There are images of catalysts metallic copper and zinc oxide. The left image shows Cu and Zn oxide as separate particles after H2 is activated. The image on the right shows Zn oxide decorating metallic Cu particles. The East China University of Science and Technology has a credit on it.
Cataclysm is a branch of study that is embedded into the fabric of modern society.
The development and production of fuels, chemicals, pharmaceuticals and other goods are dependent on catalysis. 25 percent of all industrial products in the U.S. are manufactured by catalysis, which plays a critical role in energy generation and the mitigation of humanity's impact on the environment.
New and improved products and more efficient ways of doing and manufacturing are just some of the benefits of research in the field of catalysis. Wholesale changes that require a "rip and replace" strategy do not sit well with firms and supply chains that power and provision our modern economy.
In a paper published today in Nature Catalysis, researchers from the East China University of Science and Technology (ECUST) collaborated with researchers from the Lehigh University to propose a novel method of significantly enhancing the catalytic efficiency of materials already in broad commercial usage.
The research team, supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China and the U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Science, wrote the article "Induced activation of the commercial Cu/ZnO/Al2O3 catalyst for the steam reforming of methanol." Didi Li is one of the collaborating ECUST researchers.
A game-changer in the control of the catalytic surface.
Wachs explains that the surface structure of heterogeneous catalysts is related to their performance. Improving catalyst synthesis is the focus of current efforts for structural modification. Induced activation takes a different approach, by manipulating the catalyst surface by controlling the composition of reducing agents at the catalyst activation stage where the catalyst is transformed to its optimum state.
Firms can take advantage of the breakthrough without the need for a costly retooling with the use of the "tried and true" industrial catalytic material copper/zinc oxide/aluminum oxide (Cu/ZnO/AlO3).
"This development effectively doubles the catalytic efficiency of these materials, enhancing their productivity and extending the life of the catalyst," Wachs says. It can provide significant benefit to industry without shutting down a chemical plant or building a new one.
Didi Li and her co-workers at Nature Catalysis have an idea of how the Cu/ZnO/Al2O3 catalyst works. There is a DOI: 10.1038/s41929-021-00729-4.
Nature catalysis is in a journal.
The method ofmolecular-level control can double the efficiency of widely used industrial catalysts.
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