Size-Dependent Reactivity of Co<sub><i>n</i></sub><sup>–</sup> (<i>n</i> = 5–25) Cluster Anions toward Carbon Dioxide
Xing-Yue He, Yun-Zhu Liu, Jiaojiao Chen, Xingwang Lan, Xiao‐Na Li, Sheng‐Gui He
Abstract
A fundamental understanding of the reactivity evolution of nanosized clusters at an atomically precise level is pivotal to assemble desired materials with promising candidates. Benefiting from the tandem mass spectrometer coupled with a high-temperature ion-trap reactor, the reactions of mass-selected Co n – ( n = 5–25) clusters with CO 2 were investigated and the increased reactivity of Co 20–25 – was newly discovered herein. This finding marks an important step to understand property evolution of subnanometer metal clusters (Co 25 –, ∼0.8 nm) atom-by-atom. The reasons behind the increased reactivity of Co 20–25 – were proposed by analyzing the reactions of smaller Co 6–8 – clusters that exhibit significantly different reactivity toward CO 2, in which a lower electron affinity of Co n contributes to the capture of CO 2 while the flexibility of Co n – could play vital roles to stabilize reaction intermediates and suppress the barriers of O–CO rupture and CO desorption.