RuCo/ZrO Tandem Catalysts with Photothermal Confinement Effect for Enhanced CO Methanation.

Photothermal CO methanation reaction represents a promising strategy for addressing CO-related environmental issues. The presence of efficient tandem catalytic sites with a localized high-temperature is an effective pathway to enhance the performance of CO methanation. Here the bimetallic RuCo nanoparticles anchored on ZrO fiber cotton (RuCo/ZrO) as a photothermal catalyst for CO methanation are prepared. A significant photothermal CO methanation performance with optimal CH selectivity (99%) and rate (169.93 mmol g h) is achieved. The photothermal energy of the RuCo bimetallic nanoparticles, confined by the infrared insulation and low thermal conductivity of the ZrO fiber cotton (ZrO FC), provides a localized high-temperature. In situ spectroscopic experiments on RuCo/ZrO, Ru/ZrO, and Co/ZrO indicate that the construction of tandem catalytic sites, where the Co site favors CO conversion to CO while incorporating Ru enhances CO adsorption for subsequent hydrogenation, results in a higher selectivity toward CH. This work opens a new insight into designing tandem catalysts with a photothermal confinement effect in CO methanation reaction.