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Synthesis of cobalt single atom catalyst by a solid-state transformation strategy for direct C-C cross-coupling of primary and secondary alcohols

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Abstract

Atomic engineering of single atom catalysts (SACs) with high-density available active sites and optimized electronic properties can substantially boost catalytic efficacy. Herein, we report a solid-state transformation strategy to access Co SACs by introducing Co species from commercial Co2O3 powders into nitrogen-doped carbon support. The catalyst exhibited excellent catalytic activity, with a turnover frequency (TOF) of 2,307 h−1 and yield of 95%, in the direct C-C cross-coupling of benzyl alcohol and 1-phenylethanol (1 atm O2@80 °C) to yield chalcone. Density functional theory (DFT) calculations demonstrate the coordination environment and electronic metal-support interaction impact the catalytic pathway. In particular, a wide substrate scope and a broad functional-group tolerance of this SAC were validated, and the employment of this strategy for large-scale synthesis was also shown to be feasible. This work might shed light on the facile and scalable synthesis of highly active, selective, and stable SACs for heterogeneous catalysis.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the China Postdoctoral Science Foundation (Nos. 2019M661247 and 2020T130091), Postdoctoral Science Foundation of Heilongjiang Province (No. LBH-Z19047), Scientific Research Foundation for Returned Scholars of Heilongjiang Province of China (No. 719900091), and Heilongjiang Touyan Innovation Team Program.

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  1. Joint International Research Laboratory of Advanced Chemical Catalytic Materials & Surface Science, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Northeast Petroleum University, Daqing, 163318, China

    Zhijun Li, Yuying Chen, Xiaowen Lu, Honghong Li, Leipeng Leng, Tinglei Zhang & J. Hugh Horton

  2. Department of Chemistry, Queen’s University, Kingston, K7L 3N6, Canada

    J. Hugh Horton

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  1. Zhijun Li
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Synthesis of cobalt single atom catalyst by a solid-state transformation strategy for direct C-C cross-coupling of primary and secondary alcohols

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Li, Z., Chen, Y., Lu, X. et al. Synthesis of cobalt single atom catalyst by a solid-state transformation strategy for direct C-C cross-coupling of primary and secondary alcohols. Nano Res. 15, 4023–4031 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12274-022-4196-7

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