High-entropy-alloy (HEA) nanoparticles are attractive
for several
applications in catalysis and energy. Great efforts are currently
devoted to establish composition–property relationships to
improve catalytic activity or selectivity. Equally importantly, developing
practical fabrication methods for shaping HEA-based materials into
complex architectures is a key requirement for their utilization in
catalysis. However, shaping nano-HEAs into hierarchical structures
avoiding demixing or collapse remains a great challenge. Herein, we
overcome this issue by introducing a simple soft-chemistry route to
fabricate ordered macro- and mesoporous materials based on HEA nanoparticles,
with high surface area, thermal stability, and catalytic activity
toward CO oxidation. The process is based on spray-drying from an
aqueous solution containing five different noble metal precursors
and polymer latex beads. Upon annealing, the polymer plays a double
role: templating and reducing agent enabling formation of HEA nanoparticle-based
porous networks at only 350 °C. The formation mechanism and the
stability of the macro- and mesoporous materials were investigated
by a set of in situ characterization techniques;
notably, in situ transmission electron microscopy
unveiled that the porous structure is stable up to 800 °C. Importantly,
this process is green, scalable, and versatile and could be potentially
extended to other classes of HEA materials.
Despite the broad relevance of copper nanoparticles in industrial applications, the fundamental understanding of oxidation and reduction of copper at the nanoscale is still a matter of debate and remains...
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