Strong Metal-Support Interaction Triggered by Molten Salts.

Strong metal-support interaction (SMSI) plays a vital role in tuning the geometric and electronic structures of metal species. Generally, a high-temperature treatment (>500 °C) in reducing atmosphere is required for constructing SMSI, which may induce the sintering of metal species. Herein, we use molten salts as the reaction media to trigger the formation of high-intensity SMSI at reduced temperatures. The strong ionic polarization of the molten salt promotes the breakage of Ti-O bonds in the TiO support, and hence decreases the energy barrier for the formation of interfacial bonds. Consequently, a high-intensity SMSI state is achieved in TiO supported Ir nanoclusters, evidenced by a large number of Ir-Ti bonds at the interface, at a low temperature of 350 °C. Moreover, this method is applicable for triggering SMSI in various supported metal catalysts with different oxide supports including CeO and SnO. This newly developed SMSI construction methodology opens a new avenue and holds significant potential for engineering advanced supported metal catalysts toward a broad range of applications.