Rational design and precise manipulation of nano-catalysts

Nano-catalysis plays a vital role in the chemical transformations and significantly impacts the booming modern chemical industry. The rapid technological enhancements have resulted in serious energy and environmental issues, which are currently spurring the exploration of the novel nano-catalysts in diverse fields. In order to develop the efficient nano-catalysts, it is essential to understand their fundamental physicochemical properties, including the coordination structures of the active centers and substrate-adsorbate interactions. Subsequently, the nano-catalyst design with precise manipulation at the atomic level can be attained. In this account, we have summarized our extensive investigation of the factors impacting nano-catalysis, along with the synthetic strategies developed to prepare the nano-catalysts for applications in electrocatalysis, photocatalysis and thermocatalysis. Finally, a brief conclusion and future research directions on nano-catalysis have also been presented. (C) 2022, Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.