Heterogeneous catalysis particles

It would be difficult to over-estimate the extent to which the BET method has contributed to the development of those branches of physical chemistry such as heterogeneous catalysis, adsorption or particle size estimation, which involve finely divided or porous solids in all of these fields the BET surface area is a household phrase. But it is perhaps the very breadth of its scope which has led to a somewhat uncritical application of the method as a kind of infallible yardstick, and to a lack of appreciation of the nature of its basic assumptions or of the circumstances under which it may, or may not, be expected to yield a reliable result. This is particularly true of those solids which contain very fine pores and give rise to Langmuir-type isotherms, for the BET procedure may then give quite erroneous values for the surface area. If the pores are rather larger—tens to hundreds of Angstroms in width—the pore size distribution may be calculated from the adsorption isotherm of a vapour with the aid of the Kelvin equation, and within recent years a number of detailed procedures for carrying out the calculation have been put forward but all too often the limitations on the validity of the results, and the difficulty of interpretation in terms of the actual solid, tend to be insufficiently stressed or even entirely overlooked. And in the time-honoured method for the estimation of surface area from measurements of adsorption from solution, the complications introduced by... 

The proposed mechanism by which chlorinated dioxins and furans form has shifted from one of incomplete destmction of the waste to one of low temperature, downstream formation on fly ash particles (33). Two mechanisms are proposed, a de novo synthesis, in which PCDD and PCDF are formed from organic carbon sources and Cl in the presence of metal catalysts, and a more direct synthesis from chlorinated organic precursors, again involving heterogeneous catalysis. Bench-scale tests suggest that the optimum temperature for PCDD and PCDF formation in the presence of fly ash is roughly 300°C. 

The identification of particles adsorbed on solid surfaces and recognition of their properties is one of the fundamental problems in research on adsorption and heterogeneous catalysis. Desorption of the adsorbed species from a surface and its subsequent analysis is an important method for solv-... 

In heterogeneous catalysis, solids catalyze reactions of molecules in gas or solution. As solids - unless they are porous - are commonly impenetrable, catalytic reactions occur at the surface. To use the often expensive materials (e.g. platinum) in an economical way, catalysts are usually nanometer-sized particles, supported on an inert, porous structure (see Fig. 1.4). Heterogeneous catalysts are the workhorses of the chemical and petrochemical industry and we will discuss many applications of heterogeneous catalysis throughout this book. 

The next level is that of small catalytically active particles, with typical dimensions of between 1 and 10 nm, and inside the pores of support particles (pm range). The questions of interest are the size, shape, structure and composition of the active particles, in particular of their surfaces, and how these properties relate to catalytic reactivity. Although we will deal with heterogeneous catalysis, the anchoring of catalytic... 

The coordination of ligands at the surface of metal nanoparticles has to influence the reactivity of these particles. However, only a few examples of asymmetric heterogeneous catalysis have been reported, the most popular ones using a platinum cinchonidine system [65,66]. In order to demonstrate the directing effect of asymmetric ligands, we have studied their coordination on ruthenium, palladium, and platinum nanoparticles and the influence of their presence on selected catalytic transformations. 

In summary, we have described our approach towards the synthesis of novel nano-objects consisting of a metal core and a surface that may be functionalized by addition of organic ligands. TEM pictures of the metal core of these nanoparticles appear similar to those of particles commonly used in heterogeneous catalysis or to colloids prepared by well-known reduction methods. However, the organometallic approach displays several specificities which can be summarized as follows ... 

As an alternative approach towards the above requirement, Somorjai introduced the method of electron lithography [119] which represents an advanced HIGHTECH sample preparation technique. The method ensures uniform particle size and spacing e.g. Pt particles of 25 nm size could be placed with 50 nm separation. This array showed a uniform activity similar to those measured on single crystal in ethylene hydrogenation. The only difficulty with the method is that the particle size is so far not small enough. Comprehensive reviews have been lined up for the effect of dispersion and its role in heterogeneous catalysis [23,124,125]. 

Since heterogeneous catalysis is a phenomenon which is exclusively based on the reactivity of surface atoms, a high fraction of the latter, exposed towards reactants, is desired. This demand can be equated with a high degree of dispersion of the metal or a very small particle size, that is, in the lower nanometer range of approximately 1-5 nm. 

The main issue of the book is application of nanosized particles in both homogeneous and heterogeneous catalysis. A variety of reactions catalyzed by metal colloids or supported nanosized metals is discussed. The most intriguing reaction seems to be ethane hydrogenolysis catalyzed by Pt clusters on porous carrier and studied by G. A. Somorjai and his group. Another challenging observation by this group is shape isomerization of Pt metal particles affected by the addition of silver ions. 

In catalysis active sites are operative that allow for an alternative reaction path. For a satisfactory catalyst this alternative pathway leads to higher rates and higher selectivity. In heterogeneous catalysis reactant molecules adsorb at active sites on the catalyst surface at the surface sites reactions occur and products are desorbed subsequently. After desorption, active sites are again available for reactant molecules and the cycle is closed. In homogeneous catalysis the situation is essentially identical. Here complexation and decomplexation occur. A complication in heterogeneous catalysis is the need for mass transfer into and out of the catalyst particle, which is usually porous with the major part of the active sites at the interior surface. 

In heterogeneous catalysis reactions take place at the surface of the catalyst. In order to maximize the production rates, catalysts are, in general, porous materials. In practice, the surface area of catalysts ranges from a few up to 1500 square metres per gram of catalyst. It is instructive to calculate the specific surface area as a function of the particle size. 

In any catalyst selection procedure the first step will be the search for an active phase, be it a. solid or complexes in a. solution. For heterogeneous catalysis the. second step is also deeisive for the success of process development the choice of the optimal particle morphology. The choice of catalyst morphology (size, shape, porous texture, activity distribution, etc.) depends on intrinsic reaction kinetics as well as on diffusion rates of reactants and products. The catalyst cannot be cho.sen independently of the reactor type, because different reactor types place different demands on the catalyst. For instance, fixed-bed reactors require relatively large particles to minimize the pressure drop, while in fluidized-bed reactors relatively small particles must be used. However, an optimal choice is possible within the limits set by the reactor type. 

Inspection of Fig. 15.3 reveals that while for jo 0.1 nAcm , the effectiveness factor is expected to be close to 1, for a faster reaction with Jo 1 p,A cm , it will drop to about 0.2. This is the case of internal diffusion limitation, well known in heterogeneous catalysis, when the reagent concentration at the outer surface of the catalyst grains is equal to its volume concentration, but drops sharply inside the pores of the catalyst. In this context, it should be pointed out that when the pore size is decreased below about 50 nm, the predominant mechanism of mass transport is Knudsen diffusion [Malek and Coppens, 2003], with the diffusion coefficient being less than the Pick diffusion coefficient and dependent on the porosity and pore stmcture. Moreover, the discrete distribution of the catalytic particles in the CL may also affect the measured current owing to overlap of diffusion zones around closely positioned particles [Antoine et ah, 1998]. 

In addition, it sustains CO electro-oxidation at relatively low overpotential, and there are crystal face dependences for both the ORR and CO oxidation. Since Au is also a system that exhibits both particle size and support effects in heterogeneous catalysis, it provides an interesting model system for smdying such effects in electrocatalysis. 

Holzer, F., Roland, U. and Kopinke, F.-D. (2002) Combination of non-thermal plasma and heterogeneous catalysis for oxidation of volatile organic compounds Part 1. Accessibility of the intra-particle volume, Appl. Cat. B Env. 38, 163-81. 

For catalyst particles, Satterfield (Heterogeneous Catalysis in Practice, McGraw-Hill, 1980) recommends the use of a value of Xp = 4 when no other information is available, and this can be used for many adsorbents. In general, however, it is more reliable to treat the tortuosity as an empirical constant that is determined experimentally for any particular adsorbent. 

Heterogeneous catalysis is also proposed for the formation of the ice mantels around the particles. Co-adsorption of H, O and N atoms leads to the formation of water and ammonia-water ice on the surface, as deduced from ISO spectra. Adsorption of CO onto the ice surface provides a carbon source to initiate organic synthesis, for example, in the simple sequence of reactions ... 

The simulation of reacting flows in packed tubes by CFD is still in its earliest stages. So far, only isothermal surface reactions for simplified geometries and elementary reactions have been attempted. Heterogeneous catalysis with diffusion, reaction, and heat transfer in solid particles coupled to the flow, species, and temperature fields external to the particles remains a challenge for the future. 

HETEROGENEOUS CATALYSIS KINETICS IN POROUS CATALYST PARTICLES... 

Heterogeneous Catalysis Kinetics in Porous Catalyst Particles 199... 

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