UW-Madison scientists say they’ve made a breakthrough in understanding catalytic reactions, which are used in a variety of industrial processes.
Manos Mavrikakis, a professor of chemical and biological engineering, led the team that published this research in a recent issue of the journal Science. Their study focused on how these reactions work at the atomic scale, and could provide new insight for industries seeking to improve the efficiency of catalytic reactions.
“If you decrease the temperatures at which you have to run these reactions by only a few degrees, there will be an enormous decrease in the energy demand that we face as humanity today,” Mavrikakis said in a release from the university. “By decreasing the energy needs to run all these processes, you are also decreasing their environmental footprint.”
In the process called catalysis, a catalyst material is introduced to increase the rate of the chemical reaction without undergoing any changes itself. According to the university, about 90 percent of everyday products are produced “at least partially” through catalytic reactions.
Because industrial-scale catalytic reactions often involve “extreme temperatures and pressures,” direct observation of what’s happening at the atomic level has been impossible, the UW-Madison release shows.
Using advanced modeling techniques, the researchers were able to simulate these reactions at this scale, focusing on those involving certain metal catalysts such as platinum, palladium, copper, nickel and others. They looked at “industrially important” interactions between eight transition metal catalysts and 18 reactant materials.
“We’re revisiting some very well-established assumptions in understanding how catalysts work and, more generally, how molecules interact with solids,” Mavrikakis said.
See the full study: https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.add0089
See the release: https://www.wisbusiness.com/2023/uw-madison-new-atomic-scale-understanding-of-catalysis-could-unlock-massive-energy-savings/
–By Alex Moe
