Abstract

The selective catalytic oxidation of methanol to methyl formate (MF) has been considered as an attractive route to produce MF, an important precursor in the chemical industry. Although supported Pd nanoparticles are active for the selective oxidation of methanol to MF, the relatively low MF selectivity and yield remains an unsolved issue. Herein, we show that adding a small amount of Pd into Cu forming PdCu single atom alloy (SAA) catalysts can catalyze the oxidation of methanol to MF selectively at low temperatures, with a high catalyst stability. The atomic dispersion of Pd atoms in the Cu matrix was confirmed by various in-situ characterization techniques. The activity and selectivity of PdCu SAA catalysts were compared to monometallic Cu and Pd catalysts, in a flow reactor at similar conditions. This work may guide the design of new SAA based catalysts for selective oxidation reactions.

Graphic Abstract

中文翻译：

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PdCu单原子合金，用于在低温下将甲醇选择性氧化为甲基甲酸酯

摘要

甲醇选择性催化氧化为甲酸甲酯（MF）被认为是生产MF的诱人途径，MF是化学工业中的重要前体。尽管负载的Pd纳米颗粒对于甲醇选择性氧化为MF具有活性，但相对较低的MF选择性和收率仍未解决。在这里，我们表明向形成Cu的PdCu单原子合金（SAA）催化剂中添加少量Pd可以在低温下以高催化剂稳定性催化甲醇氧化为MF的选择性。通过各种原位表征技术证实了Pd原子在Cu基体中的原子分散。在相似条件下，在流动反应器中，将PdCu SAA催化剂的活性和选择性与单金属Cu和Pd催化剂进行了比较。

图形摘要