Chen Mingjun, Li Deng, Tian Kaige, Chen Guilin, Shi Xintong, Liu Shengzhong, Yan Junqing
Key Laboratory of Applied Surface and Colloid Chemistry, Ministry of Education, Shaanxi Engineering Lab for Advanced Energy Technology, School of Materials Science and Engineering, Shaanxi Normal University, Xi'an, China.
Key Laboratory of Photoelectric Conversion and Utilization of Solar Energy, Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics, Chinese Academy of Science, Dalian, China.
Chem Asian J. 2025 Jun;20(11):e202401267. doi: 10.1002/asia.202401267. Epub 2025 Apr 21.
Methanol steam reforming (MSR) is a promising approach for hydrogen production, allowing for efficient production and safe transportation of hydrogen via liquid methanol. However, it requires relatively high temperatures to achieve high activity, resulting in huge energy consumption. In this study, a plasma copper-gold alloy catalyst supported on titanium dioxide was synthesized via the impregnation method followed by high-temperature calcination. The resulting nanoparticles exhibited an average size of approximately 12 nm, and their composition was controlled by adjusting the molar ratio of the precursor materials. The synthesized CuAu-TiO catalyst facilitates efficient solar-driven MSR without the need for additional thermal input. The optimized catalyst achieves a continuous hydrogen production rate of 78 µmol·g·h, with a solar energy conversion efficiency of 2.66%. We determined that the maximum conversion rate under photochemical catalysis conditions can reach 90.6%. We verified that the plasmon-induced hot carriers could catalyze the methanol steam reforming reaction at temperatures significantly lower than those required for traditional thermal catalysis, releasing hydrogen. Post-reaction, the catalyst can be recovered and reactivated for repeated use. This work provides a valuable demonstration for the development and application of future light-driven clean energy conversion systems.
甲醇蒸汽重整（MSR）是一种很有前景的制氢方法，它能够通过液态甲醇实现氢气的高效生产和安全运输。然而，它需要相对较高的温度才能实现高活性，从而导致巨大的能源消耗。在本研究中，通过浸渍法并随后进行高温煅烧，合成了负载在二氧化钛上的等离子体铜金合金催化剂。所得纳米颗粒的平均尺寸约为12纳米，其组成通过调整前驱体材料的摩尔比来控制。合成的CuAu-TiO催化剂有助于在无需额外热输入的情况下高效进行太阳能驱动的MSR。优化后的催化剂实现了78 μmol·g⁻¹·h的连续产氢速率，太阳能转换效率为2.66%。我们确定在光催化条件下的最大转化率可达90.6%。我们验证了等离子体诱导的热载流子能够在远低于传统热催化所需的温度下催化甲醇蒸汽重整反应，释放出氢气。反应后，可以回收催化剂并重新激活以重复使用。这项工作为未来光驱动清洁能源转换系统的开发和应用提供了有价值的示范。
