RUI: Chemical dynamics of methanol decomposition on platinum

催化剂是加速化学反应而自身不被消耗的物质。 催化剂可以降低能耗，最大限度地减少污染，使有价值的化学品的制造成为可能，并增加粮食产量。尽管取得了这些成功，但越来越需要使催化剂更有效，以进一步减少能源和废物。为了实现这一点，需要对催化剂上发生的化学反应有更好的基本理解。在化学系化学催化项目的资助下，查普曼大学LaRue博士的研究小组正在研究金属催化剂如何形成和破坏化学键的基本过程。该研究小组研究了甲醇，一种重要的工业化学品，如何在纯铂催化剂上反应。从这些研究中获得的基础知识导致更好的催化剂设计，满足当今环境挑战的设计。LaRue博士正在将他的研究活动融入课堂和社区外展。这些活动包括本科生和社区学院学生的研究实习，国家实验室和国际研究经验，以及使用基于发现的研究技术改进的上层化学课程。 STEM在当地社区的推广活动也与美国化学学会的查普曼分会合作进行，LaRue博士是该分会的教师导师。了解催化剂表面的基本化学过程对于开发满足当今全球挑战的新型、高选择性和高效催化剂至关重要。在化学系化学催化计划的资助下，查普曼大学LaRue博士的研究小组正在研究催化位点和邻近分子如何在铂表面甲醇解离过程中优先诱导不同类型的键断裂。不同的反应途径（C-O与C-H键断裂）在很大程度上取决于表面结构和覆盖度。为了揭示控制选择性键形成和断裂的反应动力学的基本性质，LaRue博士的研究小组正在使用查普曼提供的独特技术组合：程序升温分解（TPD），低能电子衍射（LEED）和俄歇电子能谱（AES）。 该团队还在SLAC国家加速器实验室使用X射线光谱学，并在斯德哥尔摩大学使用和频产生（SFG）光谱学，超快光谱学和分子束。LaRue博士积极将他的研究活动融入课堂和社区外展。这些活动包括本科生和社区学院学生的研究实习，国家实验室和国际研究经验，基于发现的研究高级化学课程的开发，以及在当地社区的STEM推广。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

Catalysts are substances that accelerate chemical reactions without themselves being consumed. Catalysts reduce energy consumption, minimize pollution, enable the manufacture of valuable chemicals, and increase food production. Despite these successes, there is an increasing need to make catalysts more efficient to further reduce energy and waste. To accomplish this, better fundamental understanding of the chemical reactions that occur on catalysts is required. With funding from the Chemical Catalysis Program of the Division of Chemistry, Dr. LaRue’s research group at Chapman University is studying the fundamental processes of how chemical bonds are formed and broken by metal catalysts. This research team investigates how methanol, an important industrial chemical, reacts on pure platinum catalysts. The fundamental knowledge gained from these studies leads to better catalyst designs, designs that meet today's environmental challenges. Dr. LaRue is integrating his research activities into the classroom and community outreach. These activities include research internships for undergraduate and community college students, national lab and international research experiences, and revamped upper level chemistry courses using discovery-based research techniques. STEM outreach in the local community is also carried out in collaboration with the Chapman chapter of the American Chemical Society, of which Dr. LaRue is the faculty mentor. Understanding the fundamental chemical processes on the surfaces of catalysts is critical to developing new, highly selective and efficient catalysts that meet today’s global challenges. With funding from the Chemical Catalysis Program of the Division of Chemistry, Dr. LaRue’s research group at Chapman University is studying how catalytic sites and neighboring molecules can preferentially induce different types of bond scissions during methanol dissociation on platinum surfaces. The different reaction pathways, C-O versus C-H bond cleavage, depend strongly on surface structure and coverage. To reveal the fundamental properties that govern the reaction dynamics of selective bond making and breaking, Dr. LaRue’s research group is using a unique combination of techniques available at Chapman: temperature programmed decomposition (TPD), low-energy electron diffraction (LEED), and Auger electron spectroscopy (AES). The team also works at the SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory using the x-ray spectroscopy and at Stockholm University using sum-frequency generation (SFG) spectroscopy, ultrafast spectroscopy, and molecular beams. Dr. LaRue actively integrates his research activities into the classroom and community outreach. These activities include research internships for undergraduate and community college students, national lab and international research experiences, the development of discovery-based research upper level chemistry courses, and STEM outreach in the local community.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.