Binary mixed-metal variants of the one-dimensional MCN compounds (M = Cu, Ag, and Au) have been prepared and characterized using powder X-ray diffraction, vibrational spectroscopy, and total neutron diffraction. A solid solution with the AgCN structure exists in the (Cu(x)Ag(1-x))CN system over the range (0 ≤ x ≤ 1). Line phases with compositions (Cu(1/2)Au(1/2))CN, (Cu(7/12)Au(5/12))CN, (Cu(2/3)Au(1/3))CN, and (Ag(1/2)Au(1/2))CN, all of which have the AuCN structure, are found in the gold-containing systems. Infrared and Raman spectroscopies show that complete ordering of the type [M-C≡N-M'-N≡C-](n) occurs only in (Cu(1/2)Au(1/2))CN and (Ag(1/2)Au(1/2))CN. The sense of the cyanide bonding was determined by total neutron diffraction to be [Ag-NC-Au-CN-](n) in (Ag(1/2)Au(1/2))CN and [Cu-NC-Au-CN-](n) in (Cu(1/2)Au(1/2))CN. In contrast, in (Cu(0.50)Ag(0.50))CN, metal ordering is incomplete, and strict alternation of metals does not occur. However, there is a distinct preference (85%) for the N end of the cyanide ligand to be bonded to copper and for Ag-CN-Cu links to predominate. Contrary to expectation, aurophilic bonding does not appear to be the controlling factor which leads to (Cu(1/2)Au(1/2))CN and (Ag(1/2)Au(1/2))CN adopting the AuCN structure. The diffuse reflectance, photoluminescence, and 1-D negative thermal expansion (NTE) behaviors of all three systems are reported and compared with those of the parent cyanide compounds. The photophysical properties are strongly influenced both by the composition of the individual chains and by how such chains pack together. The NTE behavior is also controlled by structure type: the gold-containing mixed-metal cyanides with the AuCN structure show the smallest contraction along the chain length on heating.

Density Functional Theory (DFT) has proven to be an invaluable and effective tool for identifying highly active electrocatalysts for the oxygen evolution reaction (OER). Herein we take a computational approach in order to first identify a series of rare-earth pyrochlore oxides based on Ir and Ru as potential OER catalysts. The DFT-based phase diagrams, Pourbaix diagrams (E vs. pH), projected density of states (PDOS), and band energy diagrams were used to identify prospective OER catalysts based on rare earth Ir and Ru pyrochlores. The predicted materials were synthesized using the sprayfreeze freeze-drying approach to afford nanoparticulate oxides conforming to the pyrochlore structural type A 2 B 2 O 7 where A = Nd, Gd, or Yb and B = Ir or Ru. In agreement with the computed Pourbaix diagrams, the materials were found to be moderately stable under OER conditions. All prepared materials show higher stability as compared to the benchmark IrO 2 catalyst and the OER mass activity of Yb 2 Ir 2 O 7 and the ruthenate pyrochlores (Nd 2 Ru 2 O 7 , Gd 2 Ru 2 O 7 , and Yb 2 Ru 2 O 7) were also found to exceed that of the benchmark IrO 2 catalyst. We find that the OER activity of each pyrochlore series Page 1 of 40 ACS Paragon Plus Environment ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces 2 (i.e. iridate or ruthenate) generally improves as the size of the A-site cation decreases, indicating that maintaining control over the local structure can be used to influence the electrocatalytic properties.

). We have measured the temperature dependence of phonon spectra in these compounds and analyzed them using ab-initio calculations. The spectra of the two compounds show large differences that cannot be explained by simple mass renormalization of the modes involving Zn (65.38 amu) and Ni (58.69 amu) atoms. This reflects the fact that the structure and bonding are quite different in the two compounds. The calculated pressure dependence of the phonon modes and of the thermal expansion coefficient, α V , are used to understand the anomalous behavior in these compounds. Our ab-initio calculations indicate that it is the low-energy rotational modes in Zn(CN) 2 , which are shifted to higher energies in Ni(CN) 2 , that are responsible for the large negative thermal expansion. The measured temperature dependence of the phonon spectra has been used to estimate the total anharmonicity of both compounds. For Zn(CN) 2 , the temperature-dependent measurements (total anharmonicity), along with our previously reported pressure dependence of the phonon spectra (quasiharmonic), is used to separate the explicit temperature effect at constant volume (intrinsic anharmonicity).

The commercial success of the electrochemical energy conversion technologies required for the decarbonization of the energy sector requires the replacement of the noble metal-based electrocatalysts currently used in (co-)electrolyzers and fuel cells with inexpensive, platinum-group metal-free analogs. Among these, Fe/N/C-type catalysts display promising performances for the reduction of O 2 or CO 2 , but their insufficient activity and stability jeopardize their implementation in such devices. To circumvent these issues, a better understanding of the local geometric and electronic structure of their catalytic active sites under reaction conditions is needed. Herein we shed light on the electronic structure of the molecular sites in two Fe/N/C catalysts by probing their average spin state with X-ray emission spectroscopy (XES). Chiefly, our in situ XES measurements reveal for the first time the existence of reversible, potential-induced spin state changes in these materials.Platinum-group metal (PGM-) free catalysts of the M/N/Ctype (whereby M corresponds to a 3d transition metal) hold great potential as inexpensive replacements for conventional, noble-metal-based materials. Originally developed as electrocatalysts for the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR, relevant to fuel cells [1,2] and metal-air batteries [3][4][5] ), these materials have recently been successfully employed in other catalytic processes, like CO 2 -electroreduction [6,7] or the oxidation of benzene to phenol. [8,9] Nevertheless, their commercial implementation requires further improvements in their activity and stability [1,10] that call for a better understanding of the reactions mechanism and their relation to the operando oxidation-, spin-state and orbital configuration of the Ncoordinated metal sites (M-N x ) regarded as their active centers. [11][12][13][14] These properties have been generally assessed using Mçssbauer [12,15,16] and X-ray absorption [17][18][19] spectroscopy (MS, XAS), which are highly sensitive techniques but also suffer from certain drawbacks. MS, on the one hand, allows distinguishing the chemical environment of the metal species present in iron-based M/N/C catalysts, which have been shown to be the most ORR-active among this material class; however, their heterogeneous composition results in complex spectra requiring a careful deconvolution. The latter is occasionally complemented by the assignment of spin-and oxidation-states to these deconvolution components, based on similarities between the Mçssbauer parameters of the Fe-N x sites in these Fe/N/C catalysts and those of compounds with resembling but better defined M-N 4 centers (like porphyrins or phthalocyanines). [12] However, the long-range structures and electronic properties of these reference compounds are likely to differ from those of the catalysts active sites, thus making a full conclusive analysis difficult. Furthermore, the combination of the low temporal resolution of MS and the low metal contents of M-N x sites (typically < 2 wt. %) in M/N/C catalysts le...

Neutron diffraction at 11.4 and 295 K and solid-state (67)Zn NMR are used to determine both the local and the average structures in the disordered, negative thermal expansion (NTE) material, Zn(CN)2. Solid-state NMR not only confirms that there is head-to-tail disorder of the C≡N groups present in the solid, but yields information about the relative abundances of the different Zn(CN)4–n(NC)n tetrahedral species, which do not follow a simple binomial distribution. The Zn(CN)4 and Zn(NC)4 species occur with much lower probabilities than are predicted by binomial theory, supporting the conclusion that they are of higher energy than the other local arrangements. The lowest energy arrangement is Zn(CN)2(NC)2. The use of total neutron diffraction at 11.4 K, with analysis of both the Bragg diffraction and the derived total correlation function, yields the first experimental determination of the individual Zn–N and Zn–C bond lengths as 1.969(2) and 2.030(2) Å, respectively. The very small difference in bond lengths, of ~0.06 Å, means that it is impossible to obtain these bond lengths using Bragg diffraction in isolation. Total neutron diffraction also provides information on both the average and the local atomic displacements responsible for NTE in Zn(CN)2. The principal motions giving rise to NTE are shown to be those in which the carbon and nitrogen atoms within individual Zn–C≡N–Zn linkages are displaced to the same side of the Zn···Zn axis. Displacements of the carbon and nitrogen atoms to opposite sides of the Zn···Zn axis, suggested previously in X-ray studies as being responsible for NTE behavior, in fact make negligible contributions at temperatures up to 295 K.

Layered copper-nickel cyanide, CuNi(CN)4, a 2-D negative thermal expansion material, is one of a series of copper(ii)-containing cyanides derived from Ni(CN)2. In CuNi(CN)4, unlike in Ni(CN)2, the cyanide groups are ordered generating square-planar Ni(CN)4 and Cu(NC)4 units. The adoption of square-planar geometry by Cu(ii) in an extended solid is very unusual.

The role of the perovskite lattice oxygen in the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) is systematically studied in the PrBaCo2O5+δ family. The reduced number of physical/chemical variables combined with in‐depth characterizations such as neutron dif‐fraction, O K‐edge X‐ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS), electron energy loss spectroscopy (EELS), magnetization and scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM) studies, helps investigating the complex correlation between OER activity and a single perovskite property, such as the oxygen content. Larger amount of oxygen vacancies appears to facilitate the OER, possibly contributing to the mechanism involving the oxidation of lattice oxygen, i.e., the lattice oxygen evolution reaction (LOER). Furthermore, not only the number of vacancies but also their local arrangement in the perovskite lattice influences the OER activity, with a clear drop for the more stable, ordered stoichiometry.

ZnNi(CN)4 is a three-dimensional (3D) framework material consisting of two interpenetrating PtStype networks in which tetrahedral [ZnN4] units are linked by square-planar [NiC4] units. Both the parent compounds, cubic Zn(CN)2 and layered Ni(CN)2, are known to exhibit 3D and 2D negative thermal expansion (NTE), respectively. Temperature-dependent inelastic neutron scattering (INS) measurements were performed on a powdered sample of ZnNi(CN)4 to probe phonon dynamics. The measurements were underpinned by ab initio lattice dynamical calculations. Good agreement was found between the measured and calculated generalized phonon density-of-states, validating our theoretical model and indicating that it is a good representation of the dynamics of the structural units. The calculated linear thermal expansion coefficients are αa = -21.2 × 10 -6 K -1 and αc = +14.6 × 10 -6 K -1 , leading to an overall volume expansion coefficient, αV of -26.95 × 10 -6 K -1 , pointing towards pronounced NTE behavior. Analysis of the derived mode-Grüneisen parameters shows that the optic modes around 12 and 40 meV make a significant contribution to the NTE. These modes involve localized rotational motions of the [NiC4] and/or [ZnN4] rigid units, echoing what has previously been observed in Zn(CN)2 and Ni(CN)2. However, in ZnNi(CN)4, modes below 10 meV have the most negative Grüneisen parameters. Analysis of their eigenvectors reveals that a large transverse motion of the Ni atom in the direction perpendicular to its squareplanar environment induces a distortion of the units. This mode is a consequence of the Ni atom being constrained only in two dimensions within a 3D framework. Hence, although rigid-unit modes account for some of the NTE-driving phonons, the added degree of freedom compared with Zn(CN)2 results in modes with twisting motions, capable of inducing greater NTE.