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Hierarchical Ru0/Ruδ+/Al2O3 electrocatalyst enabling phenolic contaminant-to-chemical conversion

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  • Renyu Wang

    (Tsinghua University, Center for Water and Ecology, State Key Laboratory of Regional Environment and Sustainability, School of Environment)

  • Gong Zhang

    (Tsinghua University, Center for Water and Ecology, State Key Laboratory of Regional Environment and Sustainability, School of Environment)

  • Lizhe Liu

    (Nanjing University, Jiangsu Key Laboratory for Nanotechnology and Collaborative Innovation Center of Advanced Microstructures, National Laboratory of Solid State Microstructures)

  • Qinghua Ji

    (Tsinghua University, Center for Water and Ecology, State Key Laboratory of Regional Environment and Sustainability, School of Environment)

  • Huachun Lan

    (Tsinghua University, Center for Water and Ecology, State Key Laboratory of Regional Environment and Sustainability, School of Environment)

  • Jiuhui Qu

    (Tsinghua University, Center for Water and Ecology, State Key Laboratory of Regional Environment and Sustainability, School of Environment)

  • Huijuan Liu

    (Tsinghua University, Center for Water and Ecology, State Key Laboratory of Regional Environment and Sustainability, School of Environment)

Abstract

Valorizing phenol in wastewater to cyclohexanol via electrochemical hydrogenation (ECH) offers a promising strategy for advancing a circular economy that shifts from pollutant control to resource recovery, but remains challenged by the absence of efficient and selective catalysts in complex wastewater matrices. Herein, we report a hierarchical Ru0/Ruδ+/Al2O3 catalyst with coupling multi–level electronic state to improve the phenol ECH performance. The metal-semimetal-insulator hierarchical interface effectively induces the integration of H* evolution and phenol activation, and the unsaturated Ru–O coordination formed by precise anchoring of Ru on Al2O3 lowers the reaction energy barrier, achieving a 4.3-fold increase in the reaction rate over that on the pristine Ru catalyst. Consequently, the ECH process applied to actual phenol-containing wastewater demonstrates a stable cyclohexanol selectivity of approximately 80% for over 120 h, making it more economically feasible and environmentally beneficial than the conventional adsorption-Fenton oxidation treatment. Our work provides valuable guidance for wastewater treatment from environmental burden to sustainable recovery.

Suggested Citation

  • Renyu Wang & Gong Zhang & Lizhe Liu & Qinghua Ji & Huachun Lan & Jiuhui Qu & Huijuan Liu, 2025. "Hierarchical Ru0/Ruδ+/Al2O3 electrocatalyst enabling phenolic contaminant-to-chemical conversion," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 16(1), pages 1-12, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:nat:natcom:v:16:y:2025:i:1:d:10.1038_s41467-025-65330-w
    DOI: 10.1038/s41467-025-65330-w
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