Rare earth element based single-atom catalysts: synthesis, characterization and applications in photo/electro-catalytic reactions
Zhong Liang, Leilei Yin, Hang Yin, Zongyou Yin, Yaping Du
Abstract
Rare earth elements play an important role in various fields, which has attracted increasing interest from the scientific community. Meanwhile, single-atom catalysts show huge advantages in many aspects compared with traditional nanomaterials due to their 100% atomic utilization efficiency. Thus, the combination of the two concepts has yielded an efficient way to realize the high-value utilization of rare earth elements. In this mini-review, rare earth-based single-atom catalysts including their synthesis methods, characterization means and corresponding applications are constructively summarized and discussed. In particular, the important roles of rare earth elements as active centers in photo/electrocatalytic reactions are focused on. Finally, future prospects are also provided.