Fully exposed Pt clusters for efficient catalysis of multi-step hydrogenation reactions.

For di-nitroaromatics hydrogenation, it is a challenge to achieve the multi-step hydrogenation with high activity and selectivity due to the complexity of the process involving two nitro groups. Consequently, many precious metal catalysts suffer from low activity for this multi-step hydrogenation reaction. Herein, we employ a fully exposed Pt clusters catalyst consisting of an average of four Pt atoms on nanodiamond@graphene (Pt_n/ND@G), demonstrating excellent catalytic performance for the multi-step hydrogenation of 2,4-dinitrotoluene. The TOF (40647 h⁻¹) of Pt_n/ND@G is significantly superior to that of single Pt atoms catalyst, Pt nanoparticles catalyst, and even all the known catalysts. Density functional theory calculations and absorption experiments reveal that the synergetic interaction between the multiple active sites of Pt_n/ND@G facilitate the co-adsorption/activation of reactants and H₂, as well as the desorption of intermediates/products, which is the key for the higher catalytic activity than single Pt atoms catalyst and Pt nanoparticles catalyst. Hydrogenating di-nitroaromatics with high activity and selectivity is challenging due to the process's complexity. Here the authors present a fully exposed Pt clusters catalyst for 2,4-dinitrotoluene hydrogenation, suggesting that the synergy between multiple active sites and moderate adsorption behavior is crucial for the high catalytic activity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]