Synergistic effect of ligand-cluster structure and support in gold nanocluster catalysts for selective hydrogenation of alkynes.

In the field of nanocluster catalysis, it is crucial to understand the interplay of different parameters, such as ligands, support and pretreatment and their effect on the catalytic process. In this study, we chose the selective hydrogenation of phenylacetylene as a model reaction and employed two gold nanoclusters as catalysts, the phosphine protected Au and the thiolate protected Au, each with different binding motifs. They were supported on MgO, AlO and a hydrotalcite (HT), chosen for their different acidity.

Dynamic behaviour of platinum and copper dopants in gold nanoclusters supported on ceria catalysts.

Understanding the behaviour of active catalyst sites at the atomic level is crucial for optimizing catalytic performance. Here, the evolution of Pt and Cu dopants in Au clusters on CeO supports is investigated in the water-gas shift (WGS) reaction, using operando XAFS and DRIFTS. Different behaviour is observed for the Cu and Pt dopants during the pretreatment and reaction.

Directing Intrinsic Chirality in Gold Nanoclusters: Preferential Formation of Stable Enantiopure Clusters in High Yield and Experimentally Unveiling the "Super" Chirality of Au.

Chiral gold nanoclusters offer significant potential for exploring chirality at a fundamental level and for exploiting their applications in sensing and catalysis. However, their widespread use is impeded by low yields in synthesis, tedious separation procedures of their enantiomeric forms, and limited thermal stability. In this study, we investigated the direct synthesis of enantiopure chiral nanoclusters using the chiral ligand 2-MeBuSH in the fabrication of Au, Au, and Au nanoclusters.