One-pot nanosheet method catalyzes a green energy revolution

A research group from the Institute of Future Materials and Systems at Nagoya University in Japan has developed a new “one-pot” method for making nanosheets using less rare metals. Their discovery should make it possible to make the energy production process more environmentally friendly. The newspaper ACS Nano published the study.

Clean energy production is important because it helps reduce global warming and build a carbon-neutral society. A potential source of clean energy uses hydrogen catalysts, such as palladium (Pd). Industries use Pd in ​​electrolysis to separate water into hydrogen and oxygen. The hydrogen contained in the fuel cells is then used to produce electricity. The only byproduct is water.

Palladium is commonly used in the form of spherical “nanoparticles” for use as a catalyst. However, a flatter, thinner surface would use less precious metals and increase the surface area available for reaction.

Minoru Osada of Nagoya University and his research group have developed a new way to make Pd nanosheets. They called it the “one-pot method” because it can be made in a single glass bottle. The resulting sheets were so thin (1–2 nm) that they can be compared to the size of a single molecule or strand of DNA.

According to Osada, “Our newly developed method is a safe, simple and energy-efficient process. The nanosheets can be synthesized at a low temperature of 75°C in a single hour without a special reaction vessel. Although the conventional synthesis method has difficulty in synthesizing nanosheets with uniform thickness and size, our one-pot method can easily do so. »

These nanosheets offer vast improvements over existing technology. “Our 2D nanosheets have 2.8 times the surface area of ​​spherical nanoparticles due to their sheet-like shape,” Osada said. “They had twice the catalytic activity of the current generation of hydrogen evolution catalysts in performance testing.”

Because hydrogen reactions are important to many industries, this research promises to have a transformative impact. Osada expressed hope that the new Pd nanosheets would be used not only in renewable energy, but also in a wide range of industries.

“To date, Pd nanoparticles have been widely used as important catalysts for various chemical reactions ranging from gas purification to pharmaceutical synthesis. Pd nanosheets could potentially replace conventional Pd catalysts and revolutionize these processes.”