MXene-supported Ru-Ni: a Common Active Site for Hydrolysis, Hydrogen Oxidation, and Hydrogenation

Shuyan Guan; Yanyan Liu; Shuling Liu; Zechao Zhuang; Ruofan Shen; Huanhuan Zhang; Erjun Liang; Yanping Fan; Jianchun Jiang; Baozhong Liu; Yongfeng Wang; Dingsheng Wang; Baojun Li

doi:10.1002/anie.202506869

MXene-supported Ru-Ni: a Common Active Site for Hydrolysis, Hydrogen Oxidation, and Hydrogenation

Angew Chem Int Ed Engl. 2025 Jun 25:e202506869. doi: 10.1002/anie.202506869. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Shuyan Guan¹, Yanyan Liu², Shuling Liu³, Zechao Zhuang¹, Ruofan Shen⁴, Huanhuan Zhang³, Erjun Liang³, Yanping Fan⁵, Jianchun Jiang⁶, Baozhong Liu⁵, Yongfeng Wang⁷, Dingsheng Wang⁸, Baojun Li⁹

Affiliations

¹ Tsinghua University, Department of Chemistry, CHINA.
² Henan Agricultural University, College of Science, CHINA.
³ Zhengzhou University, College of Chemistry, CHINA.
⁴ Zhengzhou University, School of Physics and Microelectronics, CHINA.
⁵ Henan Polytechnic University, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, CHINA.
⁶ Chinese Academy of Forestry, Institute of Chemical Industry of Forest Product, CHINA.
⁷ Peking University, Department of Electronics, CHINA.
⁸ Tsinghua University, Department of Chemistry, Haidian, 100084, Beijing, CHINA.
⁹ Zhengzhou University, College of Chemistry and Molecular Engineering, 100 Science Road, 450001, Zhengzhou, CHINA.

PMID: 40562729
DOI: 10.1002/anie.202506869

Abstract

Insights into the activation and conversion of hydrogen using a single-mode catalyst is crucial for advancing fuels and fine chemical production. In this paper, the activation and conversion of H2 molecular in hydrogen production and application were investigated on RuM (M = Ni, Co, Cu, Fe)-MXene catalysts. RuM (M = Ni, Co, Cu, Fe) bimetallic nanoclusters were uniformly distributed on Ti3C2 MXene. The optimal Ru2.5Ni2.5-Ti3C2 exhibites the highest turnover frequency (TOF) value of 1833 min-1 toward ammonia borane (AB, NH3BH3) hydrolysis. Meanwhile, the catalysts also showed good catalytic activity in hydrogen oxidation reaction (HOR) and phenylacetylene hydrogenation. The high activity is originl from the acceleration of the catalytic process by RuNi clusters-Ti3C2 and the promotion of molecular transport by the special interface of RuNi cluster-MXene. The RuNi clusters-Ti3C2 with suiable d-band provide a dependable platform for the regulated activation and conversion of H2 molecules and various reaction intermediates. The competitiveness of nano-cluster-MXene catalytic material is showcased for activation and conversion of hydrogen. This research of reaction-inducing adaptation uncovered the pathway to explore multi-functional catalysts in energy, chemistry and materials applications.

Keywords: Ammonia borane; Hydrogen activation and conversion; RuNi clusters-MXene; Suitable d-band; active site.