Controlled Synthesis of Dy/Cu Bimetallic Atoms for Efficient Artificial Photosynthesis

The birth of metal atom catalysts marked a new historical stage in the field of catalysis, allowing scientists to better understand the science of catalysis at the atomic level. On the basis of anchoring independent metal atoms, bimetal dysprosium-copper atoms are successfully anchored on graphdiyne (DyCu/GDY). Dy and Cu metal atoms are selectively anchored in triangular holes of GDY and stabilized by non-integer charge transfer and the confined space effect between the metals and GDY. The dynamic charge-transfer equilibrium caused by the inherent non-integer charge transfer between GDY and metal atoms produces sustained high activity, inducing a redistribution of surface charge. This result shows that the non-integer charge transfer strongly promotes the adsorption activation of CO₂ and the desorption of the reaction intermediates, realizing the unpredictable selectivity and activity of CO₂ conversion in the process of artificial photosynthesis, where the selectivity and yield of CO are 98% and 279 µmol g_cat. ^-1 h^-1, respectively.