Current state and future prospects of liquid metal catalysis

Molten multi-phase catalytic system comprising Li–Zn alloy and LiCl–KCl salt for nitrogen fixation and ammonia synthesis at ambient pressure

“…It is necessary to investigate other reactive alloys and ionic salts. It is also critical to advance the understanding of the high atomic mobility and the complex atomic structure in the melts of various compositions with in situ characterization techniques 83 and artificial intelligence methods, 84 which might considerably improve the catalytic performance of the system. The dynamic interface between the alloy and the salt is also of great interest.…”

Liquid Gallium–Zeolite Nanocomposite Catalysts for Propane Dehydrogenation

“…Therefore, sonication and thermal decomposition method were commonly applied for producing the stable small liquid metal particles . Supported catalytically active liquid-metal solutions (SCALMS) have been synthesized by a small amount of precious metal (e.g., Pt, Rh) on liquid metal under oxygen-free conditions for PDH, where homogeneous isolated noble metal atoms are the active centers of the catalytic reactions. − However, because of the very high surface tension of liquid metal, gallium droplets could tend to gather into larger ensembles at high temperatures . The surface oxide layer of liquid Ga may work as a physical barrier among adjacent Ga droplets to prevent particles from agglomerating, which additionally exhibits catalytic activity .…”

Tailoring Heterostructure Growth on Liquid Metal Nanodroplets through Interface Engineering

“…While conductive Ga-LM MNDs possess abundant delocalized electrons/ions at their surface, distinct from dielectric aqueous MNDs, a local electrostatic potential field is also formed at the interface between LM and dielectric surroundings (e.g., aqueous solutions containing ions) during a liquid-phase reaction. , The unique electric microenvironment at the defect-free surface of Ga-LM MNDs is considered as the main factor in modulating the kinetics of chemical reactions, including catalytic processes, between Ga-LM MNDs and dielectric surroundings. , For instance, it has been demonstrated that when Ga-LM MNDs are used as reactants, thermodynamically favorable but kinetically limited reactions between LM and the surrounding aqueous solution can be significantly accelerated, which facilitates the production of diverse functional core–shell nanostructures. − Nevertheless, subjecting to the challenge of experimentally mapping the charge or field distribution with a high spatial resolution, a comprehensive understanding of the effects of the dielectric surface and the electronic state of the interface on the surface reaction of LM MNDs are hindered. Additionally, the diversities of products would be more complicated as both nucleation and diffusion kinetics during the growth procedures should be considered. , Consequently, these challenges in understanding reaction kinetics and product growth at the defect-free surface of Ga-LM MNDs pose obstacles to the application of Ga-LM MNDs in chemistry processes.…”

“…However, investigating such conductive MNDs is challenging since high temperatures are required for most metals or alloys to enter their liquid state. It has been shown that MNDs of gallium-based liquid metals (Ga-LMs) can remain in a liquid state even below 0 °C, exhibiting both metallic and fluidic properties at room temperature. − Therefore, Ga-LM MNDs have attracted much attention and demonstrated numerous possibilities for various applications, especially those involving surface chemical reactions. − …”