Tailoring Cu–Zn Dual-Atom Sites with Reordering d-Orbital Splitting Manner for Highly Efficient Acetylene Semihydrogenation
Yuxue Yue, Bolin Wang, Chunxiao Jin, Kaixin Huang, Qi Zhou, Renqin Chang, Saisai Wang, Zhiyan Pan, Jia Zhao, Xiao‐Nian Li
Abstract
The design of inexpensive, nontoxic, and abundant transition metal catalysts for the selective hydrogenation of alkynes remains a significant challenge faced by both the industrial and academic communities. Here, we report a novel catalyst comprising a well-defined Cu–Zn dual-atom catalyst supported on defective pyrolyzed ZIF-8 material (CuZn/NC2), resulting in enhanced d-electron domination near the Fermi level and reordered d-orbital Splitting manner. This catalyst exhibited outstanding performance in the selective hydrogenation of acetylene to ethylene, demonstrating high conversion rates (97%), remarkable selectivity (97.5%), and excellent stability (over 70 h). The unique structural characteristics of Cu–Zn dual-atom sites, anchored to the carrier through Cu–N 3 &Zn–N 3 configurations, ensured effective acetylene activation and easy desorption of ethylene. These features are pivotal to the catalyst’s exceptional activity and selectivity. This work presents a new approach to the design of nonprecious metal catalysts for the selective hydrogenation of acetylene.