An official website of the United States government
We report the use of polymer N -heterocyclic carbenes (NHCs) to control the microenvironment surrounding metal nanocatalysts, thereby enhancing their catalytic performance in CO 2 electroreduction. Three polymer NHC ligands were designed with different hydrophobicity: hydrophilic poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO–NHC), hydrophobic polystyrene (PS–NHC), and amphiphilic block copolymer (BCP) (PEO- b -PS–NHC). All three polymer NHCs exhibited enhanced reactivity of gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) during CO 2 electroreduction by suppressing proton reduction. Notably, the incorporation of hydrophobic PS segments in both PS–NHC and PEO- b -PS–NHC led to a twofold increase in the partial current density for CO formation, as compared to the hydrophilic PEO–NHC. While polymer ligands did not hinder ion diffusion, their hydrophobicity altered the localized hydrogen bonding structures of water. This was confirmed experimentally and theoretically through attenuated total reflectance surface-enhanced infrared absorption spectroscopy and molecular dynamics simulation, demonstrating improved CO 2 diffusion and subsequent reduction in the presence of hydrophobic polymers. Furthermore, NHCs exhibited reasonable stability under reductive conditions, preserving the structural integrity of AuNPs, unlike thiol-ended polymers. The combination of NHC binding motifs with hydrophobic polymers provides valuable insights into controlling the microenvironment of metal nanocatalysts, offering a bioinspired strategy for the design of artificial metalloenzymes.
more »
« less
Do polymer ligands block the catalysis of metal nanoparticles? Unexpected importance of binding motifs in improving catalytic activity
Metal nanoparticles (NPs) tethered by synthetic polymers are of broad interest for self-assembly, nanomedicine and catalysis. The binding motifs in polymer ligands usually as the end functional groups of polymers are mostly limited to thiolates. Since the binding motif only represents a tiny fraction of many repeating units in polymers, its importance is often ignored. We herein report the uniqueness of polymeric N-heterocyclic carbene (NHC) ligands in providing oxidative stability and promoting the catalytic activity of noble metal NPs. Two “grafting to” methods were developed for polymer NHCs for pre-synthesized metal NPs in various solvents and with different sizes. Remarkably, imidazolium-terminated polystyrene can modify gold NPs (AuNPs) within 2 min while reaching a similar grafting density to polystyrene-thiol (SH) requiring 6 h modification. We demonstrate that polymer NHCs are extremely stable at high temperature in air. Interestingly, the binding motifs of polymer ligands dominate the catalytic activity of metal NPs. Polymer NHC modified metal NPs showed improved activity regardless of the surface crowdedness. In the case of AuNPs, AuNPs modified with polystyrene NHCs are approximately 5.2 times more active than citrate-capped ones and 22 times more active than those modified with polystyrene thiolates. In view of ligand-controlled catalytic properties of metal NPs, our results illustrate the importance of binding motifs that has been overlooked in the past.
more »
« less
- PAR ID:
- 10294083
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- Journal of Materials Chemistry A
- Volume:
- 8
- Issue:
- 31
- ISSN:
- 2050-7488
- Page Range / eLocation ID:
- 15900 to 15908
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
More Like this
-
-
A facile methodology to prepare N-heterocyclic carbene (NHC)-terminated polymers as surface ligands to functionalize gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) is reported. Our method highlights a mild, aerobic synthesis of NHC-functionalized polymers and a simple ligand exchange approach towards surface modification of AuNPs prepared in aqueous solution. Two methods, including end-group functionalization of halogen-ended polymers from a conventional atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP) and post-polymerization functionalization of imidazole-containing polymers using imidazole-containing ATRP initiator, have been investigated to prepare imidazolium-ended polymers. Using a one-step, oxygen and moisture tolerant procedure, the polymer–NHC–Cu( i ) species can be synthesized from imidazolium-ended polymers and readily bind to citrate-capped AuNPs likely through transmetalation, yielding robust polymer-stabilized AuNPs. Our synthetic method significantly simplifies the preparation and use of polymer–NHC ligands for surface functionalization of metal NPs. Our methodology is general and potentially applicable to any polymers prepared by ATRP to functionalize metal NPs via NHC–metal coordination; therefore, it will likely broaden the applications of polymer–NHC ligands for metal nanoparticles in the fields of catalysis and nanomedicine.more » « less
-
We report a new design of polymer phenylacetylene (PA) ligands and the ligand exchange methodology for colloidal noble metal nanoparticles (NPs). PA-terminated poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) can bind to metal NPs through acetylide (M-CC-R) that affords a high grafting density. The ligand−metal interaction can be switched between σ bonding and extended π backbonding by changing grafting conditions. The σ bonding of PEG−PA with NPs is strong and it can compete with other capping ligands including thiols, while the π backbonding is much weaker. The σ bonding is also demonstrated to improve the catalytic performance of Pd for ethanol oxidation and prevent surface absorption of the reaction intermediates. Those unique binding characteristics will enrich the toolbox in the control of colloidal surface chemistry and their applications using polymer ligands.more » « less
-
ABSTRACT N‐Heterocyclic carbenes (NHCs) have emerged as a unique class of ligands for gold nanoparticles (Au NPs), combining strong metal binding with intrinsic electronic conductivity. Yet over the past decade, studies on Au NP@NHC systems have primarily focused on their stability, while the conductivity of NHCs has remained largely unexplored due to synthesis challenges. Here, we present a synthetic strategy that addresses this gap by employing amino‐functionalized NHC‐Au complexes with in situ oxidative polymerization of polyaniline (PANI) to yield electronically coupled Au NP@NHC‐PANI hybrids in aqueous media. This strategy enables both a controlled PANI shell growth and introduction of an electronically active NHC interlayer. Single‐particle scattering spectroscopy reveals that NHCs improve the interfacial electronic coupling as evidenced by pronounced plasmonic linewidth broadening. Conductivity measurements further confirm that NHCs enhance charge transport: conductive atomic force microscopy (C‐AFM) shows an increase in contact current from 14.6 to 99.4 pA under a 300‐mV bias, while lateral four‐probe conductance increases from 0.17 to 3.5 nS. These results provide the first direct experimental evidence of the conductive role of NHCs in hybrid NP‐polymer systems, establishing a new interface‐engineering strategy for the rational design of electronically delocalized nanostructures and their applications in nanoelectronics.more » « less
-
We summarize recent advances in the design of hybrid nanostructures through the combination of synthetic polymers and plasmonic nanoparticles (NPs). We categorize the synthetic methods of those polymer-coated metal NPs into two main strategies: direct encapsulation and chemical grafting, based on how NPs interact with polymers. In direct encapsulation, NPs with hydrophobic ligands are physically encapsulated into polymer micelles, primarily through hydrophobic interactions. We discuss strategies for controlling the loading numbers and locations of NPs within polymer micelles. On the other hand, polymer-grafted NPs (PGNPs) have synthetic polymers as ligands chemically grafted on NPs. We highlight that polymer ligands can asymmetrically coat metal NPs through hydrophobicity-driven phase segregation using homopolymers, BCPs and blocky random copolymers. This review provides insights into the methodologies and mechanisms to design new nanostructures of polymers and NPs, aiming to enhance the understanding of this rapidly evolving field.more » « less
- Free Publicly Accessible Full Text
-
Accepted Manuscript
- Journal Article:
- https://doi.org/10.1039/D0TA03906C
