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    Development of Active and Stable Low Nickel Content Catalysts for Dry Reforming of Methane
    (Basel : MDPI, 2017-5-16) Ha, Quan Luu Manh; Armbruster, Udo; Atia, Hanan; Schneider, Matthias; Lund, Henrik; Agostini, Giovanni; Radnik, Jörg; Vuong, Huyen Thanh; Martin, Andreas
    Methane dry reforming (DRM) was investigated over highly active Ni catalysts with low metal content (2.5 wt %) supported on Mg-Al mixed oxide. The aim was to minimize carbon deposition and metal sites agglomeration on the working catalyst which are known to cause catalyst deactivation. The solids were characterized using N2 adsorption, X-ray diffraction, temperature-programmed reduction, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and UV-Vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy. The results showed that MgO-Al2O3 solid solution phases are obtained when calcining Mg-Al hydrotalcite precursor in the temperature range of 550–800 °C. Such phases contribute to the high activity of catalysts with low Ni content even at low temperature (500 °C). Modifying the catalyst preparation with citric acid significantly slows the coking rate and reduces the size of large octahedrally coordinated NiO-like domains, which may easily agglomerate on the surface during DRM. The most effective Ni catalyst shows a stable DRM course over 60 h at high weight hourly space velocity with very low coke deposition. This is a promising result for considering such catalyst systems for further development of an industrial DRM technology.
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    Aldehydes and ketones influence reactivity and selectivity in nickel-catalysed Suzuki-Miyaura reactions
    (Cambridge : RSC, 2020) Cooper, Alasdair K.; Leonard, David K.; Bajo, Sonia; Burton, Paul M.; Nelson, David J.
    The energetically-favorable coordination of aldehydes and ketones-but not esters or amides-to Ni0 during Suzuki-Miyaura reactions can lead either to exquisite selectivity and enhanced reactivity, or to inhibition of the reaction. Aryl halides where the C-X bond is connected to the same π-system as an aldehyde or ketone undergo unexpectedly rapid oxidative addition to [Ni(COD)(dppf)] (1), and are selectively cross-coupled during competition reactions. When aldehydes and ketones are present in the form of exogenous additives, the cross-coupling reaction is inhibited to an extent that depends on the strength of the coordination of the pendant carbonyl group to Ni0. This work advances our understanding of how common functional groups interact with Ni0 catalysts and how these interactions affect workhorse catalytic reactions in academia and industry. This journal is © The Royal Society of Chemistry.
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    The Contrasting Character of Early and Late Transition Metal Fluorides as Hydrogen Bond Acceptors
    (Washington, DC : ACS Publications, 2015) Smith, Dan A.; Beweries, Torsten; Blasius, Clemens; Jasim, Naseralla; Nazir, Ruqia; Nazir, Sadia; Robertson, Craig C.; Whitwood, Adrian C.; Hunter, Christopher A.; Brammer, Lee; Perutz, Robin N.
    The association constants and enthalpies for the binding of hydrogen bond donors to group 10 transition metal complexes featuring a single fluoride ligand (trans-[Ni(F)(2-C5NF4)(PR3)2], R = Et 1a, Cy 1b, trans-[Pd(F)(4-C5NF4)(PCy3)2] 2, trans-[Pt(F){2-C5NF2H(CF3)}(PCy3)2] 3 and of group 4 difluorides (Cp2MF2, M = Ti 4a, Zr 5a, Hf 6a; Cp*2MF2, M = Ti 4b, Zr 5b, Hf 6b) are reported. These measurements allow placement of these fluoride ligands on the scales of organic H-bond acceptor strength. The H-bond acceptor capability β (Hunter scale) for the group 10 metal fluorides is far greater (1a 12.1, 1b 9.7, 2 11.6, 3 11.0) than that for group 4 metal fluorides (4a 5.8, 5a 4.7, 6a 4.7, 4b 6.9, 5b 5.6, 6b 5.4), demonstrating that the group 10 fluorides are comparable to the strongest organic H-bond acceptors, such as Me3NO, whereas group 4 fluorides fall in the same range as N-bases aniline through pyridine. Additionally, the measurement of the binding enthalpy of 4-fluorophenol to 1a in carbon tetrachloride (−23.5 ± 0.3 kJ mol–1) interlocks our study with Laurence’s scale of H-bond basicity of organic molecules. The much greater polarity of group 10 metal fluorides than that of the group 4 metal fluorides is consistent with the importance of pπ–dπ bonding in the latter. The polarity of the group 10 metal fluorides indicates their potential as building blocks for hydrogen-bonded assemblies. The synthesis of trans-[Ni(F){2-C5NF3(NH2)}(PEt3)2], which exhibits an extended chain structure assembled by hydrogen bonds between the amine and metal-fluoride groups, confirms this hypothesis.
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    Intermetallic nickel silicide nanocatalyst—A non-noble metal–based general hydrogenation catalyst
    (Washington, DC [u.a.] : Assoc., 2018) Ryabchuk, Pavel; Agostini, Giovanni; Pohl, Marga-Martina; Lund, Henrik; Agapova, Anastasiya; Junge, Henrik; Junge, Kathrin; Beller, Matthias
    Hydrogenation reactions are essential processes in the chemical industry, giving access to a variety of valuable compounds including fine chemicals, agrochemicals, and pharmachemicals. On an industrial scale, hydrogenations are typically performed with precious metal catalysts or with base metal catalysts, such as Raney nickel, which requires special handling due to its pyrophoric nature. We report a stable and highly active intermetallic nickel silicide catalyst that can be used for hydrogenations of a wide range of unsaturated compounds. The catalyst is prepared via a straightforward procedure using SiO2 as the silicon atom source. The process involves thermal reduction of Si–O bonds in the presence of Ni nanoparticles at temperatures below 1000°C. The presence of silicon as a secondary component in the nickel metal lattice plays the key role in its properties and is of crucial importance for improved catalytic activity. This novel catalyst allows for efficient reduction of nitroarenes, carbonyls, nitriles, N-containing heterocycles, and unsaturated carbon–carbon bonds. Moreover, the reported catalyst can be used for oxidation reactions in the presence of molecular oxygen and is capable of promoting acceptorless dehydrogenation of unsaturated N-containing heterocycles, opening avenues for H2 storage in organic compounds. The generality of the nickel silicide catalyst is demonstrated in the hydrogenation of over a hundred of structurally diverse unsaturated compounds. The wide application scope and high catalytic activity of this novel catalyst make it a nice alternative to known general hydrogenation catalysts, such as Raney nickel and noble metal–based catalysts.