Fine cubic Cu2O nanocrystals as highly selective catalyst for propylene epoxidation with molecular oxygen

Wei Xiong, Xiang-Kui Gu, Zhenhua Zhang, Peng Chai, Yijing Zang, Zongyou Yu, Dan Li, Hui Zhang, Zhi Liu and Weixin Huang ()
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Wei Xiong: University of Science and Technology of China
Xiang-Kui Gu: Wuhan University
Zhenhua Zhang: Zhejiang Normal University
Peng Chai: University of Science and Technology of China
Yijing Zang: State Key Laboratory of Functional Materials for Informatics, Shanghai Institute of Microsystem and Information Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences
Zongyou Yu: University of Science and Technology of China
Dan Li: University of Science and Technology of China
Hui Zhang: State Key Laboratory of Functional Materials for Informatics, Shanghai Institute of Microsystem and Information Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences
Zhi Liu: State Key Laboratory of Functional Materials for Informatics, Shanghai Institute of Microsystem and Information Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences
Weixin Huang: University of Science and Technology of China

Nature Communications, 2021, vol. 12, issue 1, 1-8

Abstract: Abstract Propylene epoxidation with O2 to propylene oxide is a very valuable reaction but remains as a long-standing challenge due to unavailable efficient catalysts with high selectivity. Herein, we successfully explore 27 nm-sized cubic Cu2O nanocrystals enclosed with {100} faces and {110} edges as a highly selective catalyst for propylene epoxidation with O2, which acquires propylene oxide selectivity of more than 80% at 90–110 °C. Propylene epoxidation with weakly-adsorbed O2 species at the {110} edge sites exhibits a low barrier and is the dominant reaction occurring at low reaction temperatures, leading to the high propylene oxide selectivity. Such a weakly-adsorbed O2 species is not stable at high reaction temperatures, and the surface lattice oxygen species becomes the active oxygen species to participate in propylene epoxidation to propylene oxide and propylene partial oxidation to acrolein at the {110} edge sites and propylene combustion to CO2 at the {100} face sites, which all exhibit high barriers and result in decreased propylene oxide selectivity.

Date: 2021
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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DOI: 10.1038/s41467-021-26257-0

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