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Directing Reaction Pathways through Controlled Reactant Binding at Pd–TiO 2 Interfaces
Author(s) -
Zhang Jing,
Wang Bingwen,
Nikolla Eranda,
Medlin J. Will
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
angewandte chemie international edition
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 5.831
H-Index - 550
eISSN - 1521-3773
pISSN - 1433-7851
DOI - 10.1002/anie.201703669
Subject(s) - selectivity , catalysis , nanoporous , furfural , oxide , hydrodeoxygenation , chemical engineering , chemistry , metal , porosity , materials science , inorganic chemistry , organic chemistry , engineering
Recent efforts to design selective catalysts for multi‐step reactions, such as hydrodeoxygenation (HDO), have emphasized the preparation of active sites at the interface between two materials having different properties. However, achieving precise control over interfacial properties, and thus reaction selectivity, has remained a challenge. Here, we encapsulated Pd nanoparticles (NPs) with TiO 2 films of regulated porosity to gain a new level of control over catalyst performance, resulting in essentially 100 % HDO selectivity for two biomass‐derived alcohols. This catalyst also showed exceptional reaction specificity in HDO of furfural and m‐cresol. In addition to improving HDO activity by maximizing the interfacial contact between the metal and metal oxide sites, encapsulation by the nanoporous oxide film provided a significant selectivity boost by restricting the accessible conformations of aromatics on the surface.