The Effect of Surface Wettability and Coalescence Dynamics in Catalytic Performance and Catalyst Preparation: A Review

Abstract

The interactions between the reactants and catalysts surfaces play a significant role in heterogeneous catalysis, thus to tune the interfacial properties between them has emerged as an important topic. This review has summarised some recent advances about the effects of wettability on the catalytic reactions, including hydrophilicity, hydrophobicity, and dewetting properties. In addition, the effect of coalescence dynamics among the catalyst particles is also discussed based on a series of investigations. Although the researchers have realised the importance of wettability, the ability to tune the wettability in their work needs to be further enhanced. Therefore, we finally highlighted considerable useful approaches to achieve controllable wettability and coalescence. It is expected that in the future design of catalysts, researchers should pay more attention to tuning the interfacial structure to achieve the enhanced catalysts behaviours.[a] T.

Switchable wetting of oxygen-evolving oxide catalysts

“…In practice, the wettability of solid surfaces under an applied potential can play a critical role in energy conversion 17 – 19 and especially with respect to heterogeneous catalysis 20 , 21 . Hydrophobic surfaces have also been reported to promote CO 2 reduction on a copper surface 22 .…”

Fabrication of Pd/SiO2 with Controllable Wettability for Enhanced Catalytic Hydrogenation Activity at Ambient H2 Pressure

“…The wettability is one of the important surface properties and had attracted a lot of attentions recently . The activity and selectivity as well as the reaction pathway catalyzed by the heterogeneous catalyst could be adjusted, as the wettability of catalyst could regulate the affinity between the catalysts and the substrates, intermediates or products.…”

“…More and more efforts were put in how to regulate the surface properties for a better catalyst and the relationship between the surface properties and the catalytic effect was an attractive research topic.The wettability is one of the important surface properties and had attracted a lot of attentions recently. [4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17] The activity and selectivity as well as the reaction pathway catalyzed by the heterogeneous catalyst could be adjusted, as the wettability of catalyst could regulate the affinity between the catalysts and the substrates, intermediates or products. For example, the hydrophilicity of Ru catalyst was a necessary for the high selectivity of cyclohexene in the hydrogenation of benzene.…”

Aliphatic amines modified CoO nanoparticles for catalytic oxidation of aromatic hydrocarbon with molecular oxygen

“…Many other factors that could enhance the reaction rate of a heterogeneous catalysis reaction exist, such as the electronic state [13] and the microenvironment [14]. The surface hydrophobicity of the catalyst was advantageous to the hydrocarbon oxidation owing to the nature of the process [15][16][17][18][19]. The CoOx nanoparticles exhibited hydrophilic properties toward the polar hydroxyl groups on the surface.…”