The joint research team constructed a special rare-earth oxide nanoscale "protective shield" on the surface of a platinum-based catalyst. This innovative structure precisely protects the core active sites at the catalytic interface, enabling continuous and stable operation for over 1,000 hours in the methanol–water reforming hydrogen production reaction, with a turnover number exceeding 15 million. This breakthrough has removed a key barrier to the large-scale production of low-cost green hydrogen.

This "nanoshield" strategy is highly versatile. In addition to lanthanum (La), 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 stable coating layers, establishing an "element toolbox" that provides a new paradigm for the design of high-performance catalysts.

The成果 can be directly applied to scenarios such as distributed hydrogen production, on-board hydrogen supply for fuel cells, and upgrading of industrial by-product hydrogen, significantly reducing equipment maintenance and catalyst costs, and driving hydrogen energy from demonstration projects toward large-scale commercial deployment.

The research team constructed atomically dispersed rare-earth oxide (La₂O₃) nanocoating layers on the surface of a highly active Pt/γ-Mo₂N catalyst, forming a "nanoscale protective shield" that achieves a triple stabilization mechanism:

1.Physical isolation: Blocks water molecules from redundant sites on the support, inhibiting deep oxidation of the support;

2.Site locking: Anchors platinum atoms, preventing migration, aggregation, and deactivation;

3.Interface protection: Selectively covers non-critical sites while preserving the highly active catalytic interface.

The catalyst has a platinum loading of only 0.26 wt%, significantly reducing precious metal costs while simultaneously achieving a leap forward in both activity and lifespan.