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Modeling realistic structures of trimetallic alloys nanoparticles using chemically meaningful descriptors
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  • Published: 23 April 2026

Modeling realistic structures of trimetallic alloys nanoparticles using chemically meaningful descriptors

  • Arravind Subramanian  ORCID: orcid.org/0009-0009-7381-36121,
  • Mikhail V. Polynski  ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0002-5559-00661,
  • Mathan K. Eswaran  ORCID: orcid.org/0009-0008-2754-61221 &
  • …
  • Sergey M. Kozlov  ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0002-7765-46491 

NPG Asia Materials (2026) Cite this article

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We are providing an unedited version of this manuscript to give early access to its findings. Before final publication, the manuscript will undergo further editing. Please note there may be errors present which affect the content, and all legal disclaimers apply.

Subjects

  • Atomistic models
  • Computational methods
  • Nanoparticles
  • Theoretical chemistry

Abstract

Alloy nanoparticles (nanoalloys) find applications in many fields including catalysis and green energy technologies. However, the computational design of nanoalloys is hindered by the uncertainty in their arrangement of constituent elements within the particle, i.e. their chemical ordering. Herein, we present a method for realistic simulations of trimetallic alloy nanocrystallites, considering both lowest energy chemical ordering and thermal disorder. This approach uses Monte Carlo simulations based on a topological lattice Hamiltonian, with parameters derived from DFT simulations of carefully designed nanoalloy structures. Using this method, we characterized chemical orderings in nanoparticles composed of 79 and 338 atoms of metals with known catalytic activity in CO2 hydrogenation, namely, Pd-Pt-Cu, Ni-Pd-Cu, and Co-Rh-Cu. Our simulations show that the thermal disorder in these alloys affects the average binding energies of reaction intermediates to the catalyst surface by up to 1.1 eV, implying their critical effect on the alloy’s surface reactivity. We show that the developed method can be used for brute-force evaluation of entropic contributions to mixing free energies in alloy nanoparticles. The proposed method efficiently generates realistic models of trimetallic nanoalloys, enabling reliable simulations of their properties for in-depth understanding and computational design of alloy nanoparticles.

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Acknowledgements

This work is supported by Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR) through Low Carbon Energy Research Finding Initiative (LCERFI01–0033|U2102d2006) and National University of Singapore through a Tier 1 grant (A-8004340-00-00). Computational work was performed using resources of the National Supercomputing Centre, Singapore. The authors are grateful to Timothy D. Pook for technical support and to Mohammed Aliasgar for the discussions on the model systems.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, National University of Singapore, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore

    Arravind Subramanian, Mikhail V. Polynski, Mathan K. Eswaran & Sergey M. Kozlov

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  1. Arravind Subramanian
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  2. Mikhail V. Polynski
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  3. Mathan K. Eswaran
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Contributions

A.S. developed the methodology, wrote software implementation, conducted the simulations, and contributed to data analysis and manuscript writing. M.V.P. contributed to data analysis and manuscript writing. M.K.E. contributed to data analysis. S.M.K. conceptualized the study, secured resources, and edited the manuscript.

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Correspondence to Sergey M. Kozlov.

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Subramanian, A., Polynski, M.V., Eswaran, M.K. et al. Modeling realistic structures of trimetallic alloys nanoparticles using chemically meaningful descriptors. NPG Asia Mater (2026). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41427-026-00653-8

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  • Received: 15 July 2025

  • Revised: 14 February 2026

  • Accepted: 12 March 2026

  • Published: 23 April 2026

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41427-026-00653-8

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Editorial Summary

New Method Enhances Simulation of Trimetallic Alloy Nanoparticles

The study explores the intricate world of trimetallic alloy nanoparticles, focusing on Ni-Pd-Cu, Pd-Pt-Cu, and Co-Rh-Cu systems. These nanoparticles hold promise for catalysis due to the unique synergy between their components. The authors introduce an extended TOP (Topological) method, which efficiently predicts chemical ordering in these complex systems. By using a lattice Hamiltonian model and Monte Carlo simulations, they achieve a balance between computational efficiency and accuracy. The results reveal distinct core-shell structures, with Ni-Pd-Cu forming a Ni core and Pd-Cu shell, while Pd-Pt-Cu and Co-Rh-Cu exhibit mixed core-shell configurations. These findings provide insights into the stability and reactivity of these nanoparticles, crucial for catalytic applications like CO2 hydrogenation. The study also highlights the importance of thermal disorder in influencing nanoparticle reactivity, offering a pathway for future research in nanoalloy design and application.

This summary was initially drafted using artificial intelligence, then revised and fact-checked by the author.

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NPG Asia Materials (NPG Asia Mater)

ISSN 1884-4057 (online)

ISSN 1884-4049 (print)

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