Catalyst Preparation for the 21st Century Controlled catalyst synthesis to match form to function

The symposium, Catalyst Preparation for the 21st Century, held on 18th March 2010 in London, was jointly organized by the Applied Catalysis Group of the Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC) and the Catalysis Subject Group of the Institution of Chemical Engineers (IChemE). Krijn de Jong from Utrecht University, the Netherlands demonstrated about images of catalysts created using three-dimensional transmission electron microscopy (TEM) tomography. De Jong showed that careful control and a proper understanding of the catalyst synthesis could lead to materials with significantly enhanced activity. Shik Chi (Edman) Tsang from Oxford University in the UK discussed about Pt nanoparticles between 4 nm and 14.4 nm in size that could be synthesized by using stabilizers to prevent aggregation. Peter Witte from Process Catalysis Research in the Netherlands explained about Pt, Pd and mixed Pd-Pt catalysts on titanium silicates.