Mesoporous Silica Nanoparticle‐Stabilized and Manganese‐Modified Rhodium Nanoparticles as Catalysts for Highly Selective Synthesis of Ethanol and Acetaldehyde from Syngas

Well‐defined and monodispersed rhodium nanoparticles as small as approximately 2 nm were encapsulated in situ and stabilized in a mesoporous silica nanoparticle (MSN) framework during the synthesis of the mesoporous material. Although both the activity and selectivity of MSN‐encapsulated rhodium nanoparticles in CO hydrogenation could be improved by the addition of manganese oxide as expected, the carbon selectivity for C2 oxygenates (including ethanol and acetaldehyde) was unprecedentedly high at 74.5 % with a very small amount of methanol produced if rhodium nanoparticles were modified by manganese oxide with very close interaction.