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Due to the stability issue, It is difficult to prepare a silver nanocluster bearing functional sites, especially at a large scale. We report the synthesis and structure of a stable silver nanocluster bearing multiple surface aldehyde groups [Ag21(Ph2PO2)10(p‐CHOPhC≡C)6]SbF6, which allows for postsynthesis modification such as surface functionalization through aldimine condensation to give homochiral clusters. Remarkably, the preparation of this cluster can be done in ~90 % high yield at gram scale, which facilitates further studies and potential applications. Through DFT calculations and geometric structure analysis, the high stability of this cluster is attributed to the geometric closure and electronic structure. This is the first time that an effective one‐pot method has been developed to synthesize functional silver nanoclusters in high yield. The title cluster will be useful in the development of a variety of cluster‐based materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Developing novel synthesis technologies is crucial to expanding bifunctional electrocatalysts for energy‐saving hydrogen production. Herein, we report an ambient and controllable γ‐ray radiation reduction to synthesize a series of noble metal nanoparticles anchored on defect‐rich manganese oxides (M@MnO2‐x, M=Ru, Pt, Pd, Ir) for glycerol‐assisted H2 evolution. Benefiting from the strong penetrability of γ‐rays, nanoparticles and defect supports are formed simultaneously and bridged by metal‐oxygen bonds, guaranteeing structural stability and active site exposure. The special Ru−O−Mn bonds activate the Ru and Mn sites in Ru@MnO2‐x through strong interfacial coordination, driving glycerol electrolysis at low overpotential. Furthermore, only a low cell voltage of 1.68 V is required to achieve 0.5 A cm−2 in a continuous‐flow electrolyzer system along with excellent stability. In situ spectroscopic analysis reveals that the strong interfacial coordination in Ru@MnO2‐x balances the competitive adsorption of glycerol and OH* on the catalyst surface. Theoretical calculations further demonstrate that the defect‐rich MnO2 support promotes the dissociation of H2O, while the defect‐regulated Ru sites promote deprotonation and hydrogen desorption, synergistically enhancing glycerol‐assisted hydrogen production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Electrocatalytic CO2 reduction via renewable electricity provides a sustainable way to produce valued chemicals, while it suffers from low activity and selectivity. Herein, we constructed a novel catalyst with unique Ti3C2Tx MXene‐regulated Ag−ZnO interfaces, undercoordinated surface sites, as well as mesoporous nanostructures. The designed Ag−ZnO/Ti3C2Tx catalyst achieves an outstanding CO2 conversion performance of a nearly 100% CO Faraday efficiency with high partial current density of 22.59 mA cm−2 at −0.87 V versus reversible hydrogen electrode. The electronic donation of Ag and up‐shifted d‐band center relative to Fermi level within MXene‐regulated Ag−ZnO interfaces contributes the high selectivity of CO. The CO2 conversion is highly correlated with the dominated linear‐bonded CO intermediate confirmed by in situ infrared spectroscopy. This work enlightens the rational design of unique metal‐oxide interfaces with the regulation of MXene for high‐performance electrocatalysis beyond CO2 reduction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The reduction of alkynyl‐silver and phosphine‐silver precursors with a weak reducing reagent Ph2SiH2 led to the formation of a novel silver nanocluster [Ag93(PPh3)6(C≡CR)50]3+ (R=4‐CH3OC6H4), which is the largest structurally characterized cluster of clusters. This disc‐shaped cluster has a Ag69 kernel consisting of a bicapped hexagonal prismatic Ag15 unit wrapped by six Ino decahedra through edge‐sharing. This is the first time that Ino decahedra are used as a building block to assemble a cluster of clusters. Moreover, the central silver atom has a coordination number of 14, which is the highest in metal nanoclusters. This work provides a diverse metal packing pattern in metal nanoclusters, which is helpful for understanding metal cluster assembling mechanisms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

By directly reducing alkynyl–silver precursors, we successfully obtained a large alkynyl‐protected silver nanocluster, (C7H17ClN)3[Ag112Cl6(C≡CAr)51], which is hitherto the largest structurally characterized silver nanocluster in the alkynyl family. The cluster exhibits four concentric core–shell structures (Ag13@Ag42@Ag48@Ag9), and four types of alkynyl–silver binding modes are observed. Chloride was found to be critical for the stabilization and formation of the silver nanocluster. The release of chloride ions in situ from CH2Cl2 solvent has been confirmed by mass spectrometry. This study suggests that the combination of alkynyl and halide ligands will pave a new way for the synthesis of large silver nanoclusters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

By directly reducing alkynyl–silver precursors, we successfully obtained a large alkynyl‐protected silver nanocluster, (C7H17ClN)3[Ag112Cl6(C≡CAr)51], which is hitherto the largest structurally characterized silver nanocluster in the alkynyl family. The cluster exhibits four concentric core–shell structures (Ag13@Ag42@Ag48@Ag9), and four types of alkynyl–silver binding modes are observed. Chloride was found to be critical for the stabilization and formation of the silver nanocluster. The release of chloride ions in situ from CH2Cl2 solvent has been confirmed by mass spectrometry. This study suggests that the combination of alkynyl and halide ligands will pave a new way for the synthesis of large silver nanoclusters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Two homoleptic alkynyl‐protected gold clusters with compositions of Na[Au25(C≡CAr)18] and (Ph4P)[Au25(C≡CAr)18] (Na⋅1 and Ph4P⋅1, Ar=3,5‐bis(trifluoromethyl)phenyl) were synthesized via a direct reduction method. 1 is a magic cluster analogous to [Au25(SR)18]− in terms of electron counts and metal‐to‐ligand ratio. Single‐crystal structure analysis reveals that 1 has an identical Au13 kernel to [Au25(SR)18]−, but adopts a distinctly different arrangement of the six peripheral dimer staple motifs. The steric hindrance of alkynyl ligands is responsible for the D3 arrangement of Au25. The introduction of alkynyl also significantly changes the optical absorption features of the nanocluster as supported by DFT calculations. This magic cluster confirms that there is a similar but quite different parallel alkynyl‐protected metal cluster universe in comparison to the thiolated one. Magic clusters Na[Au25(C≡CAr)18] and (Ph4P)[Au25(C≡CAr)18] (Ar=3,5‐bis(trifluoromethyl)phenyl) exhibit novel connection between staples and the Au13 core. Steric hindrance caused by rigid ligand coordination preference accounts for the different geometric and electronic structures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The controlled synthesis and structure determination of a bimetallic nanocluster Au57Ag53(C≡CPh)40Br12 (Au57Ag53) is presented. The metal core has a four‐shell Au2M3@Au34@Ag51 @Au20 (M=1/3 Au+2/3 Ag) architecture. In contrast to the previously reported large nanoclusters that have highly symmetric kernel structures, the metal atoms in Au57Ag53 are arranged in an irregular manner with C1 symmetry. This cluster exhibits excellent thermal stability and is robust under oxidative or basic conditions. The silver precursors play a key role in dictating the structures of the nanoclusters, which suggests the importance of the counteranions used. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]