Freestanding penta-twinned Pd-Ag nanosheets for $H_2$ production enhancement via HCOOH decomposition

Abstract

Formic acid is one of the most desirable liquid organic compound for hydrogen storage in a fuel cell-based hydrogen industry. Enhancing selectivity and activity of heterogeneous catalysts have been an important topic in this field. Herein, we report 2-dimensional PdAg nanosheets with five twin defects (PdAg ptNSs) which exhibited superior activity upon dehydrogenation reaction of formic acid. Thin nature of the nanosheets, charge transfer from Ag to Pd, and twin defects led them to achieve advancement in the catalytic property. Turnover frequency of this catalyst was $XXXX h^{-1}$ at 333K without any supports. Further experiment proved that 2D structure of the catalyst was beneficial and twin boundaries played an essential role in intensifying catalytic activity of PdAg ptNS.