reaction – Progress in Research

A study conducted by the Department of Energy‘s ‘Laboratory of Catalysis and Catalytic Processes (LCCP)’ group at Politecnico di Milano has been selected as the front cover of the journal ChemCatChem. The article highlights the importance of describing the complex catalytic phenomena involved in pollutant (NO_x) abatement reactions from a molecular point of view.

For the first time ever, this study offers a theoretical understanding of the role of water in the NH3-SCR process: this is technologically relevant in the field of pollutant abatement because H2O is abundantly present as a reaction product.
Enrico Tronconi, co-author of the study

The study shows that the presence of water in the reduction loop of the NH₃-SCR redox mechanism changes the reaction environment at the molecular level. On the one hand, the addition of water in the system leads to a lowering of the activation energy of the reaction due to kinetically relevant enthalpy stabilisation effects of the transition state. On the other hand, the reduced mobility of the transition state leads to entropic penalties that lower the reaction speed.

Our research explores the engineering significance of an atomistic study of catalytic mechanisms, providing a detailed description of the elementary steps and molecular identities involved in reactions. These tools, in synergy with experimental work, play a major role in the optimisation and development of catalytic processes.
Matteo Maestri, co-author of the study

Read the study online

A discovery by the Politecnico di Milano opens up new perspectives in the field of sustainable chemical synthesis, promoting innovative solutions that allow chemicals to be created in a more efficient and environmentally friendly way. The research was published in the journal Nature Synthesis.

The team developed a catalyst that is more active and selective in esterification reactions, through which products used in the manufacture of medicines, food additives and polymers are formed.

The revolutionary feature of this new catalyst is that it reduces the use of rare metals, a significant step towards conserving critical resources and making processes more sustainable. In addition, the catalyst can be activated by sunlight, eliminating the need for energy-intensive methods. This discovery holds enormous potential in reducing dependence on finite resources and lowering the environmental impact of catalytic processes.

Gianvito Vilé, Associate Professor of Chemical Engineering at the Department of Chemistry, Materials and Chemical Engineering ‘Giulio Natta’, coordinated the project, while Mark Bajada, a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Postdoctoral Fellow at the Politecnico di Milano, is the first author of the paper. The study was conducted in close collaboration with researchers from Università di Milano Bicocca and Università di Torino, and was funded by the European Commission through a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Postdoctoral Fellowship and a Horizon Europe project recently awarded to the Politecnico di Milano (SusPharma).

The study in Nature Synthesis

Tag: reaction

Studying catalytic mechanisms from an atomistic point of view

New catalyst makes chemical processes more efficient and less harmful to environment