Engineering surface lewis acidity in Sm-Doped cobalt perovskites to boost electrocatalytic cyclohexanol upgrading

Surface Lewis acid sites are crucial for targeted substrate adsorption and activation. Engineering these sites thus accelerates the cyclohexanol oxidation reaction (CHAOR). Here, we incorporate Sm into LaCoO 3 perovskites to create a high density of surface Lewis's acid centers. Operando spectroscopy and theoretical calculations demonstrate that these Sm sites function as molecular anchors, enhancing CHA adsorption affinity while protecting active Co centers from oxidative degradation. This modification strengthens Co–O covalency and lowers the energy barrier for the rate-determining dehydrogenation step. Consequently, the optimized 3%Sm-LCO catalyst exhibits exceptional conversion and selectivity. When integrated into a practical membrane electrode assembly, the hybrid system requires a low cell voltage of 1.559 V to reach an industrial current density of 100 mA cm −2 . The system maintains stable co-production of sustainable adipic acid and green hydrogen for over 300 h, establishing Lewis's acid site engineering as a powerful strategy for advanced electrocatalyst design.