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DOE OSTI2016

Full-dimensional quantum calculations of vibrational levels of NH 4 + and isotopomers on an accurate ab initio potential energy surface

Vibrational energy levels of the ammonium cation (NH 4 + ) and its deuterated isotopomers are calculated using a numerically exact kinetic energy operator on a recently developed nine-dimensional permutation invariant semiglobal potential energy surface fitted to a large number of high-level ab initio points. Like CH4, the vibrational levels of NH 4 + and ND 4 + exhibit a polyad structure, characterized by a collective quantum number P = 2(v 1 + v 3 ) + v 2 + v 4 . As a result, the low-lying vibrational levels of all isotopomers are assigned and the agreement with available experimental data is better than 1 cm –1 .

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

DOE OSTI2015

An Adsorption Study of CH 4 on ZSM-5, MOR, and ZSM-12 Zeolites

CH 4 adsorption was studied experimentally and theoretically on ZSM-5, MOR, and ZSM-12 zeolites using calorimetric measurements at 195 K and plane wave DFT calculations. Differential heats measured on four different H-ZSM-5 samples were determined to be 22.5 ± 1 kJ/mol, independent of Brønsted site density or defect concentration. However, DFT calculations performed using various functionals and on the most stable Brønsted site indicated that CH4 should bind to this site by an additional 1–7 kJ/mol, a discrepancy that is due to the inability of standard DFT methods to capture hydrogen-bonding effects accurately with CH 4 . Differential heats for CH 4 in MOR were 30±1 kJ/mol at low coverages, falling to 25 kJ/mol for coverages above one molecule per 8-membered-ring side pocket, while differential heats on ZSM-12 were initially 22.5 kJ/mol, decreasing to 21 kJ/mol with coverage. DFT calculations on the siliceous form of the zeolites were able to predict these values within 5 kJ/mol in most cases. The results indicate that CH 4 is an excellent probe molecule for characterizing the pore structure of zeolites.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

DOE OSTI2018

Graphene-Supported Monometallic and Bimetallic Dimers for Electrochemical CO 2 Reduction

Bimetallic catalysts are attractive alternatives to extend the parameter space that can be tuned for support interactions and catalytic performance. In this study, we have investigated the smallest bimetallic catalysts dimers supported on defective graphene for the electrochemical reduction of CO 2 to CH 4 based on a first-principles approach and the computational hydrogen electrode model. The monometallic and bimetallic dimers formed from Group 10 (Ni, Pd, Pt) and group 11 (Cu, Ag, Au) elements are characterized by a positively charged anchoring atom occupying the vacancy site of graphene and a neutral or slightly negatively charged antenna atom sticking out from the graphene surface. The strong selective binding of these dimers ensures their high stability. Possible rate-limiting steps are identified from the full reaction pathways to generate CH4. Overall, Pt-2, AgNi, Pd-2, and AgPt are the best candidates with the lowest overpotential values of 0.37, 0.69, 0.69, and 0.76 V, respectively. It is found that the alloy effect and the interaction with support help to optimize the property. These metallic dimers, however, retain nonmonotonous property relationships that give opportunity to go beyond scaling behavior and look for a few atom catalysts that have unique properties to reduce rate-limiting potentials and improve the catalytic performance.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

DOE OSTI2018

An In Situ Surface-Enhanced Infrared Absorption Spectroscopy Study of Electrochemical CO 2 Reduction: Selectivity Dependence on Surface C-Bound and O-Bound Reaction Intermediates

The CO2 electroreduction reaction (CO2RR) is a promising avenue to convert greenhouse gases into high-value fuels and chemicals, in addition to being an attractive method for storing intermittent renewable energy. Although polycrystalline Cu surfaces have long been known to be unique in their capabilities of catalyzing the conversion of CO2 to higher-order C1 and C2 fuels, such as hydrocarbons (CH4, C2H4, etc.) and alcohols (CH3OH, C2H5OH), product selectivity remains a challenge. Rational design of more selective catalysts would greatly benefit from a mechanistic understanding of the complex, multiproton, and multielectron conversion of CO2. In this study, we select three metal catalysts (Pt, Au, Cu) and apply in situ surface enhanced infrared absorption spectroscopy (SEIRAS) and ambient-pressure X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (APXPS), coupled to density-functional theory (DFT) calculations, to get insight into the reaction pathway for the CO2RR. We present a comprehensive reaction mechanism for the CO2RR and show that the preferential reaction pathway can be rationalized in terms of metal–carbon (M–C) and metal–oxygen (M–O) affinity. We show that the final products are determined by the configuration of the initial intermediates, C-bound and O-bound, which can be obtained from CO2 and (H)CO3, respectively. C1 hydrocarbons are produced via OCH3,ad intermediates obtained from O-bound CO3,ad and require a catalyst with relatively high affinity for O-bound intermediates. Additionally, C2 hydrocarbon formation is suggested to result from the C–C coupling between C-bound COad and (H)COad, which requires an optimal affinity for the C-bound species, so that (H)COad can be further reduced without poisoning the catalyst surface. It is suggested that the formation of C1 alcohols (CH3OH) is the most challenging process to optimize, as stabilization of the O-bound species would both accelerate the formation of key intermediates (OCH3,ad) but also simultaneously inhibit their desorption from the catalyst surface. Our findings pave the way toward a design strategy for CO2RR catalysts with improved selectivity, based on the experimental/theoretical reaction mechanisms that have been identified. These results also suggest that designing the electronic structure of the catalyst is not the sole determining factor to achieve highly selective CO2RR catalysis; rather, tuning additional experimental reaction conditions such as electrolyte–intermediate interactions also become critical.

Katayama, Yu↗

DOE OSTI2023

Defect Engineering of WO 3 by Rapid Flame Reduction for Efficient Photoelectrochemical Conversion of Methane into Liquid Oxygenates

Photoelectrochemical (PEC) conversion is a promising way to use methane (CH 4 ) as a chemical building block without harsh conditions. However, the PEC conversion of CH 4 to value-added chemicals remains challenging due to the thermodynamically favorable overoxidation of CH 4 . Here, we report WO 3 nanotube (NT) photoelectrocatalysts for PEC CH 4 conversion with high liquid product selectivity through defect engineering. By tuning the flame reduction treatment, we carefully controlled the oxygen vacancies of WO 3 NTs. The optimally reduced WO 3 NTs suppressed overoxidation of CH4 showing a high total C1 liquid selectivity of 69.4% and a production rate of 0.174 μmol cm –2 h –1 . Scanning electrochemical microscopy revealed that oxygen vacancies can restrain the production of hydroxyl radicals, which, in excess, could further oxidize C1 intermediates to CO 2 . Additionally, band diagram analysis and computational studies elucidated that oxygen vacancies thermodynamically suppress overoxidation. In conclusion, this work introduces a strategy for understanding and controlling the selectivity of photoelectrocatalysts for direct conversion of CH 4 to liquids.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

DOE OSTI2022

Curated Collection of More than 20,000 Experimentally Reported One-Dimensional Metal–Organic Frameworks

Herein, a collection of more than 20,000 experimentally derived crystal structures for metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) that do not have two- or three-dimensional covalently bonded networks has been developed from the materials available at the Cambridge Crystallographic Data Centre. Of these 20,000 1D MOFs, more than 12,000 structures have been verified to be solvent-free and in exact agreement with the stoichiometry of the synthesized materials. More than 10% of the complete data set comprise materials including two or more distinct metals. The band gaps of more than 12,000 1D MOFs have been computed at the density functional theory-generalized gradient approximation level, finding more than 2000 materials that have a zero band gap. Molecular simulations of CH4 adsorption in a small number of 1D MOFs indicated that adsorbate-induced deformation plays a significant role in determining adsorption isotherms in these materials. As a result, methods that have been used previously for high-throughput predictions of molecular adsorption in 3D MOFs are not suitable for 1D MOFs.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

DOE OSTI2018

Plasmonic Conducting Metal Oxide-Based Optical Fiber Sensors for Chemical and Intermediate Temperature-Sensing Applications

The demand for real-time sensors in harsh environments at elevated temperature is significant and increasing. In this manuscript, the chemical and temperature sensing using the optical response through the practical fiber platform is demonstrated, and principle component analysis is coupled with targeted experimental film characterization to understand the fundamental sensing layer properties, which dominate measured gas sensing responses in complex gas mixtures. More specifically, tin-doped indium oxide-decorated sensors fabricated with the sol–gel method show stable and stepwise transmission responses varying over a wide range of H2 concentration (5–100%) at 250–350 °C as well as responses to CH4 and CO to a lesser extent. Measured responses are attributed to modifications to the surface plasmon resonance absorption in the near-infrared range and are dominated by the highest concentrations of the most-reducing analyte based upon systematic mixed gas stream experiments. Principal component analysis is utilized for this type of sensor to improve the quantitative and qualitative understanding of responses, clearly identifying that the dominant principle component (PC #1) accounts for ~78% of total data variance. Correlations between PC #1 and the experimentally derived free carrier concentration confirm that this material property plays the strongest role on the ITO gas sensing mechanism, while correlations between the free carrier mobility and the second most important principle component (PC #2) suggest that this quantity may play a significant but secondary role. As such, the results presented here clarify the relationship between generalized principle components and fundamental sensing materials properties thereby suggesting the pathway toward improved multicomponent gas speciation through sensor layer engineering. Furthermore, the work presented represents a significant step toward the ultimate objective of optical waveguide sensors integrated with multivariate data analytics for multiparameter monitoring with a single sensor element.

47 OTHER INSTRUMENTATION↗

DOE OSTI2019

Passivation of Germanium by Graphene for Stable Graphene/Germanium Heterostructure Devices

The scalable integration of graphene onto semiconductor platforms is an important step towards utilizing the exceptional structural, electronic, thermal, and mechanical properties of graphene in state-of-the-art technologies. Specifically, graphene films grown on Ge are an exciting materials system for high-performance electronics; however, the device performance depends sensitively on the structural, electronic, and chemical nature of the graphene/Ge interface. We have recently discovered that graphene grown directly on Ge via chemical vapor deposition (CVD) can passivate the Ge surface, preventing its oxidation for months—longer than alternate passivation methods reported in the literature. Yet, the factors that govern passivation are not understood. Here, we elucidate how the CVD growth conditions and Ge surface orientation affect Ge oxidation below graphene. We find that growing graphene with a high H2:CH4 flux ratio minimizes formation of defects in graphene, enhancing Ge passivation. While minimizing defects is important, surprisingly, we find that passivation depends much stronger on the Ge surface orientation. These results provide a route for the integration of graphene films with a pristine graphene/substrate interface on Ge, an important step towards stabilizing the Ge surface and realizing graphene-based or hybrid graphene/Ge heterostructure devices integrated directly on conventional semiconductor wafers.

77 NANOSCIENCE AND NANOTECHNOLOGY↗

DOE OSTI2025

Ligation of Single-Site Ruthenium within Perovskite Oxides for Efficient Conversion of Thermodynamically Stable Molecules

Ru cation ligation in SrTiO 3 perovskite and their migration to the surface through exsolution are investigated for the dry reforming of methane (DRM), a chemistry that requires activation of two thermodynamically stable molecules, CH 4 and CO 2 . Compared to a supported 1 wt % Ru/SrTiO 3 benchmark, doped and exsolved Ru-SrTiO 3 demonstrate ≥3× higher CH 4 turnover rates (873 K), with isolated, ligated Ru exhibiting higher reactivity. Reactor studies assert that CH 4 and CO 2 activation are both kinetically relevant for CH 4 turnover rates on exsolved Ru-SrTiO 3 , unlike for supported Ru systems, where H-abstraction from CH 4 is the sole kinetically relevant step. As such, exsolved and doped Ru architectures are responsive toward co-reactant activation strategies, with their consequent reaction networks showing marked departures from those established for supported Ru catalysts. In situ spectroscopy and kinetic analyses propose distinct sensitivity toward CO 2 on Ru-SrTiO 3 systems, where higher CH4 turnover rates result from O-assisted C─H bond activation pathways. These pathways occur on paired Ru-oxygen vacancy sites that are inherent to the perovskite structure and are not readily accessible on supported Ru catalysts. Here, CO 2 is activated on oxygen vacancies directly adjacent to Ru active sites, which facilitates CH 4 C─H bond activation through a surface methoxy intermediate. The high reactivity of Ru-SrTiO 3 systems enables stable CH 4 turnover rates at milder reaction temperatures (673 K), conditions under which the supported counterpart, Ru/SrTiO 3 , is inactive. Overall, this work demonstrates that ligation of catalytically active cations in perovskite oxides facilitates site engineering toward atom-efficient activation of thermodynamically stable feedstocks.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

DOE OSTI2017

Synthesis Gas Conversion over Rh-Based Catalysts Promoted by Fe and Mn

Rh/SiO2 catalysts promoted with Fe and Mn are selective for synthesis gas conversion to oxygenates and light hydrocarbons at 523 K and 580 psi. Selective anchoring of Fe and Mn species on Rh nanoparticles was achieved by controlled surface reactions and was evidenced by ultraviolet–visible absorption spectroscopy, scanning transmission electron microscopy, and inductively coupled plasma absorption emission spectroscopy. The interaction between Rh and Fe promotes the selective production of ethanol through hydrogenation of acetaldehyde and enhances the selectivity toward C2 oxygenates, which include ethanol and acetaldehyde. The interaction between Rh and Mn increases the overall reaction rate and the selectivity toward C2+ hydrocarbons. The combination of Fe and Mn on Rh/SiO2 results in trimetallic Rh-Fe-Mn catalysts that surpass the performance of their bimetallic counterparts. The highest selectivities toward ethanol (36.9%) and C2 oxygenates (39.6%) were achieved over the Rh-Fe-Mn ternary system with a molar ratio of 1:0.15:0.10, as opposed to the selectivities obtained over Rh/SiO2, which were 3.5% and 20.4%, respectively. The production of value-added oxygenates and C2+ hydrocarbons over this trimetallic catalyst accounted for 55% of the total products. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy measurements suggest that significant fractions of the Fe and Mn species exist as metallic iron and manganese oxides on the Rh surface upon reduction. These findings are rationalized by density functional theory (DFT) calculations, which reveal that the exact state of metals on the surfaces is condition-dependent, with Mn present as Mn(I) and Mn(II) oxide on the Rh (211) step edges and Fe present as Fe(I) oxide on the step edge and metallic subsurface iron on both Rh steps and terraces. CO Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and DFT calculations suggest that the binding of CO to Rh (211) step edges modified by Fe and/or manganese oxide is altered in comparison to CO adsorption on a clean Rh (211) surface. These results suggest that Mn2Ox species and Fe and Fe2O modify bonding at Rh step edges and shift reaction selectivity away from CH4.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

DOE OSTI2019

Lattice Strained Ni-Co alloy as a High-Performance Catalyst for Catalytic Dry Reforming of Methane

Dry reforming of methane (DRM) is an effective route to convert methane and carbon dioxide to syngas. IN this work, we report an efficient nickel cobalt bimetallic catalyst with an activity of 4.97 mol CH4 mol Ni -1 s -1 at 800 °C. It is active at low temperature as well, and near thermodynamic equilibrium conversion was achieved as low as 350 °C, with a high yield of H 2 implying inhibition of side reactions: i.e., a reverse water-gas shift (RWGS) reaction. The formation of Ni-Co alloy during the reaction was observed, and its lattice contraction was revealed by HAADF-STEM and EXAFS experiments. The lattice-strained Ni-Co alloy has good CO 2 dissociation ability, which is responsible for its superior catalytic performance. Its weak chemisorption with H 2 results in inhibition of RWGS side reactions. This research is helpful in the design and development of other metal alloy materials with novel structures and/or electronic configurations for catalytic applications.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

DOE OSTI2019

Selective Oxidation of Acetaldehyde to Acetic Acid on Pd–Au Bimetallic Model Catalysts

Acetic acid is a widely employed reactant in the chemical industry, and it is also used as a food ingredient. Here, we report a catalytic reaction pathway for the gas-phase selective oxidation of acetaldehyde to acetic acid on a Pd–Au(111) heterogeneous model catalyst. On an oxygen precovered Pd–Au surface, acetaldehyde is selectively oxidized to acetic acid from 250 to 340 K. Using FT-IR, the formation of acetate species is detected from 160 to 260 K on this surface, which is a widely known adsorbate derived from acetic acid on metal surfaces. With higher Pd coverages, the acetaldehyde is less selectively oxidized to acetic acid, and near 375 K, CO 2 , H 2 O, CH 4 , and H 2 are evolved, evidence for the decarboxylation of acetate. Finally, in our density functional theory calculations, we confirm that the relative energy difference between the acetate state and the decarboxylated state decreases as Pd ensemble size increases.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

DOE OSTI2019

Catalysts in Coronas: A Surface Spatial Confinement Strategy for High-Performance Catalysts in Methane Dry Reforming

One of the grand challenges in industrial catalytic processes is the inevitable sintering and aggregation of conventional supported catalysts to large particles, leading to the decrease of activity and even deactivation with time. Herein, a surface spatial confinement strategy was employed to design high-performing catalysts for the dry reforming of methane (DRM). Specifically, active nickel (Ni) nanoparticles (NPs) were confined on the surface of a dendritic mesoporous silica (DMS) in the form of the “catalysts in coronas”. The Ni/DMS catalyst exhibited a high catalytic performance close to its equilibrium conversion (76% conversion for CH4 at 700 °C). More importantly, the prepared catalyst remained stable after 145 h time-on-stream at 700 °C without noticeable carbon deposition. This sintering and coking resistance was found to arise from the surface spatial confinement effect in which the three-dimensional dendritic layers in the corona posted a steric barrier against migration and aggregation of Ni NPs and size of Ni NPs was controlled below 5 nm, hence against sintering and coking. Meanwhile, the mesoporous feature of the layered wall facilitated mass transport of reactants to Ni species and further boosted catalysis. This strategy should be broadly applicable to a range of metal- and metal oxide-supported catalysts in high-temperature heterogeneous reactions, such as DRM, water gas shift reaction, and vehicle emission control related reactions.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

DOE OSTI2018

Selective CO Production by Photoelectrochemical Methane Oxidation on TiO 2

The inertness of the C–H bond in CH 4 poses significant challenges to selective CH 4 oxidation, which often proceeds all the way to CO 2 once activated. Selective oxidation of CH 4 to high-value industrial chemicals such as CO or CH 3 OH remains a challenge. Presently, the main methods to activate CH 4 oxidation include thermochemical, electrochemical, and photocatalytic reactions. Of them, photocatalytic reactions hold great promise for practical applications but have been poorly studied. Existing demonstrations of photocatalytic CH 4 oxidation exhibit limited control over the product selectivity, with CO 2 as the most common product. The yield of CO or other hydrocarbons is too low to be of any practical value. In this work, we show that highly selective production of CO by CH4 oxidation can be achieved by a photoelectrochemical (PEC) approach. Under our experimental conditions, the highest yield for CO production was 81.9%. The substrate we used was TiO 2 grown by atomic layer deposition (ALD), which features high concentrations of Ti 3+ species. The selectivity toward CO was found to be highly sensitive to the substrate types, with significantly lower yield on P25 or commercial anatase TiO 2 substrates. Moreover, our results revealed that the selectivity toward CO also depends on the applied potentials. Based on the experimental results, we proposed a reaction mechanism that involves synergistic effects by adjacent Ti sites on TiO 2 . Spectroscopic characterization and computational studies provide critical evidence to support the mechanism. Furthermore, the synergistic effect was found to parallel heterogeneous CO 2 reduction mechanisms. Our results not only present a new route to selective CH 4 oxidation, but also highlight the importance of mechanistic understandings in advancing heterogeneous catalysis.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

DOE OSTI2013

Carborane-Based Metal-Organic Framework with High Methane and Hydrogen Storage Capacities

A Cu-carborane-based metal organic framework (MOF), NU-135, which contains a quasi-spherical para-carborane moiety, has been synthesized and characterized. NU-135 exhibits a pore volume of 1.02 cm(3)/g and a gravimetric BET surface area of ca. 2600 m(2)/g, and thus represents the first highly porous carborane-based MOF. As a consequence of the, unique geometry of the carborane unit, NU-135 has a very high volumetric BET surface area of ca. 1900 m(2)/cm(3). CH4, CO2, and H-2 adsorption isotherms were measured over a broad range of pressures and temperatures and are in good agreement with computational predictions. The methane storage capacity of NU-135 at 35 bar and 298 K is ca. 187 v(STP)/v. At 298 K, the pressure required to achieve a methane storage density comparable to that of a compressed natural gas (CNG) tank pressurized to 212 bar, which is a typical storage pressure, is only 65 bar. The methane working capacity (5-65 bar) is 170 v(STP)/v. The volumetric hydrogen storage capacity at 55 bar and 77 K is 49 g/L. These properties are comparable to those of current record holders in the area of methane and hydrogen storage. This initial example lays the groundwork for carborane-based materials with high surface areas.

Kennedy, RD↗

DOE OSTI2014

Direct Conversion of Syngas-to-Hydrocarbons over Higher Alcohols Synthesis Catalysts Mixed with HZSM-5

The synthesis of hydrocarbon fuels directly from synthesis gas (i.e. one step process) was investigated with a catalytic system comprised of HZSM-5 physically mixed with either a methanol synthesis catalyst or a higher alcohols synthesis (HAS) catalyst. The metal sites of the methanol or HAS synthesis catalyst enable the conversion of syngas to alcohols, whereas HZSM-5 provides acid sites required for methanol dehydration, and dimethyl ether-to-hydrocarbons reactions. Catalytic performance for HZSM-5 when mixed with either a 5 wt.% Pd/ZnO/Al2O3 methanol synthesis catalyst or a HAS catalyst was evaluated at 300°C, 70 bars, GHSV=700 h-1 and H2/CO=1 using a HZSM-5: alcohols synthesis catalyst weight ratio of 3:1. The major difference observed between the methanol synthesis and HAS catalyst mixtures was found in the production of durene which is an undesirable byproduct. While durene formation is negligible with any of the HAS catalysts mixed with the HZSM-5 evaluated in this study, it represents almost 50% of the C5+ fraction for the methanol synthesis catalyst (5 wt.% Pd/ZnO/Al2O3 ) mixed with HZSM-5. This presents an advantage for using HAS catalysts over the methanol synthesis catalyst to minimize the durene by-product. The yield toward the desired C5+ hydrocarbons is thus twice higher with selected HAS catalysts as compared to when HZSM-5 is mixed with 5 wt.% Pd/ZnO/Al2O3. Among all the HAS catalysts evaluated in this study, a catalyst with 0.5 wt.% Pd/FeCoCu catalyst was found the most promising due to higher production of C5+ hydrocarbons and low durene formation. The efficiency of the one-step process was thus further evaluated using the HZSM-5: 0.5 wt.% Pd/FeCoCu catalyst mixture under a number of process conditions to maximize liquid hydrocarbons product yield. At 300oC, 70 bars, GHSV = 700 h-1 and HZSM-5: 0.5 wt.% Pd/FeCoCu = 3:1 (wt.), the C5+ fraction represents 48.5% of the hydrocarbons. Unfortunately, it is more difficult to achieve higher selectivity to desired C5+ hydrocarbons as the formation of CO2, CH4, and other light hydrocarbons is challenging to suppress in the presence of mixed metal and acid sites. When the 0.5 wt.% Pd/FeCoCu and HZSM-5 are operated sequentially by way of a two-step process the C5+ hydrocarbons fraction is lower and represents 30.4% of the hydrocarbons under comparable conditions. The yield toward the C5+ hydrocarbons is twice higher for the one-step process due to an improved CO conversion and higher C5+ hydrocarbons fraction. The main advantage of the one-step process is that higher syngas conversion can be achieved as the equilibrium-driven conversion limitations for methanol and dimethyl ether are removed since they are intermediates to the final hydrocarbons product.

alcohols-to-hydrocarbons↗

DOE OSTI2013

Large-Scale Screening of Zeolite Structures for CO2 Membrane Separations

We have conducted large-scale screening of zeolite materials for CO2/CH4 and CO2/N-2 membrane separation applications using the free energy landscape of the guest molecules inside these porous materials. We show how advanced molecular simulations can be integrated with the design of a simple separation process to arrive at a metric to rank performance of over 87 000 different zeolite structures, including the known IZA zeolite structures. Our novel, efficient algorithm using graphics processing units can accurately characterize both the adsorption and diffusion properties of a given structure in just a few seconds and accordingly find a set of optimal structures for different desired purity of separated gases from a large database of porous materials in reasonable wall time. Our analysis reveals that the optimal structures for separations usually consist of channels with adsorption sites spread relatively uniformly across the entire channel such that they feature well-balanced CO2 adsorption and diffusion properties. Our screening also shows that the top structures in the predicted zeolite database outperform the best known zeolite by a factor of 4-7. Finally, we have identified a completely different optimal set of zeolite structures that are suitable for an inverse process, in which the CO2 is retained while CH4 or N-2 is passed through a membrane.

Kim, JH↗

DOE OSTI2021

Activity of Cu-Al-oxo extra-framework clusters for selective methane oxidation on Cu exchanged zeolites

Cu-zeolites are able to directly convert methane to methanol via a 3-step process using O2 as oxidant. Among the different zeolite topologies, Cu-exchanged mordenite (MOR) shows the highest methanol yields, attributed to a preferential formation of active Cu-oxo species in its 8-MR pores. The presence of extra-framework or partially detached Al species entrained in the micropores of MOR leads to the formation of nearly homotopic redox active Cu-Al-oxo nanoclusters with the ability to activate CH4. Studies of the activity of these sites together with characterization by 27Al NMR and IR spectroscopy leads to the conclusion that the active species are located in the 8-MR side pockets of MOR and it consists of two Cu ions and one Al linked by O. This Cu-Al oxo cluster shows an activity per Cu in methane oxidation significantly higher than of any previ-ously reported active Cu-oxo species. In order to determine unambiguously the structure of the active Cu-Al-oxo cluster, we combine experimental XANES of Cu K- and L- edges, Cu K-edge HERFD-XANES and Cu K-edge EXAFS with TDDFT and AIMD-assisted simulations. Our results provide evidence of a [Cu2AlO3]2+ cluster exchanged on MOR Al pairs that is able to oxidize up to two methane molecules per cluster at ambient pressure.

Methane oxidation, Cu L3-edge XANES, HERFD, TDDFT,↗