Min-Jae Kim , I-Jeong Jeon , Yujian Xia , Bon-Jun Ku , Mansu Kim , Won-Jun Jang , Kyubock Lee , Jinghua Guo , Jae-Oh Shim
{"title":"Cu behavior and catalytic properties on highly distributed CeO2-MgO supports: Impact of Cu loading in HTS reactions for waste-to-hydrogen production","authors":"Min-Jae Kim , I-Jeong Jeon , Yujian Xia , Bon-Jun Ku , Mansu Kim , Won-Jun Jang , Kyubock Lee , Jinghua Guo , Jae-Oh Shim","doi":"10.1016/j.apcata.2025.120584","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.apcata.2025.120584","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Achieving uniform dispersion of CeO<sub>2</sub>-MgO supports presents a significant technical challenge due to their inability to form solid solutions. The crystallization of CeO<sub>2</sub> inhibits MgO structure formation, causing MgO to exist in an amorphous and unevenly distributed state within the CeO<sub>2</sub>-MgO matrix. Consequently, many studies have focused on poorly dispersed CeO<sub>2</sub>-MgO systems for catalyst development. This limitation not only prevents the full utilization of uniformly distributed CeO<sub>2</sub>-MgO but also complicates the clear identification of interaction between active metal and support. In this study, a spray pyrolysis-assisted evaporation-induced self-assembly (EISA) method was employed to successfully synthesize uniformly dispersed CeO<sub>2</sub>-MgO, and the behavior of Cu impregnated onto this well-dispersed support was investigated. Our findings revealed that the size and dispersion of Cu nanoparticles were strongly influenced by Cu loading, which significantly affected the redox properties of Cu while inducing simultaneous changes in the electronic structures of both Cu and Ce. These findings illustrate how thermally mobile Cu behaves on a uniformly distributed CeO<sub>2</sub>-MgO support, emphasizing the importance of controlling active material behavior in catalyst design for high-temperature shift reactions. This provides key insights into optimizing catalytic performance and enhancing waste-to-hydrogen production by precisely controlling Cu distribution and its interaction with the support.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":243,"journal":{"name":"Applied Catalysis A: General","volume":"708 ","pages":"Article 120584"},"PeriodicalIF":4.8,"publicationDate":"2025-09-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145096755","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Mateus H. Keller , Raphaell Moreira , Jéssica de Bona , Luis H.S. Lacerda , Pascal Van Der Voort , Bruno S. Souza
{"title":"Covalent triazine frameworks with MgO sites as a basic catalyst for aldol condensation and transesterification reactions","authors":"Mateus H. Keller , Raphaell Moreira , Jéssica de Bona , Luis H.S. Lacerda , Pascal Van Der Voort , Bruno S. Souza","doi":"10.1016/j.apcata.2025.120583","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.apcata.2025.120583","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Covalent triazine frameworks (CTFs) have emerged as robust materials with high thermal and chemical stability, tunable porosity, and significant potential for sustainable applications in catalysis, adsorption, and gas storage and separation. Recent advances have focused on enhancing their intrinsic basicity through the incorporation of alkali oxides, which, although effective, exhibit limited moisture stability. For many practical applications, developing strongly basic, water-tolerant CTFs remains a critical challenge. In this work, magnesium oxide-impregnated covalent triazine frameworks (MgO@CTFs) were successfully synthesized through a sequential process involving the wet impregnation of magnesium salts onto CTFs, followed by thermal decomposition. The synthesis procedure was optimized by investigating the best ratio of the metal salt precursor to support, as well as the type of metal precursor. Impregnation of MgO at 5 wt% provided the best compromise between enhanced basicity and retention of porosity. The materials were thoroughly characterized to confirm their structure, composition, and porosity. Their catalytic performance was evaluated in the production of 2-hexyl-2-decenal from octanal, achieving over 80 % conversion at 170 °C within 4 h, as well as in the propanolysis of 4-nitrophenylacetate (4-NPA) and paraoxon-ethyl. Remarkably, reaction rates improved by factors of 4.5 (4-NPA) and 300 (paraxon) compared to the respective spontaneous reaction. DTF studies indicate that the CTF framework interacts with propanol and paraoxon-ethyl, facilitating the interaction between the reactive species. This study presents an effective strategy to introduce stable basic sites into CTFs without compromising their porosity or stability, expanding their applicability in base-catalyzed reactions and other advanced applications.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":243,"journal":{"name":"Applied Catalysis A: General","volume":"708 ","pages":"Article 120583"},"PeriodicalIF":4.8,"publicationDate":"2025-09-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145109592","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Vitor C. Brandão , André V.H. Soares , Yutao Xing , Fabio B. Passos
{"title":"Exploring the promoting effect of Fe, Nb, Mo, and Ag on HZSM-5 for n-propanol dehydration","authors":"Vitor C. Brandão , André V.H. Soares , Yutao Xing , Fabio B. Passos","doi":"10.1016/j.apcata.2025.120573","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.apcata.2025.120573","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Bioderived n-propanol has multiple applications, including its use as a solvent and in the production of higher-value products. This study evaluates the production of di-n-propyl ether (DPE) and propylene from the dehydration of n-propanol, analyzing the effects of transition metals — iron, molybdenum, silver, and niobium — on ZSM-5 zeolite with silica/alumina ratio of 28. Catalysts were synthesized with a 5 wt% metal loading using incipient wetness impregnation. Characterization of catalysts included XRD, NH<sub>3</sub>-TPD, N<sub>2</sub> physisorption, XPS, DRIFTS, TEM, SEM-EDS and TGA. Metal impregnation reduced both surface area and pore volume. Fe<sup>3 +</sup> /Fe<sup>2+</sup>, Nb<sup>5+</sup>, Ag<sup>0</sup> and Mo<sup>5+</sup>/Mo<sup>4+</sup> species were identified, agglomeration of Fe particles was clearly observed, but no significant structural differences in other catalysts. Results showed that metal impregnation alters strong/weak ratio of acid sites, which is detrimental to catalytic activity. Catalytic tests conducted in a U-shaped quartz reactor were performed, and Mo/HZSM-5 showed superior yield for DPE production due to a higher proportion of weak acid sites. At 473 K, the Nb/HZSM-5 catalyst showed increased stability over HZSM-5, reaching an initial yield of 86 % for propylene, and an average yield of 50 % after 200 min. TGA of spent catalysts showed a coke concentration of 29 % for spent HZSM-5 and 20 % for Nb/HZSM-5. This study demonstrates the potential of transition metal-promoted ZSM-5 catalysts for efficient DPE and propylene production from n-propanol, advancing the application of renewable feedstocks in catalysis.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":243,"journal":{"name":"Applied Catalysis A: General","volume":"708 ","pages":"Article 120573"},"PeriodicalIF":4.8,"publicationDate":"2025-09-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145096753","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Xiao Yang , Heying Zhao , Aiyong Wang , Wangcheng Zhan , Yanglong Guo , Li Wang , Xuan Tang , Yun Guo
{"title":"Mitigating SO2 poisoning during CO oxidation over Pt/Al2O3 catalysts via sulfur spillover from highly under-coordinated platinum to the Al2O3 support","authors":"Xiao Yang , Heying Zhao , Aiyong Wang , Wangcheng Zhan , Yanglong Guo , Li Wang , Xuan Tang , Yun Guo","doi":"10.1016/j.apcata.2025.120580","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.apcata.2025.120580","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>SO<sub>2</sub> in the sintering flue gas severely inhibits the CO oxidation performance of commercial Pt/Al<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub> catalysts. However, the major poisoning mechanism of SO<sub>2</sub> on Pt/Al<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub> in CO oxidation in the presence of H<sub>2</sub>O remains to be elucidated. Here, Pt/Al<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub> was pretreated with different reducing atmospheres at high temperatures. Among these, the catalyst pretreated with a CO atmosphere at 600 °C (denoted as Pt/Al<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub>-CO-600) exhibited superior CO oxidation performance and enhanced sulfur resistance in the presence of both H<sub>2</sub>O and SO<sub>2</sub>. The combination of XPS, HAADF-STEM, TG-MS, SO<sub>2</sub> oxidation test, and in-situ DRIFTS reveal that the Pt species on Pt/Al<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub>-CO-600 transformed from Pt oxide clusters to metallic Pt nanoparticles. This transformation enhanced SO<sub>2</sub> adsorption and reactivity, leading to increased sulfate accumulation. Despite the high SO<sub>2</sub> reactivity and sulfate content, in-situ DRIFTS revealed that the CO reaction of Pt/Al<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub>-CO-600 was less hindered by SO<sub>2</sub> and the sulfated Al<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub>. This is attributed to the high ratio of the under-coordinated (UC) Pt sites in Pt/Al<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub>-CO-600, which promotes the reaction intermediates spillover from Pt site to Al<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub> compared to the Pt/Al<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub>. This phenomenon was positively correlated with the sulfur resistance of reduced catalysts. Accordingly, the UC site contributes to the spillover of sulfate intermediate (H<sub>2</sub>SO<sub>4</sub>), reducing the CO reactivity loss of Pt/Al<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub> due to the intermediate coverage. This study elucidates that the primary poisoning pathway of Pt/Al<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub> in the presence of H<sub>2</sub>O and SO<sub>2</sub> is the difficulty of sulfate intermediate spillover.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":243,"journal":{"name":"Applied Catalysis A: General","volume":"708 ","pages":"Article 120580"},"PeriodicalIF":4.8,"publicationDate":"2025-09-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145096754","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Surface states of a Cu-Pd bimetal catalyst supported over SiO2 under CO atmosphere investigated by in situ infrared spectroscopy","authors":"Miyu Sayama , Makiko Abe , Natsuki Kaneko , Michinori Sumimoto , Junko N. Kondo , Yoshihisa Sakata","doi":"10.1016/j.apcata.2025.120576","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.apcata.2025.120576","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The surface states of a Cu-Pd nanoparticles supported on SiO<sub>2</sub> was investigated by probing the states of adsorbed CO observed by <em>in situ</em> infrared (IR) spectroscopic examination. Here the investigation was carried out on Pd (10 at%)-containing Cu (10 wt%)-supported SiO<sub>2</sub>, where the amount of adsorbed CO was maximum, indicating the effective activation of Cu metals by the addition of Pd. Particularly, under the atmosphere of relatively low CO pressures (below 10 Pa), the <em>in situ</em> IR spectra show the dynamic changes in the state of adsorbed CO originated from the rearrangement of surface atoms induced by CO adsorption over silica supported Cu-Pd bimetal nanoparticles. The details of changes in the surface states induced by CO adsorption are discussed.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":243,"journal":{"name":"Applied Catalysis A: General","volume":"708 ","pages":"Article 120576"},"PeriodicalIF":4.8,"publicationDate":"2025-09-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145096815","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Is catalysis an enabler for the third energy transition?","authors":"Doron Levin","doi":"10.1016/j.apcata.2025.120579","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.apcata.2025.120579","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>According to the International Energy Forum <span><span>[1]</span></span>, the third energy transition is underway. However, it will differ in consequences from the first and second energy transitions which transformed the way that mankind uses energy. The third energy transition is primarily additive to the energy resource base rather than a substantial replacement for existing sources of energy. The world needs a lot of energy, approximately 1 quadrillion BTUs (= 1.055 exajoules) every 14.6 h, and supplying that energy in a way that meets the world’s needs and lowers emissions is the key challenge facing society. While the second energy transition was in part enabled by and dependent on advances in catalysis, it is unclear what the impact of catalysis will be on the third energy transition which is driven primarily by the movement of electrons rather than transformation of molecules. This perspective article attempts to provide some thoughts and insights in addressing this question.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":243,"journal":{"name":"Applied Catalysis A: General","volume":"708 ","pages":"Article 120579"},"PeriodicalIF":4.8,"publicationDate":"2025-09-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145118740","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Huimin Li , Bin Wu , Zhimin Zhu , Chenyang Li , Zhihan Liu , Fuweng Zhang , Huidong Zheng , Longfei Yan
{"title":"Green and continuous flow oxidation of ethylene sulfite to ethylene sulfate over highly selective titanium silicalite-1 catalyst","authors":"Huimin Li , Bin Wu , Zhimin Zhu , Chenyang Li , Zhihan Liu , Fuweng Zhang , Huidong Zheng , Longfei Yan","doi":"10.1016/j.apcata.2025.120581","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.apcata.2025.120581","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Ethylene sulfate (DTD) is a new type of solid electrolyte interphase (SEI) film-forming additive for lithium-ion batteries. DTD was typically synthesized in the industry by oxidation of ethylene sulfite (ES) with NaClO via a RuCl<sub>3</sub>-catalyzed reaction. However, this route generates significant amount of Cl-containing wastes, and the recovery of RuCl<sub>3</sub> is costly and technically challenging. Herein, we present a green and heterogeneous route for synthesizing DTD from ES, utilizing the Titanium Silicalite-1 (TS-1) and H<sub>2</sub>O<sub>2</sub> as catalysts and green oxidants, respectively. Our research reveals that the tetra-coordination framework of Ti in TS-1 serves as the main active site for the oxidation of ES, achieving a remarkable yield of DTD up to 92 % under optimized reaction conditions. Additionally, we developed a continuous green oxidation process for synthesizing DTD from ES, which is the first of its kind and has been successfully operated continuously for over 300 h. This work provides a cost-effective, green, and efficient route for synthesizing DTD from ES.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":243,"journal":{"name":"Applied Catalysis A: General","volume":"708 ","pages":"Article 120581"},"PeriodicalIF":4.8,"publicationDate":"2025-09-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145096748","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Sumin Pyo , Haneul Shim , Yasin Khani , Kanghee Cho , Kyungho Lee , Kwang-Eun Jeong , Chul-Ung Kim , Siyoung Q. Choi , Young-Kwon Park
{"title":"Enhanced catalytic activity of metal-doped Cu/ZnO/Al2O3 catalyst incorporated polyethylene glycol for CO2 hydrogenation to methanol","authors":"Sumin Pyo , Haneul Shim , Yasin Khani , Kanghee Cho , Kyungho Lee , Kwang-Eun Jeong , Chul-Ung Kim , Siyoung Q. Choi , Young-Kwon Park","doi":"10.1016/j.apcata.2025.120577","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.apcata.2025.120577","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The increasing concerns over greenhouse gas emissions have driven significant research into sustainable carbon utilization strategies. Among these, the catalytic hydrogenation of CO<sub>2</sub> to methanol has emerged as a promising approach, offering both carbon capture and value-added chemical production. In this study, a Cu/ZnO/Al<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub> (CZA) catalyst was synthesized via an enhanced co-precipitation method with adding polyethylene glycol (PEG) surfactant to improve porosity and surface functionality. Additionally, Ga and Ti were introduced as promoters to enhance catalytic performance. Catalytic performance tests demonstrated that the Ti-doped CZA catalyst (Ti-CZA-3PG) exhibited the highest CO<sub>2</sub> conversion (35.6 %) and space-time yield (STY) of methanol (312.6 mmol/(g<sub>cat</sub>∙h)) at 280 °C under 50 bar, even outperforming a commercial catalyst. The improved performance is attributed to enhanced Cu-ZnO interaction, increased active sites due to oxygen vacancies, and suppression of the reverse water-gas shift reaction, ensuring higher methanol selectivity. This study highlights the synergistic effects of PEG-assisted synthesis and hetero-metal doping, presenting an effective strategy for optimizing Cu-based catalysts for CO<sub>2</sub> hydrogenation to methanol.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":243,"journal":{"name":"Applied Catalysis A: General","volume":"708 ","pages":"Article 120577"},"PeriodicalIF":4.8,"publicationDate":"2025-09-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145096746","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Jiayue Wang , Wenjun Zhu , Yudi Yan , Yao Li , Chenxi Zhao , Changhai Liang
{"title":"The critical role of La/Ce composition in Ni/Ce1-yLayOx catalysts: Optimizing oxygen vacancies and metal-support interactions for ammonia decomposition","authors":"Jiayue Wang , Wenjun Zhu , Yudi Yan , Yao Li , Chenxi Zhao , Changhai Liang","doi":"10.1016/j.apcata.2025.120578","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.apcata.2025.120578","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>As a carbon-free hydrogen carrier, ammonia requires efficient decomposition catalysts to enable its practical use in hydrogen energy applications. In this study, a series of Ce<sub>1-y</sub>La<sub>y</sub>O<sub>x</sub> oxides with varying La/Ce molar ratios were synthesized via a citric acid method and utilized as supports for Ni-based NH<sub>3</sub> decomposition catalysts. The La/Ce molar ratio significantly influenced the catalytic performance, with Ni/Ce<sub>0.5</sub>La<sub>0.5</sub>O<sub>x</sub> exhibiting the highest catalytic activity, achieving nearly 100 % ammonia conversion at 540 ℃ (GHSV= 9000 mL g<sub>cat</sub><sup>−1</sup> h<sup>−1</sup>) and 600 ℃ (GHSV = 30000 mL g<sub>cat</sub><sup>−1</sup> h<sup>−1</sup>). Various characterizations demonstrated that optimal La/Ce ratio promoted uniform dispersion of Ni nanoparticles (4.6 nm), maximizing available active sites for NH<sub>3</sub> adsorption. Moreover, the Ce<sub>0.5</sub>La<sub>0.5</sub>O<sub>x</sub> support enriched the catalyst surface with high Ce<sup>3+</sup> species and oxygen vacancies, facilitating electron transfer to Ni species. These electron-enriched Ni species significantly enhanced the cleavage of Ni-N bonds and facilitated the recombination of N adatoms, thereby boosting the overall reaction rate. This work provided fundamental insights into the critical role of metal-support electron transfer in optimizing catalytic performance for efficient ammonia decomposition, offering valuable guidance for the design of advanced hydrogen production catalysts.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":243,"journal":{"name":"Applied Catalysis A: General","volume":"708 ","pages":"Article 120578"},"PeriodicalIF":4.8,"publicationDate":"2025-09-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145096756","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Wen Ma , Jia-Hao Gao , Wen-Tao Wang , Sheng Qi , Teng Chen , Ying-Mei Zhou , Hong-Zi Tan , Jian-Feng Diao , Kai-Qiang Jing , Ling Wu
{"title":"Enhancing photothermal selective oxidation performance of benzyl alcohol on hierarchical Bi2MoO6 spheres with in-situ oxygen vacancy modulation via photothermal induced defect engineering","authors":"Wen Ma , Jia-Hao Gao , Wen-Tao Wang , Sheng Qi , Teng Chen , Ying-Mei Zhou , Hong-Zi Tan , Jian-Feng Diao , Kai-Qiang Jing , Ling Wu","doi":"10.1016/j.apcata.2025.120575","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.apcata.2025.120575","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Transforming chemical products into high value-added products via green photocatalysis or thermocatalysis has triggered much interest. However, most researchers achieve this green organic synthesis process by photo or thermocatalysis independently. Meanwhile, the effect of photothermal synergy for enhancing benzyl alcohol (BA) oxidation catalytic performance are unclear yet. Herein, the photothermal effect stimulated the increase of oxygen vacancies (OVs) concentration over the hierarchical Bi<sub>2</sub>MoO<sub>6</sub> spheres (H-BMO-S) is investigated for the photothermal synergy selective oxidation of benzyl alcohol under the irradiation of visible light. Massive experimental results indicate that the H-BMO-S can produce abundant OVs with the reactive temperature increasing and visible light irradiation. The H-BMO-S sample exhibits 60.3 % conversion of BA under the reactive temperature at 70 °C, which is almost 1.8-fold in contrast to that of the H-BMO-S sample (34.4 %) at 25 °C. The elevated catalytic activity is ascribed to the analysis results that the enhanced OVs concentration can lengthen the lifetime of carriers, facilitate the separation of electrons and holes, and achieve the adsorption and activation of benzyl alcohol and oxygen molecules effortlessly. This work elucidates a strategy to enhancing the benzyl alcohol oxidation catalytic activity via defect engineering induced by photothermal synergy effect.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":243,"journal":{"name":"Applied Catalysis A: General","volume":"708 ","pages":"Article 120575"},"PeriodicalIF":4.8,"publicationDate":"2025-09-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145096747","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"化学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}