Issue 1, 2018

Ligand effect on the catalytic activity of porphyrin-protected gold clusters in the electrochemical hydrogen evolution reaction

Abstract

The “ligand effect” can be used as a novel strategy for enhancing the catalytic properties of metal clusters. Herein, we report the ligand effect of porphyrin derivatives on gold clusters (AuCs, size <2 nm) and gold nanoparticles (AuNPs, size >2 nm) in the electrochemical hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) at pH 6.7. The current density of porphyrin face-coordinated AuCs at −0.4 V vs. reversible hydrogen electrode (RHE) was 460% higher than that of phenylethanethiol-protected AuCs. X-ray photoemission spectroscopy indicated that the approach of porphyrin to the Au surface induced charge migration from the porphyrin to the Au core, leading to a shift in the 5d state of AuCs that resulted in enhanced HER activities. This ligand effect is pronounced in the cluster region due to the large surface-to-volume ratio. These results pave the way for enhancing catalytic activity of metal clusters using ligand design.

Graphical abstract: Ligand effect on the catalytic activity of porphyrin-protected gold clusters in the electrochemical hydrogen evolution reaction

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Edge Article
Submitted
12 Sep 2017
Accepted
25 Oct 2017
First published
03 Nov 2017
This article is Open Access

All publication charges for this article have been paid for by the Royal Society of Chemistry
Creative Commons BY license

Chem. Sci., 2018,9, 261-265

Ligand effect on the catalytic activity of porphyrin-protected gold clusters in the electrochemical hydrogen evolution reaction

D. Eguchi, M. Sakamoto and T. Teranishi, Chem. Sci., 2018, 9, 261 DOI: 10.1039/C7SC03997B

This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported Licence. You can use material from this article in other publications without requesting further permissions from the RSC, provided that the correct acknowledgement is given.

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