate-κO,κN)Cl (1) (Cp* = pentamethylcyclopentadienyl), Cp*Ir(diphenyl(2-pyridyl)methanolate-κO,κN)Cl (2), and [Cp*Ir(4-(1-pyrenyl)-2,2'-bipyridine)Cl]Cl (3), as precursors for electrochemical water oxidation catalysts, are reported. These complexes contain aromatic groups that can be attached via noncovalent π-stacking to ordered mesoporous carbon (OMC). The resulting iridium-based OMC materials (Ir-1, Ir-2, and Ir-3) were tested for electrocatalytic water oxidation leading to turnover frequencies (TOFs) of 0.9–1.6 s -1 at an overpotential of 300 mV under acidic conditions. The stability of the materials is demonstrated by electrochemical cycling and X-ray absorption spectroscopy analysis before and after catalysis. Theoretical studies on the interactions between the molecular complexes and the OMC support provide insight onto the noncovalent binding and are in agreement with the experimental loadings.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2024

N and OH-Immobilized Cu 3 Clusters In Situ Reconstructed from Single-Metal Sites for Efficient CO 2 Electromethanation in Bicontinuous Mesochannels

Cu-based catalysts hold promise for electrifying CO 2 to produce methane, an extensively used fuel. However, the activity and selectivity remain insufficient due to the lack of catalyst design principles to steer complex CO 2 reduction pathways. Herein, we develop a concept to design carbon-supported Cu catalysts by regulating Cu active sites’ atomic-scale structures and engineering the carbon support’s mesoscale architecture. This aims to provide a favorable local reaction microenvironment for a selective CO 2 reduction pathway to methane. In situ X-ray absorption and Raman spectroscopy analyses reveal the dynamic reconstruction of nitrogen and hydroxyl-immobilized Cu 3 (N,OH-Cu 3 ) clusters derived from atomically dispersed Cu–N 3 sites under realistic CO 2 reduction conditions. The N,OH-Cu 3 sites possess moderate *CO adsorption affinity and a low barrier for *CO hydrogenation, enabling intrinsically selective CO 2 -to-CH 4 reduction compared to the C–C coupling with a high energy barrier. Importantly, a block copolymer-derived carbon fiber support with interconnected mesopores is constructed. The unique long-range mesochannels offer an H 2 O-deficient microenvironment and prolong the transport path for the CO intermediate, which could suppress the hydrogen evolution reaction and favor deep CO 2 reduction toward methane formation. Thus, the newly developed catalyst consisting of in situ constructed N,OH-Cu 3 active sites embedded into bicontinuous carbon mesochannels achieved an unprecedented Faradaic efficiency of 74.2% for the CO 2 reduction to methane at an industry-level current density of 300 mA cm –2 . In conclusion, this work explores effective concepts for steering desirable reaction pathways in complex interfacial catalytic systems via modulating active site structures at the atomic level and engineering pore architectures of supports on the mesoscale to create favorable microenvironments.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2022

Sustainable conversion of biomass to rationally designed lithium-ion battery graphite

The carbon net negative conversion of bio-char, the low value byproduct of pyrolysis bio-oil production from biomass, to high value, very high purity, highly crystalline flake graphite agglomerates with rationally designed shape and size tailored for lithium-ion battery energy storage material is reported. The process is highly efficient, 0.41 g/Wh; the energy content of its co-product of the process, bio-oil, exceeds that needed to power the process. It is shown that the shape of the starting material is retained during the transformation, allowing the ultimate morphology of the graphite agglomerates to be engineered from relatively malleable biomass. In contrast to commercial graphite production, the process can be performed at small scale with low equipment costs, enabling individual research laboratories to produce Li-ion grade graphite with customizable shape, size and porosity for Si/graphite composite and other graphite involved anodes. The mechanism of the graphitization of bio-char, a “non-graphitizable” carbon, is explored, suggesting the molten metal catalyst is absorbed into the pore structure, transported through and transforming the largely immobile biochar. Finally, the transformation of biomass to rationally designed graphite morphologies with Li-ion anode performance that closely mimic commercial shaped graphite is demonstrated.

09 BIOMASS FUELS↗
DOE OSTI2023

Synthesis and Surface Attachment of Molecular Re(I) Complexes Supported by Functionalized Bipyridyl Ligands

Eleven 2,2'-bipyridine (bpy) ligands functionalized with attachment groups for covalent immobilization on silicon surfaces were prepared. Five of the ligands feature silatrane functional groups for attachment to metal oxide coatings on the silicon surfaces, while six contain either alkene or alkyne functional groups for attachment to hydrogen-terminated silicon surfaces. The bpy ligands were coordinated to Re(CO) 5 Cl to form complexes of the type Re(bpy)(CO) 3 Cl, which are related to known catalysts for CO 2 reduction. Six of the new complexes were characterized using X-ray crystallography. As proof of principle, four molecular Re complexes were immobilized on either a thin layer of TiO 2 on silicon or hydrogen-terminated silicon. The surface-immobilized complexes were characterized using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, IR spectroscopy, and cyclic voltammetry (CV) in the dark and for one representative example in the light. The CO stretching frequencies of the attached complexes were similar to those of the pure molecular complexes, but the CVs were less analogous. For two of the complexes, comparison of the electrocatalytic CO 2 reduction performance showed lower CO Faradaic efficiencies for the immobilized complexes than the same complex in solution under similar conditions. In particular, a complex containing a silatrane linked to bpy with an amide linker showed poor catalytic performance and control experiments suggest that amide linkers in conjugation with a redox-active ligand are not stable under highly reducing conditions and alkyl linkers are more stable. So a conclusion of this work is that understanding the behavior of molecular Re catalysts attached to semiconducting silicon is more complicated than related complexes, which have previously been immobilized on metallic electrodes.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗