Solvents make catalysts more efficient
RUB researchers analyse interfaces between water and
catalyst with computer simulations
Why certain catalyst materials work more efficiently when
they are surrounded by water instead of a gas phase is unclear. RUB chemists
have now gleamed some initial answers from computer simulations. They showed
that water stabilises specific charge states on the catalyst surface. “The
catalyst and the water sort of speak with each other” says Professor Dominik
Marx, depicting the underlying complex charge transfer processes. His research
group from the Centre for Theoretical Chemistry also calculated how to increase
the efficiency of catalytic systems without water by varying pressure and
temperature. The researchers describe the results in the journals “Physical
Review Letters” and “Journal of Physical Chemistry Letters.”
Heterogeneous catalysis: water or gas as the second phase