The formation of single-site α-Fe in the CHA zeolite topology is demonstrated. The site is shown to be active in oxygen atom abstraction from NO to form a highly reactive α-O, capable of methane activation at room temperature to form methanol. The methanol product can subsequently be desorbed by online steaming at 200 °C. For the intermediate steps of the reaction cycle, the evolution of the Fe active site is monitored by UV-vis-NIR and Mössbauer spectroscopy. A B3LYP-DFT model of the α-Fe site in CHA is constructed, and the ligand field transitions are calculated by CASPT2. The model is experimentally substantiated by the preferential formation of α-Fe over other Fe species, the requirement of paired framework aluminum and a MeOH/Fe ratio indicating a mononuclear active site. The simple CHA topology is shown to mitigate the heterogeneity of iron speciation found on other Fe-zeolites, with FeO being the only identifiable phase other than α-Fe formed in Fe-CHA. The α-Fe site is formed in the d6r composite building unit, which occurs frequently across synthetic and natural zeolites. Finally, through a comparison between α-Fe in Fe-CHA and Fe-*BEA, the topology's 6MR geometry is found to influence the structure, the ligand field, and consequently the spectroscopy of the α-Fe site in a predictable manner. Variations in zeolite topology can thus be used to rationally tune the active site properties.

Using UV-Vis and resonance Raman spectroscopy, we identify a [Cu2O] 2+ active site in O2 and N2O activated Cu-CHA that reacts with methane to form methanol at low temperature. The Cu-O-Cu angle (120°) is smaller than for the [Cu2O] 2+ core on Cu-MFI (140°) and its coordination geometry to the zeolite lattice is different. Site-selective kinetics obtained by operando UV-Vis show that the [Cu2O] 2+ core on Cu-CHA is more reactive than the [Cu2O] 2+ site in Cu-MFI. From DFT calculations we find that the increased reactivity of Cu-CHA is a direct reflection of the strong [Cu2OH] 2+ bond formed along the H-atom abstraction reaction coordinate. A systematic evaluation of these [Cu2O] 2+ cores reveals that the higher O-H bond strength in Cu-CHA is due to the relative orientation of the two planes of the coordinating bidentate O-Al-O T-sites that connect the [Cu2O] 2+ core to the zeolite lattice. This work along with our earlier study (J.

The search for structurally relevant Alarrangements in zeolites is an important endeavor for single site catalysis. Little is known about the mechanisms and zeolite dynamics during synthesis that are responsible for creating those Al-ensembles. Here, new synthetic strategies for creating Al-hosts in small-pore zeolites suitable for divalent cation catalysis are uncovered, leading to a mechanistic proposal for Al-organization during crystallization. As such, unique synthesis-structure-activity relations are demonstrated for the partial oxidation of methane on Fe-exchanged CHA-zeolites. With modified interzeolite conversions, the divalent cation capacity of the resulting high Si SSZ-13 zeolites (Si/Al ~ 35) can be reproducibly controlled in a range between 0.04 and 0.34 Co 2+ /Al. This capacity is a proxy for the distribution of framework aluminum in pairs and correlates with the methanol production per Al when these zeolites host the -Fe II redox active site. The uncovered IZC synthesis-structure relations paint an Al-distribution hypothesis, where incongruent dissolution of the starting USY zeolite and fast synthesis kinetics with atypical growth modes allow assembling specific Alarrangements, resulting in a high divalent cation capacity. Prolonged synthesis times and high temperatures overcome the energetic barriers for T-atom reshuffling favoring Al-isolation. These mechanisms and the relations uncovered in this work will guide the search for relevant Al-ensembles in a range of zeolite catalysts where controlling the environment for a single active site is crucial.

A new series of bimetallic MOFs with tunable pillar linkers were successfully prepared, leading to a significant change in the intrinsic properties of MOFs and MOF-derived materials with the incorporation of a second metal cation.

Catalytic conversion of methane to methanol remains an economically tantalizing but fundamentally challenging goal. Current technologies based on zeolites deactivate too rapidly for practical application. We found that similar active sites hosted in different zeolite lattices can exhibit markedly different reactivity with methane, depending on the size of the zeolite pore apertures. Whereas zeolite with large pore apertures deactivates completely after a single turnover, 40% of active sites in zeolite with small pore apertures are regenerated, enabling a catalytic cycle. Detailed spectroscopic characterization of reaction intermediates and density functional theory calculations show that hindered diffusion through small pore apertures disfavors premature release of CH3 radicals from the active site after C-H activation, thereby promoting radical recombination to form methanol rather than deactivated Fe-OCH3 centers elsewhere in the lattice.