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At least 73 records · Page 4

New Platinum Complexes from Salen- and Hydroxy-Substituted Salpn-Naphthalene Ligands with CO 2 Reduction Activity

The electrocatalytic reduction of carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) into added-value products is a promising alternative to completing the cycle of atmospheric CO 2 . We report two new platinum complexes—a salen-like naphthalene (PtL1) and a hydroxy-substituted salpn naphthalene (PtL2)—that are capable of activating CO 2 to produce carbon monoxide (CO). The predominant keto tautomer of the non-innocent ligands was determined using DFT calculations and UV-Vis spectroscopy. The PtL2 complex has a CO Faradaic efficiency >40% in the presence of water as a sacrificial proton source at -2.5 V vs. Fc/Fc + . The addition of the hydroxy group in combination with water as a proton source decreased the reduction potential and increased the CO formation tenfold when compared to PtL1.

30 DIRECT ENERGY CONVERSION↗

Carnegie Supernova Project II: The Slowest Rising Type Ia Supernova LSQ14fmg and Clues to the Origin of Super-Chandrasekhar/03fg-like Events

The Type Ia supernova (SN Ia) LSQ14fmg exhibits exaggerated properties that may help to reveal the origin of the "super-Chandrasekhar"(or 03fg-like) group. The optical spectrum is typical of a 03fg-like SN Ia, but the light curves are unlike those of any SNe Ia observed. The light curves of LSQ14fmg rise extremely slowly. At -23 rest-frame days relative to B-band maximum, LSQ14fmg is already brighter than M V = -19 mag before host extinction correction. Here, the observed color curves show a flat evolution from the earliest observation to approximately 1 week after maximum. The near-infrared light curves peak brighter than -20.5 mag in the J and H bands, far more luminous than any 03fg-like SNe Ia with near-infrared observations. At 1 month past maximum, the optical light curves decline rapidly. The early, slow rise and flat color evolution are interpreted to result from an additional excess flux from a power source other than the radioactive decay of the synthesized 56 Ni. The excess flux matches the interaction with a typical superwind of an asymptotic giant branch (AGB) star in density structure, mass-loss rate, and duration. The rapid decline starting at around 1 month past B-band maximum may be an indication of rapid cooling by active carbon monoxide (CO) formation, which requires a low-temperature and high-density environment. These peculiarities point to an AGB progenitor near the end of its evolution and the core degenerate scenario as the likely explosion mechanism for LSQ14fmg.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

Unveiling the mechanism of the photocatalytic reduction of CO 2 to formate promoted by porphyrinic Zr-based metal–organic frameworks

A complete picture of the reaction mechanism responsible for the photocatalytic reduction of CO 2 into formate promoted by the Zr-based porphyrinic MOF-545 (PCN-222) in acetonitrile/triethanolamine (CH 3 CN/TEOA) solutions is provided for the first time by combining experimental and computational approaches. Firstly, we combined the metalation of the porphyrin linkers and the synthesis under microwave conditions of nano-sized materials (150–200 nm) to reach one of the highest CO 2 RR activities under visible light irradiation reported so far for a MOF-based catalyst in terms of formate production (identified in all cases as the sole product), i.e., 6000 μmol g –1 after 4 h for the NanoMOF-545(Fe). A thorough mechanistic study of CO 2 RR is provided afterwards, which elucidated the respective roles of TEOA, porphyrin linkers and Zr 6 -nodes. Photophysical measurements of both metalated and unmetalated MOFs excluded the prevailing belief of ligand-to-Zr 6 cluster charge-transfer state formation, while bulk photolysis proved that the porphyrinic linkers of the MOF promote the photooxidation of TEOA under catalytic conditions. DFT calculations allowed characterization with atomistic detail of a novel reaction mechanism whereby TEOA˙ radicals generated photochemically at the porphyrinic linkers play the crucial role of transferring a formal hydride to a CO 2 molecule activated on a Zr IV center, which acts as a Lewis acid. Notably, this mechanism backed by additional experimental assays explains the experimental activity trends observed upon metalation, on the basis of the ability of the materials to accomplish the photo-oxidation of TEOA. Here, while elucidating the reaction pathways at work in Zr 6 -based MOFs with chromophore linkers, the findings reported herein pinpoint new mechanistic features capable of rationalizing other light-driven reactions making use of TEOA (or structurally related donors) and ultimately, inspire the bottom-up design of new catalysts and catalytic routes.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

Electrochemical Conversion of CO 2 to Methyl Formate in a Flow Electrolyzer with Mixed Propylene Carbonate/Methanol Catholyte

Despite the promise of electrochemical carbon dioxide reduction as a technology for the production of clean fuels and decarbonization of the chemical industry, research has mostly focused on aqueous systems with a relatively limited set of products that have been achieved via electrosynthesis. Increasingly, CO 2 electroreduction in nonaqueous solvents is being pursued to develop new avenues for expanding the suite of products that can be made with high selectivity. CO 2 reduction in alcohols coupled with in situ esterification to produce esters is one such route that utilizes nonaqueous electrolyte. To be practical, such electrochemical syntheses need to be translated to a high-performance reactor such as a flow electrolyzer. However, many organic solvents, such as alcohols, wet and flood porous electrodes, thus impeding reactor performance. In this work, methanol was mixed with propylene carbonate as a catholyte for a gas-fed CO 2 flow electrolyzer that avoided cathode flooding. Simultaneously, a dual aqueous anolyte was used for water oxidation as a scalable and sustainable anodic half-reaction. The performance effect of methanol concentration, catholyte acidity, CO 2 flow rate, and dilute water in the catholyte were investigated. With 10 vol % methanol in 90 vol % propylene carbonate, 63% faradaic efficiency for methyl formate ester product was sustained without cathode flooding. However, improvements are still needed to lower the cell resistance and further increase the operating current density.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

Efficient Electrochemical Reduction of CO 2 to Formate in Methanol Solutions by Mn‐Functionalized Electrodes in the Presence of Amines**

Carbon cloth electrode modified by covalently attaching a manganese organometallic catalyst is used as cathode for the electrochemical reduction of CO 2 in methanol solutions. Six different industrial amines are employed as co-catalyst in millimolar concentrations to deliver a series of new reactive system. While such absorbents were so far believed to provide a CO 2 reservoir and act as sacrificial proton source, we herein demonstrate that this role can be played by methanol, and that the adduct formed between CO 2 and the amine can act as an effector or inhibitor toward the catalyst, thereby enhancing or reducing the production of formate. Pentamethyldiethylentriamine (PMDETA), identified as the best effector in our series, converts CO 2 in wet methanolic solution into bisammonium bicarbonate. Computational studies revealed that this adduct is responsible for a barrierless transformation of CO 2 to formate by the reduced form of the Mn catalyst covalently bonded to the electrode surface. As a consequence, selectivity can be switched on demand from CO to formate anion, and in the case of (PMDETA) an impressive TON HCOO- of 2.8×10 4 can be reached. This new valuable knowledge on an integrated capture and utilization system paves the way toward more efficient transformation of CO 2 into liquid fuel.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

High current density electroreduction of CO 2 into formate with tin oxide nanospheres

In this study, we demonstrate three-dimensional (3D) hollow nanosphere electrocatalysts for CO 2 conversion into formate with excellent H-Cell performance and industrially-relevant current density in a 25 cm 2 membrane electrode assembly electrolyzer device. Varying calcination temperature maximized formate production via optimizing the crystallinity and particle size of the constituent SnO 2 nanoparticles. The best performing SnO 2 nanosphere catalysts contained ~ 7.5 nm nanocrystals and produced 71–81% formate Faradaic efficiency (FE) between -0.9 V and -1.3 V vs. the reversible hydrogen electrode (RHE) at a maximum formate partial current density of 73 ± 2 mA cm geo -2 at -1.3 V vs. RHE. The higher performance of nanosphere catalysts over SnO 2 nanoparticles and commercially-available catalyst could be ascribed to their initial structure providing higher electrochemical surface area and preventing extensive nanocrystal growth during CO 2 reduction. Our results are among the highest performance reported for SnO 2 electrocatalysts in aqueous H-cells. We observed an average 68 ± 8% FE over 35 h of operation with multiple on/off cycles. In situ Raman and time-dependent X-ray diffraction measurements identified metallic Sn as electrocatalytic active sites during long-term operation. Further evaluation in a 25 cm 2 electrolyzer cell demonstrated impressive performance with a sustained current density of 500 mA cm geo -2 and an average 75 ± 6% formate FE over 24 h of operation. Our results provide additional design concepts for boosting the performance of formate-producing catalysts.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

A Robust, Scalable Platform for the Electrochemical Conversion of CO 2 to Formate: Identifying Pathways to Higher Energy Efficiencies

This work demonstrated a robust, scalable cell architecture for electroreduction of CO 2 (CO 2 R). An up to 90% faradaic efficiency for the conversion of CO 2 R to formate at 500 mA/cm 2 was realized at a 25 cm2 gas diffusion electrode (GDE) with a carbon-supported SnO 2 electrocatalyst. Furthermore, a 1.27 mm thick catholyte was used between the bipolar membrane and cathode GDE, which could be further reduced to tens of micrometers upon refinement. The deconvolution of the potential drop from each individual component/process guides the pathways to higher energy efficiencies of CO 2 R at this platform. Significant changes in the agglomerate size and aspect ratio on the electrode before and after an 11 h test were revealed by nano-CT, suggesting reduced CO 2 accessibility from electrode degradation. The versatility of this CO 2 R testing platform enables the ability to assess materials, components, and interactions at scales more in line with future devices.

30 DIRECT ENERGY CONVERSION↗

Electrochemical CO2 Reduction over Metal-/Nitrogen-Doped Graphene Single-Atom Catalysts Modeled Using the Grand-Canonical Density Functional Theory

Renewably driven, electrochemical conversion of carbon dioxide into value-added products is expected to be a critical tool in global decarbonization. However, theoretical studies based on the computational hydrogen electrode largely ignore the nonlinear effects of the applied potential on the calculated results, leading to inaccurate predictions of catalytic behavior or mechanistic pathways. Here, we use grand canonical density functional theory (GC-DFT) to model electrochemical CO2 reduction (CO2R) over metal- and nitrogen-doped graphene catalysts (MNCs) and explicitly include the effects of the applied potential. We used GC-DFT to compute the CO2 to CO reaction intermediate energies at -0.3, -0.7, and -1.2 VSHE catalyzed by MNCs each doped with 1 of the 10 3d block metals coordinated by four pyridinic nitrogen atoms. Our results predict that Sc-, Ti-, Co-, Cu-, and Zn-N4Cs effectively catalyze CO2R at moderate to large reducing potentials (-0.7 to -1.2 VSHE). ZnN4C is a particularly promising electrocatalyst for CO2R to CO both at low and moderate applied potentials based on our thermodynamic analysis. Our findings also explain the observed pH independence of CO production over FeN4C and predict that the rate-determining step of CO2R over FeN4C is not *CO2- formation but rather *CO desorption. Additionally, the GC-DFT-computed density of states analysis illustrates how the electronic states of MNCs and adsorbates change non-uniformly with applied potential, resulting in a significantly increased *CO2- stability relative to other intermediates and demonstrating that the formation of the adsorbed *CO2- anion is critical to CO2R activation. This work demonstrates how GC-DFT paves the way for physically realistic and accurate theoretical simulations of reacting electrochemical systems.

CO2 reduction↗

A Non-Invasive Approach for Elucidating the Spatial Distribution of in-situ Stress in Deep Subsurface Geologic Formations Considered for CO 2 Storage (Task 4 (Field Testing) Report)

"This document presents a summary of TASK 4 (Field Testing) of the project entitled “A Non-Invasive Approach for Elucidating the Spatial Distribution of in-situ Stress in Deep Subsurface Geologic Formations Considered for CO 2 Storage (FE0031686)”. This three-year project is part of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL) Carbon Storage program to research and address gaps that affect the economics of commercial CCS projects. One of these key gaps is the lack of certainty in predicting the geomechanical impacts of pressure migration due to CO 2 injection into a storage complex. This report documents field testing that was conducted under TASK 4 to obtain input data needed to develop the site-specific geomechanical model in TASK 5 and to verify the model results (i.e. calculated stresses) for this site. The field work entailed collecting geophysical logs and core samples and conducting geomechanical stress tests in the Core Energy LLC State Otsego Lake (SOL 8-15A) well, located in Otsego County, Michigan."

58 GEOSCIENCES↗

A Non-Invasive Approach for Elucidating the Spatial Distribution of In Situ Stress in Deep Subsurface Geologic Formations Considered for CO 2 Storage (Task 5 Report Field Scale Stress Modeling)

This report describes research accomplishments achieved with funding provided through Department of Energy (DOE) Contract DE-FE0031686, for the project “A Non-Invasive Approach for Elucidating the Spatial Distribution of In Situ Stress in Deep Subsurface Geologic Formations Considered for CO 2 Storage.” The purpose of this DOE funding is to develop non-invasive methods to obtain important information about subsurface stresses. The overall research goal of the project was to develop and improve methods for determining the spatial distribution of stresses, including magnitude and orientation of the three principal stress components in the subsurface, based on new methods that extract stress information from seismic data combined with well measurements, extended with well tests and logs, and unified in a numerical model that permits computation of the full stress tensor throughout the domains under investigation.

58 GEOSCIENCES↗

A Non-Invasive Approach for Elucidating the Spatial Distribution of In-Situ Stress in Deep Subsurface Geologic Formations Considered for CO 2 Storage (Task 3 Report Laboratory Characterization of Stress Dependent Wavespeed)

This report presents a summary of Task 3 (Laboratory Experimental Characterization of Stress Dependent Wavespeed in Rocks and Application for In-Situ Stress Estimation) of the project titled “A Non-Invasive Approach for Elucidating the Spatial Distribution of In-Situ Stress in Deep Subsurface Geologic Formations Considered for CO 2 Storage”. The main objective of this component of the project was to employ non-destructive techniques to determine how compressional (P)-wave and shear (S)-wave propagation velocities are related to triaxial-stress conditions in laboratory test samples of targeted reservoir rocks. The overarching principle is that such laboratory measurements can provide a basis whereby field measurements of wave-propagation velocities in rocks can be used to ascertain the stress state that would be expected to generate the observed wave-propagation behavior.

58 GEOSCIENCES↗

Supersaturating Water with CO 2 via Nanobubble Formation

The subsurface storage of CO 2 is limited by the solubility of CO 2 in brine. One proposed solution to increase the volume fraction of CO 2 in a reservoir is by injecting the CO 2 at high pressure in nanobubble form. These nanobubbles, diameter <50 nm, would be small enough that they would only undergo Brownian motion, preventing them rising under buoyancy and escaping the formation. There has also been some experimental work that suggests the present of these nanobubbles significantly (~2x) increase the solubility of gaseous CO 2 in the aqueous phase. NETL and ExxonMobil will test the viability of this strategy to increase the volume fraction of CO 2 in a subsurface reservoir, determine the stability of these nanobubble systems, and understand the ultimate limits of increasing the CO 2 volume fraction.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗

From electricity to fuels: Descriptors for C 1 selectivity in electrochemical CO 2 reduction

Electrochemical reduction of carbon dioxide (CO 2 RR) over transition metals follows a complex reaction network. Here, we combine observations from experimental literature with a theoretical analysis of energetics to rationalize that not all intermediates in the reduction of CO 2 are formed through direct protonation steps. We derive a selectivity map for two-electron products (carbon monoxide (CO) and formate) on pure metal surfaces using only the CO and OH binding energies as descriptors. For the pure metals that are selective towards CO formation, the variation of the CO binding energy is sufficient to further subdivide the map into domains that predominantly form H 2 , CO, and more reduced products. Our analysis rationalizes experimentally observed product distributions in CO 2 RR across pure metal systems. Overall, we highlight the need for additional material screening descriptors for CO 2 R and the importance of considering competition from the elementary steps of the hydrogen evolution reaction.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

A Non-Invasive Approach for Elucidating the Spatial Distribution of In-Situ Stress in Deep Subsurface Geologic Formations Considered for CO 2 Storage (Final Report)

The primary objectives of this project were to: develop a new, non-invasive method to define the orientation and magnitude of in-situ stresses in deep geologic formations (depths that exceed 1500 meters) considered for carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) sequestration; to demonstrate the method at a real field site; and, to extend current technical capabilities and reduce costs of acquiring information about deep-stress fields. This investigation was segmented into five tasks, including Project Management (Task 1) and four technical tasks (Tasks 2 through 5). The results of the technical tasks are described in this document.

02 PETROLEUM↗

Mesoporous PdAg Nanospheres for Stable Electrochemical CO 2 Reduction to Formate

Palladium is a promising material for electrochemical CO 2 reduction to formate with high Faradaic efficiency near the equilibrium potential. It unfortunately suffers from problematic operation stability due to CO poisoning on surface. In this work, it is demonstrated that alloying is an effective strategy to alleviate this problem. Mesoporous PdAg nanospheres with uniform size and composition are prepared from the co-reduction of palladium and silver precursors in aqueous solution using dioctadecyldimethylammonium chloride as the structure-directing agent. The best candidate can initiate CO 2 reduction at zero overpotential and achieve high formate selectivity close to 100% and great stability even at <-0.2 V versus reversible hydrogen electrode. The high selectivity and stability are believed to result from the electronic coupling between Pd and Ag, which lowers the d-band center of Pd and thereby significantly enhances its CO tolerance, as evidenced by both electrochemical analysis and theoretical simulations.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

CO Oxidation Mechanisms on CoO x -Pt Thin Films

The reaction of CO and O 2 with submonolayer and multilayer CoO x films on Pt(111), to produce CO 2 , was investigated at room temperature in the mTorr pressure regime. Here, using operando ambient pressure X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and high pressure scanning tunneling microscopy, as well as density functional theory calculations, we found that the presence of oxygen vacancies in partially oxidized CoO x films significantly enhances the CO oxidation activity to form CO 2 upon exposure to mTorr pressures of CO at room temperature. In contrast, CoO films without O-vacancies are much less active for CO 2 formation at RT, and CO only adsorbed in the form of carbonate species that are stable up to 260 °C. On submonolayer CoO x islands, the carbonates form preferentially at island edges, deactivating the edge sites for CO 2 formation, even while the reaction proceeds inside the islands. These results provide a detailed understanding of CO oxidation pathways on systems where noble metals such as Pt interact with reducible oxides.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

Effect of Co on twin formation and magnetic properties of Sm(Fe,Ti,V) 12 alloys

Transferring the excellent intrinsic magnetic properties of SmFe 12 -based compounds to their extrinsic properties remains the main challenge in the development of high-performance SmFe12-based permanent magnets. Twin formation is one of the reasons for the inability to achieve high coercivity and remanence. Here we have shown that the addition of Co in Sm(Fe 1-x Co x ) 10–11 M 1–2 alloys, where M=Ti and V, leads to an increase in twin density. Microstructural characterizations revealed that the atomic arrangement in the twin boundary changes depending on the stabilizing element, which directly influences the local intrinsic magnetic properties. Theoretical investigations showed that the critical grain size at which twin formation can be hindered by grain size reduction decreases when the stabilizer changes from V to Ti. Furthermore, this study shows that the alloy composition influences not only the intrinsic magnetic properties but also the twin formation energy and its grain size dependence, crucial for the design of SmFe12-based permanent magnets.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗