Asymmetric sites engineering in metal oxide catalysts for enhanced environmental remediation and energy conversion

ABSTRACT Asymmetric sites engineering has emerged as a key strategy for enhancing the performance of metal oxide catalysts in environmental remediation and energy conversion applications. By creating active centers with broken symmetry, it is possible to regulate the local electronic structure and adsorption properties. This review first systematically summarizes the common methods, regulation strategies, and characterization techniques for constructing asymmetric sites. Subsequently, we elucidate the catalytic mechanisms associated with asymmetric sites and highlight the potential for multiple synergistic effects during catalytic processes. Particular attention is given to the application potential in a series of representative reaction systems, including CO 2 reduction, persulfate (PS) activation, O 2 activation, water oxidation, upcycling of waste plastics, and other chemical reactions. In these applications, catalysts tailored with asymmetric sites generally exhibit superior catalytic activity, selectivity, and stability compared to their symmetric counterparts. The review emphasizes that breaking conventional site symmetry can decouple the traditional trade-off between activity and stability, offering deeper mechanistic insights. Finally, some perspectives are also discussed. In short, this review outlines a viable strategy for customizing asymmetric sites, providing both theoretical foundation and practical guidance for the development of high-performance catalysts in environmental and energy-related fields.