Fast gas-phase survey using clusters for high-performance copper catalysts

2015 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 25390004
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Section: 一般
• Research Field: Nanostructural chemistry
• Research Institution: Toyota Technological Institute
• Principal Investigator: Ichihashi Masahiko 豊田工業大学, 工学部, 教授 (90282722)
• Co-Investigator(Renkei-kenkyūsha): HIRABAYASHI Shinichi (株)コンポン研究所, 東東京研究室, 研究員 (60557750) ; ODAKA Hideho (株)コンポン研究所, 東東京研究室, 研究員 (80557752)
• Project Period (FY): 2013-04-01 – 2016-03-31
• Keywords: 貴金属代替 / 銅クラスター / 異種金属添加 / 二酸化炭素 / メタノール / 反応中間体 / ヘリウム液滴 / 触媒

Outline of Final Research Achievements

Carbon dioxide, CO2, is the primary greenhouse gas, and its reduction is an urgent issue. We have studied the adsorption and activation of CO2 for the conversion of it to methanol by using copper clusters as catalysts. One of the advantages of the use of the clusters is the ease of designing their geometric and electronic structures in terms of the number of constituent atoms and the composition. In this research project, we have focused our attention to the survey of the promoter for the copper clusters mainly, and improved the probability of the adsorption of CO2 and its activation by the addition of an early transition metal atom like titanium and so on. The promoter atom makes for the interaction between the cluster and CO2, and CO2 can adsorp onto the cluster dissociatively. Additionaly, we have developed an experimental apparatus to elucidate the geometric and the electronic structures of the reaction intermediates by helium nanodroplet isolation spectroscopy.

Free Research Field

物理化学