Construction of Synergistic Au–Cu Interfaces on α‐MoC for Efficient Low‐Temperature Water–Gas Shift at Low Au Loading

ABSTRACT To reduce precious‐metal usage while maintaining high low‐temperature water–gas shift (WGS) activity, we prepared a bimetallic 0.5Au‐2Cu/α‐MoC catalyst via temperature‐programmed carburization of an Au–Cu modified MoO 3 precursor, with 0.5Au/α‐MoC and 2Cu/α‐MoC as references. XRD, BET, CO chemisorption, XPS, and AC‐HAADF‐STEM characterization confirm the α‐MoC phase formation, atomically dispersed Au, and highly dispersed Cu species on its surface. This unique configuration creates electronically coupled Au‐Cu/MoC interfaces. In a fixed‐bed reactor (10.5% CO/21% H 2 O/N 2 , WHSV = 36,000 mL·g −1 ·h −1 ), 0.5Au‐2Cu/α‐MoC delivers a mass‐specific reaction rate of 76.6 µmol·g cat −1 ·s −1 at 150°C, which is markedly higher than the monometallic analogues and bare α‐MoC. Despite a low Au loading of 0.47 wt%, its performance compares favorably with most reported oxide‐supported Au catalysts, and its activity can be repeatedly recovered by reactivation after moderate deactivation at 150°C. Kinetic analysis reveals an apparent activation energy of 53.3 kJ·mol −1 , indicating a kinetically favorable pathway on the synergistic interface. These results highlight a multi‐interface carburization approach for designing cost‐effective carbide WGS catalysts with minimal precious‐metal content.