【Frontiers in HaiChuan Chemical Technology】Chinese scientists have successfully developed a hydrogen production catalyst with an extremely long lifespan

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Chinese scientists have successfully developed a hydrogen production catalyst with an extremely long lifespan. According to a statement from Peking University, the journal Nature published on February 12th news of a groundbreaking advancement in catalytic technology: a research team led by Professor Martin from Peking University, in collaboration with a team led by Professor Zhou Wu from the University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, has created the world’s first hydrogen production catalyst for methanol-water reforming that features both ultra-high activity and exceptional stability. Through its innovative \"nanoprotector\" technology based on rare earth oxides, this research extended the operational time of platinum-based catalysts to over 1,000 hours, with the number of catalytic conversions exceeding 15 million times. In the methanol-water reformation hydrogen production system, although traditional platinum/cubic-phase molybdenum carbide catalysts (Pt/α-MoC) exhibit excellent hydrogen production efficiency and high catalytic activity at low temperatures, the problem of structural degradation caused by the oxidation of the active support upon contact with water remains unresolved; this directly results in an average service life of less than 200 hours for the existing catalysts. The research team focused on the long-standing challenge of \"activity-stability trade-off\" in the field of catalysis, and worked to address the critical defects present in the Pt/α-MoC system. For the first time, the research team achieved molecular-level precise protection of the catalyst’s active sites by creatively constructing a nanolayer of lanthanide oxides on the surface of the Pt/γ-Mo₂N catalyst, thereby creating a triple protection mechanism: a physical barrier in the form of an inert La₂O₃ layer with a thickness of just one atom, which prevents water molecules from coming into direct contact with the highly active carrier ； Structural regulation: The rare earth coating prevents the migration and aggregation of Pt species ； Site locking: Selectively covering unnecessary surface sites while preserving the key catalytic active interfaces. This concept of \"precision protection\" yields remarkable results: under reaction conditions of 240°C, the degradation rate of the new Pt/La-Mo₂N catalyst is two orders of magnitude lower than that of conventional catalysts, maintaining over 98% of its initial activity even after 42 days of continuous operation ； The number of 15 million catalytic conversions sets a new world record in this field; it means that a single Pt atom can produce over 15 million hydrogen molecules during its operational cycle, providing a technical foundation for stable hydrogen production over the long term. Furthermore, this study demonstrates strong scalability, confirming that rare earth elements such as yttrium (Y), praseodymium (Pr), and holmium (Ho), as well as non-rare earth elements like strontium (Sr), can all form similar protective layers. This “element toolbox” feature offers endless possibilities for the development of customized catalysts. It provides a new approach for the design of high-performance interfacial catalysts with \"high activity, high selectivity, and high stability\" in the future. This technological breakthrough not only makes the large-scale use of green hydrogen sources such as bio-methanol possible, but its protection strategies can also be applied to key areas such as ammonia decomposition, fuel cells, and the sustainable chemical industry, providing viable solutions for the global energy transition.