A Versatile Cucurbituril‐Anchored Platform for Atomically Dispersed Metal Catalysts on Oxide Supports

ABSTRACT Atomically dispersed metal catalysts maximize metal utilization and can deliver exceptional activity and selectivity in challenging reactions that are often inaccessible to nanoparticle‐based catalysts. However, frequent aggregation during catalyst preparation and activation drives growth of the target metal species into nanometer‐scale particles, which has conventionally forced the use of very low metal loadings to suppress sintering. Herein, a general strategy is proposed to generate atomically dispersed metal species on oxide supports by using the partially negatively charged carbonyl portals of cucurbituril (CB) as anchoring sites for single cationic metal ions. Cucurbituril enabled effective functionalization of common oxide supports, and even highly mobile Ag was stabilized in a single‐atomic form on CB‐functionalized TiO 2 after calcination. When applied to CO 2 hydrogena…