title: ¹³C NMR guides rational design of nanocatalysts via chemisorption evaluation in liquid phase.
abstract: The search for more efficient heterogeneous catalysts remains critical to the chemical industry. The Sabatier principle of maximizing catalytic activity by optimizing the adsorption energy of the substrate molecule could offer pivotal guidance to otherwise random screenings. Here we show that the chemical shift value of an adsorbate (formic acid) on metal colloid catalysts measured by (13)C nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy in aqueous suspension constitutes a simple experimental descriptor for adsorption strength. Avoiding direct contact between the (13)C atom and the metal surface eliminates peak broadening that has confounded prior efforts to establish such correlations. The data can guide rational design of improved catalysts, as demonstrated here for the cases of formic acid decomposition and formic acid electro-oxidation reactions.
authors.affiliation: Wolfson Catalysis Centre, Department of Chemistry, University of Oxford, Oxford OX1 3QR, UK.
authors.forename: Karaked
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Tedsree
authors.forename: Chun Wong Aaron
authors.initials: CW
authors.lastname: Chan
authors.forename: Simon
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Jones
authors.forename: Qian
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Cuan
authors.forename: Wei-Kun
authors.initials: WK
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Xue-Qing
authors.initials: XQ
authors.lastname: Gong
authors.forename: Shik Chi Edman
authors.initials: SC
authors.lastname: Tsang