Collaborative Research: I/UCRC Phase I: The Center for Rational Catalyst Synthesis

催化作用是一门隐藏但影响深远的科学，是能源、化学和环境工业的核心。催化剂也许在汽车催化转化器中最为人所知，但同样类型的催化过程也适用于商品化学品，如汽油、纺织品、化肥和特殊化学品，如药品。据估计，催化占所有产品的95%以上（按体积计算），占化学工业附加值的80%以上。大约世界的三分之一？美国经济直接或间接依赖于催化剂。尽管新的多相催化剂具有巨大的重要性，但它们的发展在很大程度上仍然是经验性的，也就是说，耗时和昂贵，特别是在合成阶段。催化的一大挑战恰恰是？催化结构的设计与控制合成。我们在将催化剂合成从一门艺术转变为一门科学方面的基础研究将为石油、化工和制药公司以及催化剂制造商节省大量的时间和精力。优化的催化剂使化学转化以最有效、最经济、最环保的方式实现，减少原材料使用、能源需求和温室气体排放。理性催化剂合成中心（CeRCaS）将是世界？美国第一个也是唯一一个专注于了解催化剂合成化学基础的研究中心。CeRCaS将为南卡罗来纳大学和弗吉尼亚联邦大学带来强大的、互补的专业知识。我们的工业合作伙伴将帮助我们选择和完善的研究项目有三个重点：第一，金属沉积的基础，包括金属沉积机制的原位观察和各种纳米颗粒形成的方法；第二，固体-固体键合的热力学和动力学，通过理论和实验来探索，以预测金属氧化物在支撑表面的润湿或烧结，并预测尺寸，形状和；在双金属的情况下，支持纳米颗粒的组成，第三，特定反应的精确现场合成，其中纳米颗粒将合成具有特定尺寸，含量（单金属或多金属）和形态，因此针对特定的催化反应进行优化或将昂贵的贵金属含量降至最低。研究生将以类似于NSF工程研究中心的实践思维方式进行指导。这种工业倾向将源于两个方面；首先，从内部，从VCU？s网站总监（古普顿）和南加州大学？在工业领域有杰出研究生涯的副主任（Monnier），其次，在外部，直接参与工业研究的个人研究项目。教育外展将包括招募和最终安置代表性不足的群体。这两所大学都有大量的女性和少数族裔合作伙伴。

Catalysis is a hidden but high impact science at the heart of the energy, chemical and environmental industries. Catalysts are perhaps best known in automobile catalytic converters, but the same types of catalytic processes are responsible for commodity chemicals such as gasoline, textiles, and fertilizer and specialty chemicals such as pharmaceuticals. It has been estimated that catalysis accounts for over 95% (by volume) of all products and over 80% of added value in the chemical industry. About one third of the world?s economy depends directly or indirectly on catalysis. In spite of their immense importance, the development of new heterogeneous catalysts is still largely empirical, which is to say, time-consuming and expensive, particularly at the stage of synthesis. A grand challenge of catalysis is precisely the ?design and controlled synthesis of catalytic structures.? Our fundamental research in transforming catalyst synthesis from an art to a science will save tremendous amounts of time and energy in the development of new catalysts for petroleum, chemical and pharmaceutical companies as well as catalyst manufacturers. Optimized catalysts allow chemical conversions to be achieved in the most efficient, economical, and environmentally responsible manner, reducing raw material usage, energy requirements and greenhouse gas emissions.The Center for Rational Catalyst Synthesis (CeRCaS) will be the world?s first and only research center with the focus on understanding the chemical fundamentals of catalyst synthesis. CeRCaS will bring to bear powerful, complementary expertise at the University of South Carolina and Virginia Commonwealth University. The research projects which our industrial partners will help us select and refine are in three thrusts, first, The Fundamentals of Metal Deposition including in-situ observation of metal deposition mechanisms and a variety of methods for nanoparticle genesis, second, Thermodynamics and Kinetics of Solid-Solid Bonding, to be explored with theory and experiment to allow prediction of the wetting or sintering of metal oxides on support surfaces, and prediction of the size, shape and, in the case of bimetallics, composition of supported nanoparticles, and third, Precision Site Synthesis for Specific Reactions, in which nanoparticles will be synthesized with specific size, content (single or multi-metals) and morphology and so be optimized for particular catalytic reactions or to minimize the content of expensive precious metals. Graduate students will be mentored with the practical mindset akin to an NSF Engineering Research Center. This industrial bent will stem from two sources; first, internally, from VCU?s site Director (Gupton) and USC?s Deputy Director (Monnier) who hail from distinguished research careers in industry, and second, externally, from direct involvement of industrial research in individual research projects. Educational outreach will include the recruitment and eventual industrial placement of underrepresented groups. Both Universities have significant pools of women and minorities with whom to work.