Catalyst optimized powder

If no commercial catalyst is available, it may still be advantageous to separate catalyst optimization from development of a coating procedure. Such an approach was pursued by Schwarz et al. [178] in the development of a catalytic microreactor for the partial oxidation of propane. In a first step, a VOY/ A1203 catalyst was developed. A commercially available Y-AI2O3 powder consisting of particles 3 pm in diameter was chosen as the support material, mixed with various amounts of vanadyl acetylace-tonate and suspended in methanol. After drying and calcination, the resultant material was characterized and its catalytic activity and selectivity for the partial oxidation of propane was determined. The optimized catalyst was resuspended in an alcoholic solution, mixed with binders, and coated onto a stainless steel MSR. 

Different configurations are used for the screening of catalyst activity in MSRs. As stressed before, the easiest way to incorporate a catalyst is by filling the micro-channels directly with catalyst powder. This allows the use of optimized powder catalysts while still taking the benefit of good heat transfer by coupling it to a microstructured heat exchanger [51]. 

The catalyst ink usually includes catalyst, carbon powder, binder, and solvent. Sometimes, other additives are added to improve the dispersion of the components and stabilize the catalyst ink. The catalyst either covers the surface of the GDL or directly coats the surface of the membrane (catalyst coated membrane, CCM). The CL usually consists of (1) an ionic conductor such as perfluorosulfonate acid (PFSA) ionomer to provide a passage for protons to be transported in or out, (2) metal catalysts supported on a conducting matrix like carbon, to provide a means for electron conduction, and (3) a water-repelling agent such as polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) to provide sufficient porosity for the gaseous reactants to be transferred to catalyzed sites [5, 6]. Every individual factor must be optimized to provide the best overall performance of a CL. 

In principle, the main challenge of a successful deposition of a previously optimized powder catalyst onto a metallic surface is to obtain a catalytic layer that maintains all the physical, chemical, and catalytic properties of the parent solid. This is not an easy task and, as discussed and reviewed above, several methodologies have been applied to achieve it. 

Three-phase slurry reactors are commonly used in fine-chemical industries for the catalytic hydrogenation of organic substrates to a variety of products and intermediates (1-2). The most common types of catalysts are precious metals such as Pt and Pd supported on powdered carbon supports (3). The behavior of the gas-liquid-sluny reactors is affected by a complex interplay of multiple variables including the temperature, pressure, stirring rates, feed composition, etc. (1-2,4). Often these types of reactors are operated away from the optimal conditions due to the difficulty in identifying and optimizing the critical variables involved in the process. This not only leads to lost productivity but also increases the cost of down stream processing (purification), and pollution control (undesired by-products). 

The high purity carbon nanotubes (CNTs) used in this study were obtained by decomposition of acetylene over a powdered CoxMgi xO solid solution catalyst [19]. Different proportions of CNTs from 15 to 70% and polyacrylonitrile (PAN, Aldrich) have been mixed in an excess of acetone to obtain a slurry. After evaporation of acetone, precursor electrodes were formed by pressing the CNTs/PAN mixture at 1-2 tons/cm2. The C/C composites were formed by carbonisation of the pellets at 700-900°C for 30-420 min under nitrogen flow [20], The optimal capacitance properties of the composite were obtained for a mixture CNTs/PAN (30/70 wt%) treated at 700°C. Such C/C composite remains still quite rich in nitrogen (9 at% of N) demonstrating that PAN is an efficient nitrogen carrier. On the other hand,... 

One example of this type of reactor is in the synthesis of catalyst powders and pellets by growing porous soHd oxides from supersaturated solution. Here the growth conditions control the porosity and pore diameter and tortuosity, factors that we have seen are crucial in designing optimal catalysts for packed bed, fluidized bed, or slurry reactors. 

Example for demonstration The example shall demonstrate that a data base comprising activity data from hydrogenation of mono-functional substrates allows a preselection of potential catalysts for hydrogenation of multifunctional substrates. Based on this pre-selection concept the process of identifying the optimal precious metal powder catalysts is accelerated. 

The modified supported powder electrodes used in the experiments hitherto described on the anodic activity of CoTAA are out of the question for practical application in fuel cells, as they do not have sufficient mechanical stability and their ohmic resistance is very high (about 1—2 ohm). For these reasons, compact electrodes with CoTAA were prepared by pressing or rolling a mixture of CoTAA, activated carbon, polyethylene, and PTFE powders in a metal gauze. The electrodes prepared in this way show different activities depending on the composition and the sintering conditions. Electrodes prepared under optimal conditions can be loaded up to about 40 mA/cm2 at a potential of 350 mV at 70 °C in 3 M HCOOH, with relatively good catalyst utilization (about 5 A/g) and adequate stability. 

To optimize the use of the amorphous sodium titanate powders as catalyst substrates, it is important to fully characterize the ion-exchange properties of the material. Further, the solution properties of the active metal to be loaded onto the support will be an important parameter in the control of the adsorption process. For example, exposure of sodium titanate to a nickel salt solution does not guarantee that nickel will be loaded onto the sodium titanate, or that the nickel, if loaded, will be dispersed on an atomic level. Sodium titanate only behaves as a cation exchange material under certain pH conditions. The solution pH also influences the hydrolysis and speciation of dissolved nickel ions (3), which can form large polymeric clusters or colloidal particles which are not adsorbed by the sodium titanate via a simple ion-exchange process. 

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