Year: 2025
Type: article
Abstract: Direct oxidation of methane (CH4) to methanol (CH3OH) typically requires elevated temperatures and pressures, making it challenging to achieve high yield and selectivity under mild conditions. Here, we show a surface plasmon-mediated catalyst designing strategy based on the synergy between Pd nanoparticles and ZnO nanosheets. When applied in a continuous gas–solid–liquid photocatalytic flow system at low temperature and ambient pressure, the optimized catalyst achieves a CH3OH productivity of 6584 μmol g−1 h−1, which is competitive with reported photocatalytic systems, along with selectivity of ~100% and sustained stability over 100 h. In-situ characterization and theoretical calculations indicate that plasmon-induced electron accumulation suppresses over-oxidation and promotes high CH3OH selectivity. This work offers a pathway to efficient, selective CH4 photo-oxidation using plasmonic catalyst design, supporting the sustainable utilization of solar energy. The combination of plasmon-mediated electron enrichment and a continuous-flow reactor overcomes key challenges in selective methane oxidation, achieving a methanol production rate of over 6.5 mmol·g-1·h-1 with the selectivity of 100% and sustained stability over 100 h under ambient pressure.
Source: Nature Communications
Language: English
Field: Energy
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $6,990
OpenAlex ID: W4417100225