Swiss CAT+, a Data-driven Infrastructure for Accelerated Catalysts Discovery and Optimization.

The Catalysis Hub - Swiss CAT+ is a new infrastructure project funded by ETH-domain, co-headed by EPFL and ETHZ. It offers the scientific community a unique integrated technology platform combining automated and high-throughput experimentation with advanced computational data analysis to accelerate the discoveries in the field of sustainable catalytic technologies. Divided into two hubs of expertise, homogeneous catalysis at EPFL and heterogeneous catalysis at ETHZ, the platform is open to academic and private research groups. Following a multi-year investment plan, both hubs have acquired and developed several high-end robotic platforms devoted to the synthesis, characterization, and testing of large numbers of molecular and solid catalysts. The hardware is associated with a fully digitalized experimental workflow and a specific data management strategy to support closed-loop experimentation and advanced computational data analysis.

One-Pot Synthesis of Size- and Composition-Controlled Ni-Rich NiPt Alloy Nanoparticles in a Reverse Microemulsion System and Their Application.

Bimetallic nanoparticles have been the subject of numerous research studies in the nanotechnology field, in particular for catalytic applications. Control of the size, morphology, and composition has become a key challenge due to the relationship between these parameters and the catalytic behavior of the particles in terms of activity, selectivity, and stability. Here, we present a one-pot air synthesis of 2 nm Ni9Pt1 nanoparticles with a narrow size distribution. Control of the size and composition of the alloy particles is achieved at ambient temperature, in the aqueous phase, by the simultaneous reduction of nickel and platinum precursors with hydrazine, using a reverse microemulsion system. After deposition on an alumina support, this Ni-rich nanoalloy exhibits unprecedented stability under the harsh conditions of methane dry reforming.

Durable PROX catalyst based on gold nanoparticles and hydrophobic silica.

3 nm gold nanoparticles obtained by direct chemical reduction of AuPPh3Cl in the presence of hydrophobic silica are highly active and selective over a prolonged period of time in the low temperature oxidation of CO in the presence of hydrogen.

Well-defined mono(η(3)-allyl)nickel complex ≡MONi(η(3)-C3H5) (M = Si or Al) grafted onto silica or alumina: a molecularly dispersed nickel precursor for syntheses of supported small size nickel nanoparticles.

Preparing evenly-dispersed small size nickel nanoparticles over inert oxides remains a challenge today. In this context, a versatile method to prepare supported small size nickel nanoparticles (ca. 1-3 nm) with narrow size distribution via a surface organometallic chemistry (SOMC) route is described. The grafted mono(η(3)-allyl)nickel complexes ≡MONi(η(3)-C3H5) (M = Si or Al) as precursors are synthesized and fully characterized by elemental analysis, FTIR spectroscopy and paramagnetic solid-state NMR.

Phospholipid-templated silica nanocapsules as efficient polyenzymatic biocatalysts.

Solid polyenzymatic biocatalysts have been designed by combining two immobilized enzymes, the first one allowing the in situ generation of H(2)O(2) from air and the second one performing an oxidation reaction. The in situ H(2)O(2) generation system is based on the reaction of glucose with air using a glucose oxidase (GOx). The optimization of the encapsulation of GOx into phospholipids-templated silica capsules (NPS) was performed. A bienzymatic system made of GOx and horseradish peroxidase (HRP) was studied. Optimal conditions for the activity of the GOx/HRP bienzymatic system have been determined for both homogeneous and heterogeneous conditions. The encapsulation in NPS materials increases the stability of both enzymes. The performance of the encapsulated bienzymatic GOx/HRP system in the model reaction of 4-aminoantipyridine with phenol is similar when the enzymes are immobilized separately in two NPS or coencapsulated in the same NPS. An excess of peroxidase compared to GOx ([HRP]/[GOx] = 5-10) is necessary to obtain the optimal activity. To show the potentiality of bienzymatic systems in real applications, HRP has been replaced by hemoglobin, which is known for its ability to oxidize polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) pollutants through a pseudoperoxidase pathway. A larger excess of Hb compared to GOx ([Hb]/[GOx] = 1000) was necessary to obtain the maximum PAH removal, as Hb is not a real peroxidase as HRP but a hemoprotein with some pseudoperoxidase activity. In opposite to real enzymes, the immobilization of Hb by adsorption in mesoporous silica is preferable as its encapsulation. Therefore, the bienzymatic system made of GOx encapsulated in NPS and Hb adsorbed in mesoporous silica has been used for the removal of 11 PAH from water. This heterogeneous bienzymatic system allows 64% of PAH removal from water using simple air as oxidant.