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IMAGE: (a) Modern cataylsts constist of nanoparticles; (b) A Rhodium tip as a model for a nanoparticle; (c) Tracing a chemical reaction in real time with a field emission microscope (d)...
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Credit: TU Wien
Most of commercial chemicals are produced using catalysts. Usually, these catalysts consist of tiny metal nanoparticles that are placed on an oxidic support. Similar to a cut diamond, whose surface consists of different facets oriented in different directions, a catalytic nanoparticle also possesses crystallographically different facets - and these facets can have different chemical properties.
Until now, these differences have often remained unconsidered in catalysis research because it is very difficult to simultaneously obtain information about the chemical reaction itself and about the surface structure of the catalyst. At TU Wien (Vienna), this has now been achieved by combining different microscopic methods: with the help of field electron microscopy and field ion microscopy, it became possible to visualize the oxidation of hydrogen on a single rhodium nanoparticle in real time at nanometer resolution. This revealed surprising effects that will have to be taken into account in the search for better catalysts in the future. The results have now been presented in the scientific journal