Insights into N dopants during dehydrogenation of formic acid over Pd/N-doped carbon catalysts

Catalytic dehydrogenation of formic acid (FA) is one strategy to generate hydrogen from an easily handled chemical and meet the clean-energy demand simultaneously. The Pd/N-doped carbon catalyst is famous for boosting the activity of active metal in FA dehydrogenation. However, the origin of achieving highly catalytic activity remains controversial. Herein, a variety of Pd/N-doped carbon catalysts were systematically prepared by regulating different N doping content and reduction conditions (H2 and NaBH4) for promoting hydrogen pro-duction from FA under ambient conditions without additives. The results showed that N dopants have a great impact on the electronic state and particle size of Pd. Moreover, the electronic state of Pd is also sensitive to the reduction methods. The catalyst with the highest pyridinic-N content presented the best catalytic performance after being reduced in H2 flow at 260 degrees C, and its initial TOF value is 2656 h-1 without additives at 50 degrees C. The electronic levels investigation of the active metal can provide new ideas for the design of highly efficient catalysts for FA dehydrogenation.

Automated summary

This study systematically prepared various Pd/N-doped carbon catalysts by adjusting N doping content and reduction conditions, to promote hydrogen production from formic acid at ambient conditions. The results showed the significant impact of N dopants and reduction methods on catalyst performance, providing insights for designing highly efficient catalysts.