Resolving the puzzle of single-atom silver dispersion on nanosized γ-Al2O3 surface for high catalytic performance

Abstract

Detailed atom-level anchoring mechanism of Ag species on γ-Al2O3 is largely unknown for the widely used Ag/γ-Al2O3 catalyst. Here, the authors demonstrate that single-Ag atom can be only anchored by the terminal hydroxyls on the (100) surfaces of γ-Al2O3 through consuming two or three terminal hydroxyls.