Ruthenium-cobalt single atom alloy for CO photo-hydrogenation to liquid fuels at ambient pressures

Jiaqi Zhao; Jinjia Liu; Zhenhua Li; Kaiwen Wang; Run Shi; Pu Wang; Qing Wang; Geoffrey I N Waterhouse; Xiaodong Wen; Tierui Zhang

doi:10.1038/s41467-023-37631-5

Ruthenium-cobalt single atom alloy for CO photo-hydrogenation to liquid fuels at ambient pressures

Nat Commun. 2023 Apr 5;14(1):1909. doi: 10.1038/s41467-023-37631-5.

Authors

Jiaqi Zhao^#^{1

2}, Jinjia Liu^#^{3

4}, Zhenhua Li⁵, Kaiwen Wang⁶, Run Shi¹, Pu Wang^{1

2}, Qing Wang⁷, Geoffrey I N Waterhouse⁷, Xiaodong Wen^{3

4}, Tierui Zhang^{8

9}

Affiliations

¹ Key Laboratory of Photochemical Conversion and Optoelectronic Materials, Technical Institute of Physics and Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100190, China.
² Center of Materials Science and Optoelectronics Engineering, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China.
³ State Key Laboratory of Coal Conversion, Institute of Coal Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Taiyuan, 030001, China.
⁴ National Energy Center for Coal to Clean Fuels, Synfuels China Co., Ltd, Beijing, 101400, China.
⁵ Key Laboratory of Photochemical Conversion and Optoelectronic Materials, Technical Institute of Physics and Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100190, China. [email protected].
⁶ Beijing Key Lab of Microstructure and Properties of Advanced Materials, Beijing University of Technology, Beijing, 100124, China.
⁷ School of Chemical Sciences, The University of Auckland, Auckland, 1142, New Zealand.
⁸ Key Laboratory of Photochemical Conversion and Optoelectronic Materials, Technical Institute of Physics and Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100190, China. [email protected].
⁹ Center of Materials Science and Optoelectronics Engineering, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China. [email protected].

^# Contributed equally.

Abstract

Photothermal Fischer-Tropsch synthesis represents a promising strategy for converting carbon monoxide into value-added chemicals. High pressures (2-5 MPa) are typically required for efficient C-C coupling reactions and the production of C₅₊ liquid fuels. Herein, we report a ruthenium-cobalt single atom alloy (Ru₁Co-SAA) catalyst derived from a layered-double-hydroxide nanosheet precursor. Under UV-Vis irradiation (1.80 W cm^-2), Ru₁Co-SAA heats to 200 °C and photo-hydrogenates CO to C₅₊ liquid fuels at ambient pressures (0.1-0.5 MPa). Single atom Ru sites dramatically enhance the dissociative adsorption of CO, whilst promoting C-C coupling reactions and suppressing over-hydrogenation of CH_x* intermediates, resulting in a CO photo-hydrogenation turnover frequency of 0.114 s^-1 with 75.8% C₅₊ selectivity. Owing to the local Ru-Co coordination, highly unsaturated intermediates are generated during C-C coupling reactions, thereby improving the probability of carbon chain growth into C₅₊ liquid fuels. The findings open new vistas towards C₅₊ liquid fuels under sunlight at mild pressures.

Abstract

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