The active sites of Cu/ZnO‐based catalysts, commercially applied for the hydrogenation of CO2 or CO2‐rich synthesis gas, are still subject of current debates. Generally, the discussion is focused on the nature of the interfacial contact between Cu and ZnO, particularly whether it is rather of oxidic (Cu−ZnO) or alloying (Cu−Zn) character. We report on kinetic investigations on a Cu/ZnO : Al high performance catalyst activated at different temperatures. Incrementally increasing temperature under reductive conditions leads also to increased CuZn‐alloy formation, analyzed by in‐situ X‐ray diffraction, in‐situ X‐ray absorption spectroscopy and high resolution transmission electron microscopy. The combination of the catalytic data and the complementary characterization techniques provide valuable insights on the relevant reaction sites for CH3OH formation. Our results highlight the complexity of the interfacial contact with evidence for Cu−ZnO reaction sites and clarify the negative impact of CuZn alloy formation on the nature of the active site.

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ature, time) might yield to a maximum of kinetically stabilized high energy surfaces without phase separation and the most active catalyst.

Bimetallic Ni-Fe catalysts show great potential for CO2 methanation concerning activity, selectivity and long-term stability even under transient reaction conditions as required for Power-to-X applications. Various contrary suggestions on the...

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Bimetallic silver-gold alloy nanoparticles on zirconia with varying Ag/Au ratios were designed by a rational approach and tested as catalysts for the selective oxidation of the promising biomass platform molecule 5-(hydroxymethyl)furfural (HMF). For this purpose, colloidal Ag x Au 10-x particles with molar compositions x = 1/3/5/7/9 were prepared by laser ablation in liquids, a surfactant-free method for the preparation of highly pure nanoparticles, before adsorption on zirconia. In-depth characterization of the supported catalysts evidenced alloyed nanoparticles with distinct trends of the surface and bulk composition depending on the overall Ag/Au molar ratio as determined by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and Xray absorption spectroscopy (XAS), respectively. To uncover the synergistic effect of the Ag/Au ratio, the catalysts were further studied in terms of the catalytic activity and selectivity in HMF oxidation. Either the aldehyde moiety or both functional groups of HMF were selectively oxidized depending on the Ag/Au composition resulting in 5-hydroxymethyl-2-furan-carboxylic acid (HFCA) or 2,5-furandicarboxylic acid (FDCA), respectively. Optimization of the reaction conditions allowed the quantitative production of HFCA over most catalysts, also after re-use. Only gold rich catalysts Ag 1 Au 9 /ZrO 2 and particularly Ag 3 Au 7 /ZrO 2 were highly active in FDCA synthesis. While Ag 3 Au 7 /ZrO 2 deactivated upon re-use due to sintering, no structural changes were observed for the other catalysts and all catalysts were stable against metal leaching. The present work thus provides fundamental insights into the synergistic effect of Ag and Au in alloyed nanoparticles as active and stable catalysts for the oxidation of HMF.

The reactive surface sites of MoS2 hydrotreating catalysts (unpromoted as well as Co-and Ni-promoted) supported on MgAl2O4 spinel were investigated with respect to the substitution of sulfur by oxygen using in-situ XAS coupled with modulation excitation spectroscopy (MES). Specifically, MES experiments were carried out by periodically cycling between a H2O and H2S containing hydrogen gas mixture at 400 °C. Due to the low fraction of SO exchange, conventional XANES and EXAFS data hardly showed any changes when these catalysts were exposed to increasing ratios of H2O to H2S in an H2 atmosphere. XANES and EXAFS data extracted at the Mo K-edge by MES analysis showed that for approximately 1 % of the Mo atoms, sulfur atoms are replaced by oxygen atoms when exposed to H2O, causing partial oxidation of these active sites. The reaction is reversible and Mo returns to its initial sulfide phase when H2O is removed and H2S is supplied in the feed. In case of Co-and Ni-promoted catalysts, the magnitude of SO exchange was found to be reduced, indicating the beneficial effect of promotion. MES at the Ni K-edge showed that Ni was oxidized during H2O exposure, which in turn delayed the Mo oxidation in the Ni-promoted catalyst. The structure of these catalysts under SO exchange were modelled using density functional theory (DFT) calculations, showing that the edge atoms are affected strongly. For all three catalysts, OH substitution is more favorable, while O substitution could be possible at high H2O pressure for unpromoted MoS2. Mo K-edge XANES spectra calculated using these simulated structures support the results obtained from the MES experiments. The presented approach using MES in combination with XAS and supported by DFT can be extended in general to catalysts under operando conditions, and is thus a useful tool for determination of the active site on an atomic-scale.