Nano Catalysts

Nano catalysts include nanoscale materials having at least one nanoscale dimension less than 100 nm. The porous nanostructured nature of the catalyst increases the surface to volume ratio and therefore the catalytic activity of the catalyst, making it one of the attractive options for use as a catalyst.

Stability is another important property of nano catalysts, which helps to obtain the desired nanoparticles with uniform dispersion on the substrate.

Alfa Chemistry Catalysts provides a wide range of nano catalysts and nano catalyst solutions. Various elements and materials such as aluminum, iron, titanium dioxide, clay, and silica are used as nanoscale catalysts. If you don't find the nano catalyst you need in the product list, you can also choose our nano catalyst customization service.

Advantages of Nano Catalysts

By precisely controlling the size, shape, spatial distribution, surface composition, and electronic structure of individual nanocomponents, as well as thermal and chemical stability, it can be widely used in catalysis with renewed properties and activities.

• High activity
• High selectivity
• Excellent stability
• Easy to separate

Figure 1. Comparative efficiency of homogeneous, heterogeneous and nano catalysis [1]

Energy efficient

• Atomic economy
• Minimum chemical waste
• Reduce global warming

Classification

• According to nanomaterials, it is divided into carbon materials, metals and oxides.
• On the basis of type, the market is segmented into nanoparticle catalysts, nano-porous catalysts, nanocrystalline catalysts, and supramolecular catalysts.

Applications

Nano catalysts have a wide range of applications, including:

• Environmental remediation
• Noxious vapor control
• Bioparticle sterilization
• Renewable energy (including solar energy harvesting and hydrogen production)
• Polymerization

Research Cases

• Environmental remediation

Nano catalysts provide an effective solution for the treatment of toxic pollutants in the environment. The figure below outlines some examples of some studies on nano catalysts to treat different pollutants, illustrating the scope of application, the type of pollutant, and the topic being studied.

Figure 2. Summary of nano catalysts for Environmental Treatment [2]

• Solar energy harvesting

Nanoscale photosensitizers such as CdS not only extend the spectral response of TiO₂ to the visible region, but also allow for interparticle electron transfer. Photoelectrochemical solar cells based on very stable CdS nanoclusters sensitized TiO₂ have been reported to exhibit high photocatalytic activity.

Figure 3. CdS quantum dot-sensitized TiO₂ interlayer photoelectrochemical solar cell [3]

References

1. Santosh Bahadur Singh. (2014). "Catalysis: A Brief Review on Nano-Catalyst," Journal of Energy and Chemical Engineering 2(3): 106-115.
2. R.M. Mohamed. (2012). "Enhanced nanocatalysts," Materials Science and Engineering 73: 1-13.
3. Tachibana Yasuhiro. (2007). "CdS Quantum Dots Sensitized TiO2 Sandwich Type Photoelectrochemical Solar Cells," Chemistry Letters 36(1): 88-89.