RUI: Chemical dynamics of methanol decomposition on platinum

催化剂是加速化学反应的物质，本身不会被消耗。催化剂减少了能源消耗，最大限度地减少了污染，使有价值的化学品得以制造，并增加了粮食产量。尽管取得了这些成功，但人们越来越需要提高催化剂的效率，以进一步减少能源和浪费。要做到这一点，需要更好地从根本上了解催化剂上发生的化学反应。在化学系化学催化项目的资助下，拉鲁博士在查普曼大学的研究小组正在研究金属催化剂如何形成和打破化学键的基本过程。这个研究小组调查了重要的工业化学品甲醇在纯铂催化剂上的反应。从这些研究中获得的基本知识导致了更好的催化剂设计，满足当今环境挑战的设计。拉鲁博士正在将他的研究活动融入课堂和社区推广活动中。这些活动包括本科生和社区大学生的研究性实习，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高级化学课程。此外，还与美国化学学会查普曼分会合作，在当地社区开展了干细胞推广活动，拉鲁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新的、高选择性和高效的催化剂以应对当今的全球挑战至关重要。在化学系化学催化项目的资助下，查普曼大学的LaRue博士的研究小组正在研究在甲醇在铂表面解离过程中，催化点和邻近分子如何优先导致不同类型的键断裂。不同的反应途径，即C-O键断裂和C-H键断裂，强烈依赖于表面结构和覆盖度。为了揭示控制选择性成键和断裂反应动力学的基本性质，LaRue博士的研究小组正在使用Chapman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(SFG)光谱学、超快光谱学和分子束。LaRue博士积极地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大学生的研究实习、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STEM在当地社区的推广。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势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.