Co─Cu Bimetal Oxides Embedded in Hollow Silicalite-1 for Catalytic Hydrogen Generation From Ammonia Borane Hydrolysis

Constructing dual active sites to activate different reactants can effectively lower the reaction energy barrier and significantly improve catalytic activity. Herein, Co─Cu bimetal oxides embedded in the hollow S-1 shell were prepared by the impregnation and dissolution-recrystallization method. The catalyst with a Co/Cu molar ratio of 1:1 exhibited good catalytic activity with a maximum TOF value of 948 mol_H2∙mol_cat ^-1∙h^-1. DFT shows that Co sites at CuO─Co₃O₄ interface can efficiently activate the NH₃BH₃ molecule, while Cu sites at the interface effectively activate the H₂O molecule. The electron transfer between CuO─Co₃O₄ bimetallic oxides and introduction of hollow S-1 supports effectively promote the hydrogen generation and stability via the ensemble effect. This creates a new method to fabricate other hollow zeolite shell-confined metal/metal oxide catalysts.