A templating approach with phase change to tailored coordination of single- and multiple-atom catalysts
Abstract Single-atom catalysts (SACs) with featured active sites exhibit exceptional catalytic activity and selectivity in catalysis. However, their scalable synthesis and precise control of structure coordination for on-demand atomic configurations remain the bottlenecks in practical applications....
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| Format: | Article |
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Nature Portfolio
2025-08-01
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| Series: | Nature Communications |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-63117-7 |
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| author | Zhong-Shuai Zhu Pengtang Wang Haobo Li Ya Liu Yunpeng Wang Kunsheng Hu Bernt Johannessen Shiying Ren Shuang Zhong Hongqi Sun Xiaoguang Duan Shaobin Wang |
| author_facet | Zhong-Shuai Zhu Pengtang Wang Haobo Li Ya Liu Yunpeng Wang Kunsheng Hu Bernt Johannessen Shiying Ren Shuang Zhong Hongqi Sun Xiaoguang Duan Shaobin Wang |
| author_sort | Zhong-Shuai Zhu |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Single-atom catalysts (SACs) with featured active sites exhibit exceptional catalytic activity and selectivity in catalysis. However, their scalable synthesis and precise control of structure coordination for on-demand atomic configurations remain the bottlenecks in practical applications. In this work, a facile and scalable strategy is developed to achieve massive production of varying molecular-coordinated single- and multi metal-based SACs. Low-cost NaCl is used as a recyclable and green template. Its nature of temperature-induced confinement with a phase change of ion dissociation can direct 3D honeycomb-like morphology of SACs with different coordinations of in-plane M–Nx (x = 4 or 6) at lower temperature and axial M–Cl at above melting point of NaCl (900 °C), as demonstrated by controlled experiments and theoretical computations. A library of 25 distinct SACs and high-entropy SACs containing five metals with tailored structure are synthesized in a mass yield ranging from 18.3% to 50.9%. More importantly, these SACs exhibit remarkable performance in catalytic oxidation of aqueous organics and electrocatalytic nitrate, carbon dioxide, oxygen reduction reactions, highlighting their promising potential for environmental remediation and energy applications. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-346ae386b95e407ea6356f60e2fec81e |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2041-1723 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-08-01 |
| publisher | Nature Portfolio |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Nature Communications |
| spelling | doaj-art-346ae386b95e407ea6356f60e2fec81e2025-08-20T04:03:18ZengNature PortfolioNature Communications2041-17232025-08-011611910.1038/s41467-025-63117-7A templating approach with phase change to tailored coordination of single- and multiple-atom catalystsZhong-Shuai Zhu0Pengtang Wang1Haobo Li2Ya Liu3Yunpeng Wang4Kunsheng Hu5Bernt Johannessen6Shiying Ren7Shuang Zhong8Hongqi Sun9Xiaoguang Duan10Shaobin Wang11School of Chemical Engineering, The University of AdelaideSchool of Chemical Engineering, The University of AdelaideSchool of Chemistry, Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology, Nanyang Technological UniversitySchool of Chemical Engineering, The University of AdelaideSchool of Chemical Engineering, The University of AdelaideSchool of Chemical Engineering, The University of AdelaideAustralian Synchrotron, ANSTOSchool of Chemical Engineering, The University of AdelaideSchool of Chemical Engineering, The University of AdelaideSchool of Molecular Sciences, The University of Western AustraliaSchool of Chemical Engineering, The University of AdelaideSchool of Chemical Engineering, The University of AdelaideAbstract Single-atom catalysts (SACs) with featured active sites exhibit exceptional catalytic activity and selectivity in catalysis. However, their scalable synthesis and precise control of structure coordination for on-demand atomic configurations remain the bottlenecks in practical applications. In this work, a facile and scalable strategy is developed to achieve massive production of varying molecular-coordinated single- and multi metal-based SACs. Low-cost NaCl is used as a recyclable and green template. Its nature of temperature-induced confinement with a phase change of ion dissociation can direct 3D honeycomb-like morphology of SACs with different coordinations of in-plane M–Nx (x = 4 or 6) at lower temperature and axial M–Cl at above melting point of NaCl (900 °C), as demonstrated by controlled experiments and theoretical computations. A library of 25 distinct SACs and high-entropy SACs containing five metals with tailored structure are synthesized in a mass yield ranging from 18.3% to 50.9%. More importantly, these SACs exhibit remarkable performance in catalytic oxidation of aqueous organics and electrocatalytic nitrate, carbon dioxide, oxygen reduction reactions, highlighting their promising potential for environmental remediation and energy applications.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-63117-7 |
| spellingShingle | Zhong-Shuai Zhu Pengtang Wang Haobo Li Ya Liu Yunpeng Wang Kunsheng Hu Bernt Johannessen Shiying Ren Shuang Zhong Hongqi Sun Xiaoguang Duan Shaobin Wang A templating approach with phase change to tailored coordination of single- and multiple-atom catalysts Nature Communications |
| title | A templating approach with phase change to tailored coordination of single- and multiple-atom catalysts |
| title_full | A templating approach with phase change to tailored coordination of single- and multiple-atom catalysts |
| title_fullStr | A templating approach with phase change to tailored coordination of single- and multiple-atom catalysts |
| title_full_unstemmed | A templating approach with phase change to tailored coordination of single- and multiple-atom catalysts |
| title_short | A templating approach with phase change to tailored coordination of single- and multiple-atom catalysts |
| title_sort | templating approach with phase change to tailored coordination of single and multiple atom catalysts |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-63117-7 |
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