Designing durable and efficient nanocatalysts with single-cluster active sites is a challenging task for these reactions that happened under harsh conditions. Herein, we developed a strategy to prepare a cluster-based nanocatalyst, where the body-centered gold nanocluster (Au9) constructed by nine AU atoms keeps single-cluster status on TiO2 nanoparticles. This cluster-based catalyst exhibits excellent catalytic performance for the cleave the C-C and C-O bonds and could survive under harsh reaction conditions. For the first time, the TiO2-supported Au9 has served as an effective catalyst to cleave the C-C and C-O bonds of lignin model compounds, achieving an impressive conversion rate (92%). Findings in this work posted a effective strategy to design effective and durable cluster-based catalysts, which are the ideal catalyst molecular model for heterogeneous catalysis.
