PtAuCo Trimetallic Nanoalloys as Highly Efficient Catalysts toward Dehydrogenation of Ammonia Borane

In this paper, we successfully achieved PtAuCo trimetallic nanoalloys with a single phase structure using a sequential digestive-reduction strategy. The as-prepared PtAuCo trimetallic nanoalloys exhibit composition-dependent catalytic performance toward catalytic dehydrogenation of ammonia borane (NH₃BH₃; AB) with the Pt₇₆Au₁₂Co₁₂ nanoalloy as the optimized one. The turnover frequency (TOF) value of the Pt₇₆Au₁₂Co₁₂ nanocatalyst is as high as 450 (mol H₂ min^-1 (mol metal)^-1) at room temperature, which is higher than most of the reported noble-metal-based catalysts. Kinetic studies demonstrate that the catalytic hydrolysis of AB with Pt₇₆Au₁₂Co₁₂ as the catalyst is of first-order with an activation energy as low as 18.47 kJ mol^-1. On the basis of the XPS and ICP measurement, the modified electronic interaction is believed to play the key role for the optimized catalytic activity of the Pt₇₆Au₁₂Co₁₂ nanoalloy.