1
|
Dummer NF, Willock DJ, He Q, Howard MJ, Lewis RJ, Qi G, Taylor SH, Xu J, Bethell D, Kiely CJ, Hutchings GJ. Methane Oxidation to Methanol. Chem Rev 2022; 123:6359-6411. [PMID: 36459432 PMCID: PMC10176486 DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemrev.2c00439] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/04/2022]
Abstract
The direct transformation of methane to methanol remains a significant challenge for operation at a larger scale. Central to this challenge is the low reactivity of methane at conditions that can facilitate product recovery. This review discusses the issue through examination of several promising routes to methanol and an evaluation of performance targets that are required to develop the process at scale. We explore the methods currently used, the emergence of active heterogeneous catalysts and their design and reaction mechanisms and provide a critical perspective on future operation. Initial experiments are discussed where identification of gas phase radical chemistry limited further development by this approach. Subsequently, a new class of catalytic materials based on natural systems such as iron or copper containing zeolites were explored at milder conditions. The key issues of these technologies are low methane conversion and often significant overoxidation of products. Despite this, interest remains high in this reaction and the wider appeal of an effective route to key products from C-H activation, particularly with the need to transition to net carbon zero with new routes from renewable methane sources is exciting.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Nicholas F. Dummer
- Max Planck−Cardiff Centre on the Fundamentals of Heterogeneous Catalysis FUNCAT, Cardiff Catalysis Institute, School of Chemistry, Cardiff University, Main Building, Park Place, CardiffCF10 3AT, United Kingdom
| | - David J. Willock
- Max Planck−Cardiff Centre on the Fundamentals of Heterogeneous Catalysis FUNCAT, Cardiff Catalysis Institute, School of Chemistry, Cardiff University, Main Building, Park Place, CardiffCF10 3AT, United Kingdom
| | - Qian He
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, National University of Singapore, Singapore117575, Singapore
| | - Mark J. Howard
- Max Planck−Cardiff Centre on the Fundamentals of Heterogeneous Catalysis FUNCAT, Cardiff Catalysis Institute, School of Chemistry, Cardiff University, Main Building, Park Place, CardiffCF10 3AT, United Kingdom
| | - Richard J. Lewis
- Max Planck−Cardiff Centre on the Fundamentals of Heterogeneous Catalysis FUNCAT, Cardiff Catalysis Institute, School of Chemistry, Cardiff University, Main Building, Park Place, CardiffCF10 3AT, United Kingdom
| | - Guodong Qi
- National Center for Magnetic Resonance in Wuhan, State Key Laboratory of Magnetic Resonance and Atomic and Molecular Physics, Innovation Academy for Precision Measurement Science and Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan430071, P. R. China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing100049, P. R. China
| | - Stuart H. Taylor
- Max Planck−Cardiff Centre on the Fundamentals of Heterogeneous Catalysis FUNCAT, Cardiff Catalysis Institute, School of Chemistry, Cardiff University, Main Building, Park Place, CardiffCF10 3AT, United Kingdom
| | - Jun Xu
- National Center for Magnetic Resonance in Wuhan, State Key Laboratory of Magnetic Resonance and Atomic and Molecular Physics, Innovation Academy for Precision Measurement Science and Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan430071, P. R. China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing100049, P. R. China
| | - Don Bethell
- Department of Chemistry, University of Liverpool, Crown Street, LiverpoolL69 7ZD, United Kingdom
| | - Christopher J. Kiely
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Lehigh University, 5 East Packer Avenue, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania18015, United States
| | - Graham J. Hutchings
- Max Planck−Cardiff Centre on the Fundamentals of Heterogeneous Catalysis FUNCAT, Cardiff Catalysis Institute, School of Chemistry, Cardiff University, Main Building, Park Place, CardiffCF10 3AT, United Kingdom
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Xiang D, Lin SC, Deng J, Chen HM, Liu C. Bisulfate as a redox-active ligand in vanadium-based electrocatalysis for CH 4 functionalization. Chem Commun (Camb) 2022; 58:2524-2527. [PMID: 35098285 DOI: 10.1039/d1cc06596c] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
The roles of unforgiving H2SO4 solvent in CH4 activation with molecular catalysts have not been experimentally well-illustrated despite computational predictions. Here, we provide experimental evidence that metal-bound bisulfate ligand introduced by H2SO4 solvent is redox-active in vanadium-based electrocatalytic CH4 activation discovered recently. Replacing one of the two terminal bisulfate ligands with redox-inert dihydrogen phosphate in the pre-catalyst vanadium (V)-oxo dimer completely quenches its activity towards CH4, which may inspire environmentally benign catalysis with minimal use of H2SO4.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Danlei Xiang
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California 90095, USA.
| | - Sheng-Chih Lin
- Department of Chemistry, National Taiwan University, Taipei 10617, Taiwan.
| | - Jiao Deng
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California 90095, USA.
| | - Hao Ming Chen
- Department of Chemistry, National Taiwan University, Taipei 10617, Taiwan.
| | - Chong Liu
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California 90095, USA. .,California NanoSystems Institute, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California 90095, USA
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Deng J, Lin S, Fuller JT, Zandkarimi B, Chen HM, Alexandrova AN, Liu C. Electrocatalytic Methane Functionalization with d
0
Early Transition Metals Under Ambient Conditions. Angew Chem Int Ed Engl 2021. [DOI: 10.1002/ange.202107720] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Jiao Deng
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry University of California, Los Angeles Los Angeles CA 90095 USA
| | - Sheng‐Chih Lin
- Department of Chemistry National (Taiwan) University Taipei 10617 Taiwan
| | - Jack T. Fuller
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry University of California, Los Angeles Los Angeles CA 90095 USA
| | - Borna Zandkarimi
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry University of California, Los Angeles Los Angeles CA 90095 USA
| | - Hao Ming Chen
- Department of Chemistry National (Taiwan) University Taipei 10617 Taiwan
| | - Anastassia N. Alexandrova
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry University of California, Los Angeles Los Angeles CA 90095 USA
- California NanoSystems Institute Los Angeles CA 90095 USA
| | - Chong Liu
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry University of California, Los Angeles Los Angeles CA 90095 USA
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
Deng J, Lin SC, Fuller JT, Zandkarimi B, Chen HM, Alexandrova AN, Liu C. Electrocatalytic Methane Functionalization with d 0 Early Transition Metals Under Ambient Conditions. Angew Chem Int Ed Engl 2021; 60:26630-26638. [PMID: 34606678 DOI: 10.1002/anie.202107720] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/09/2021] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Abstract
The undesirable loss of methane (CH4 ) at remote locations welcomes approaches that ambiently functionalize CH4 on-site without intense infrastructure investment. Recently, we found that electrochemical oxidation of vanadium(V)-oxo with bisulfate ligand leads to CH4 activation at ambient conditions. The key question is whether such an observation is a one-off coincidence or a general strategy for electrocatalyst design. Here, a general scheme of electrocatalytic CH4 activation with d0 early transition metals is established. The pre-catalysts' molecular structure, electrocatalytic kinetics, and mechanism were detailed for titanium (IV), vanadium (V), and chromium (VI) species as model systems. After a turnover-limiting one-electron electrochemical oxidation, the yielded ligand-centered cation radicals activate CH4 with low activation energy and high selectivity. The reactivities are universal among early transition metals from Period 4 to 6, and the reactivities trend for different early transition metals correlate with their d orbital energies across periodic table. Our results offer new chemical insights towards developing advanced ambient electrocatalysts of natural gas.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Jiao Deng
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, 90095, USA
| | - Sheng-Chih Lin
- Department of Chemistry, National (Taiwan) University, Taipei, 10617, Taiwan
| | - Jack T Fuller
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, 90095, USA
| | - Borna Zandkarimi
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, 90095, USA
| | - Hao Ming Chen
- Department of Chemistry, National (Taiwan) University, Taipei, 10617, Taiwan
| | - Anastassia N Alexandrova
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, 90095, USA.,California NanoSystems Institute, Los Angeles, CA, 90095, USA
| | - Chong Liu
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, 90095, USA
| |
Collapse
|
5
|
Chen SS, Koppaka A, Periana RA, Ess DH. Theory and Experiment Demonstrate that Sb(V)-Promoted Methane C-H Activation and Functionalization Outcompete Superacid Protonolysis in Sulfuric Acid. J Am Chem Soc 2021; 143:18242-18250. [PMID: 34665603 DOI: 10.1021/jacs.1c08170] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/03/2023]
Abstract
Sb(V) in strong Brønsted acid solvents is traditionally assumed to react with light alkanes through superacid protonolysis, which results in carbocation intermediates, H2, and carbon oligomerization. In contrast to this general assumption, our density functional theory (DFT) calculations revealed an accessible barrier for C-H activation between methane and Sb(V) in sulfuric acid that could potentially outcompete superacid protonolysis. This prompted us to experimentally examine this reaction in sulfuric acid with oleum, which has never been reported because of presumed superacid reactivity. Reaction of methane at 180 °C for 3 h resulted in very high yields of methyl bisulfate without significant overoxidation. Our DFT calculations show that a C-H activation and Sb-Me bond functionalization mechanism to give methyl bisulfate outcompetes methane protonolysis and many other possible reaction mechanisms, such as electron transfer, proton-coupled electron transfer, and hydride abstraction. Our DFT calculations also explain experimental hydrogen-deuterium exchange studies and the absence of methane carbo-functionalization/oligomerization products. Overall, this work demonstrates that in very strong Brønsted acid solvent, Sb(V) can induce innersphere reaction mechanisms akin to transition metals and outcompete superacid reactivity.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Shu-Sen Chen
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Brigham Young University, Provo, Utah 84602, United States
| | - Anjaneyulu Koppaka
- The Scripps Energy and Materials Center, Department of Chemistry, The Scripps Research Institute, Jupiter, Florida 33458, United States
| | - Roy A Periana
- The Scripps Energy and Materials Center, Department of Chemistry, The Scripps Research Institute, Jupiter, Florida 33458, United States
| | - Daniel H Ess
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Brigham Young University, Provo, Utah 84602, United States
| |
Collapse
|
6
|
Liu L, Corma A. Isolated metal atoms and clusters for alkane activation: Translating knowledge from enzymatic and homogeneous to heterogeneous systems. Chem 2021. [DOI: 10.1016/j.chempr.2021.04.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/08/2023]
|
7
|
Xiang D, Iñiguez JA, Deng J, Guan X, Martinez A, Liu C. Ag
II
‐Mediated Electrocatalytic Ambient CH
4
Functionalization Inspired by HSAB Theory. Angew Chem Int Ed Engl 2021. [DOI: 10.1002/ange.202104217] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Danlei Xiang
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry University of California Los Angeles Los Angeles CA 90095 USA
| | - Jesus A. Iñiguez
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry University of California Los Angeles Los Angeles CA 90095 USA
| | - Jiao Deng
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry University of California Los Angeles Los Angeles CA 90095 USA
| | - Xun Guan
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry University of California Los Angeles Los Angeles CA 90095 USA
| | - Antonio Martinez
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry University of California Los Angeles Los Angeles CA 90095 USA
| | - Chong Liu
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry University of California Los Angeles Los Angeles CA 90095 USA
- California NanoSystems Institute University of California Los Angeles Los Angeles CA 90095 USA
| |
Collapse
|
8
|
Khenkin AM, Herman A, Haviv E, Neumann R. Electrocatalytic Oxyesterification of Hydrocarbons by Tetravalent Lead. ACS Catal 2021. [DOI: 10.1021/acscatal.1c01674] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Alexander M. Khenkin
- Department of Molecular Chemistry and Materials Science, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot 76100, Israel
| | - Adi Herman
- Department of Molecular Chemistry and Materials Science, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot 76100, Israel
| | - Eynat Haviv
- Department of Molecular Chemistry and Materials Science, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot 76100, Israel
| | - Ronny Neumann
- Department of Molecular Chemistry and Materials Science, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot 76100, Israel
| |
Collapse
|
9
|
Xiang D, Iñiguez JA, Deng J, Guan X, Martinez A, Liu C. Ag II -Mediated Electrocatalytic Ambient CH 4 Functionalization Inspired by HSAB Theory. Angew Chem Int Ed Engl 2021; 60:18152-18161. [PMID: 34107154 DOI: 10.1002/anie.202104217] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/01/2021] [Revised: 05/25/2021] [Indexed: 11/07/2022]
Abstract
Although most class (b) transition metals have been studied in regard to CH4 activation, divalent silver (AgII ), possibly owing to its reactive nature, is the only class (b) high-valent transition metal center that is not yet reported to exhibit reactivities towards CH4 activation. We now report that electrochemically generated AgII metalloradical readily functionalizes CH4 into methyl bisulfate (CH3 OSO3 H) at ambient conditions in 98 % H2 SO4 . Mechanistic investigation experimentally unveils a low activation energy of 13.1 kcal mol-1 , a high pseudo-first-order rate constant of CH4 activation up to 2.8×103 h-1 at room temperature and a CH4 pressure of 85 psi, and two competing reaction pathways preferable towards CH4 activation over solvent oxidation. Reaction kinetic data suggest a Faradaic efficiency exceeding 99 % beyond 180 psi CH4 at room temperature for potential chemical production from widely distributed natural gas resources with minimal infrastructure reliance.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Danlei Xiang
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, 90095, USA
| | - Jesus A Iñiguez
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, 90095, USA
| | - Jiao Deng
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, 90095, USA
| | - Xun Guan
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, 90095, USA
| | - Antonio Martinez
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, 90095, USA
| | - Chong Liu
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, 90095, USA.,California NanoSystems Institute, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, 90095, USA
| |
Collapse
|
10
|
Zhang Y, Li J, Kornienko N. Towards atomic precision in HMF and methane oxidation electrocatalysts. Chem Commun (Camb) 2021; 57:4230-4238. [PMID: 33861272 DOI: 10.1039/d1cc01155c] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/14/2023]
Abstract
With the increasing emphasis on transitioning to a sustainable society, electrosynthetic routes to generate fuels and chemicals are rapidly gaining traction. While the electrolysis of water and CO2 has been heavily investigated over the last decade, electrocatalysis of other abundant resources such as biomass and methane is now increasingly coming into focus. As this area is relatively less mature, much work remains to be done. In particular, efforts to decipher reaction mechanisms and extract the fundamental insights are necessary to develop economically competitive electrosynthetic routes using biomass and methane. Against this backdrop, this feature article focuses on the recent developments within the community using atomically precise catalysts, both homogeneous and heterogeneous, as model systems to understand these reactions.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Yuxuan Zhang
- Department of Chemistry, Université de Montréal, 1375 Ave. Thérèse-Lavoie-Roux, Montréal, QC H2V 0B3, Canada.
| | - Junnan Li
- Department of Chemistry, Université de Montréal, 1375 Ave. Thérèse-Lavoie-Roux, Montréal, QC H2V 0B3, Canada.
| | - Nikolay Kornienko
- Department of Chemistry, Université de Montréal, 1375 Ave. Thérèse-Lavoie-Roux, Montréal, QC H2V 0B3, Canada.
| |
Collapse
|