Precisely Modulating the Interfacial Oxygen Radicals for Selective Photocatalytic Methane Partial Oxidation to Methanol

ABSTRACT Selective photocatalytic partial oxidation of methane (CH 4 ) under ambient conditions offers a sustainable route for direct methanol (CH 3 OH) production while reducing greenhouse gases. However, achieving both high yield and selectivity remains challenging due to the uncontrolled generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS), particularly hydroxyl radicals (•OH), which readily overoxidize CH 3 OH. Here, we report a PdNi alloy cocatalyst supported on TiO 2 that enables fine‐tuning of interfacial ROS dynamics via electronic and structural modulation. Mechanistic studies reveal that the PdNi interface couples moderate kinetic barriers for *O protonation with thermodynamic enhancement of *OH adsorption via d‐band center modulation. This cooperative effect suppresses the transition of O 2 into reactive •OH species, thereby mitigating CH 3 OH overoxidation. As a result, the optimized PdNi 0.49 /TiO 2 photocatalyst achieves a CH 3 OH yield of 9557.4 µmol g −1 h −1 with 87.5% selectivity using molecular O 2 as the sole oxidant. Beyond regulating ROS dynamics, Ni incorporation also optimizes the desorption behavior of CH 3 OH, further contributing to the high selectivity of the target product. This work establishes a rational interfacial design strategy for steering photocatalytic oxidation pathways and advancing selective methane conversion technologies.

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Publication Details

Journal
Angewandte Chemie International Edition
Published
2026-05-19
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1002/anie.1583650
Primary Topic
Catalytic Processes in Materials Science
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article
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article

Precisely Modulating the Interfacial Oxygen Radicals for Selective Photocatalytic Methane Partial Oxidation to Methanol

Pengyu Zhou, Y Chen, J ZHU, Ying Liu et al.
Angewandte Chemie International Edition
Catalytic Processes in Materials Science
article

Precisely Modulating the Interfacial Oxygen Radicals for Selective Photocatalytic Methane Partial Oxidation to Methanol

Pengyu Zhou, Y Chen, J ZHU, Ying Liu, Han Sun, Zhang, Tao Guan, Wenlei Zhu, Xuanzhao Lu, Zhuo Liu
article en

Abstract

ABSTRACT Selective photocatalytic partial oxidation of methane (CH 4 ) under ambient conditions offers a sustainable route for direct methanol (CH 3 OH) production while reducing greenhouse gases. However, achieving both high yield and selectivity remains challenging due to the uncontrolled generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS), particularly hydroxyl radicals (•OH), which readily overoxidize CH 3 OH. Here, we report a PdNi alloy cocatalyst supported on TiO 2 that enables fine‐tuning of interfacial ROS dynamics via electronic and structural modulation. Mechanistic studies reveal that the PdNi interface couples moderate kinetic barriers for *O protonation with thermodynamic enhancement of *OH adsorption via d‐band center modulation. This cooperative effect suppresses the transition of O 2 into reactive •OH species, thereby mitigating CH 3 OH overoxidation. As a result, the optimized PdNi 0.49 /TiO 2 photocatalyst achieves a CH 3 OH yield of 9557.4 µmol g −1 h −1 with 87.5% selectivity using molecular O 2 as the sole oxidant. Beyond regulating ROS dynamics, Ni incorporation also optimizes the desorption behavior of CH 3 OH, further contributing to the high selectivity of the target product. This work establishes a rational interfacial design strategy for steering photocatalytic oxidation pathways and advancing selective methane conversion technologies.

Angewandte Chemie International Edition
Nanjing Tech University (CN), State Key Laboratory of Pollution Control and Resource Reuse (CN), Nanjing University (CN)
Responsible consumption and production
Openalex Percentile: Top 10%
Catalytic Processes in Materials Science
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