Scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Brookhaven National Laboratory, Stony Brook University (SBU), and other collaborating institutions have uncovered dynamic, atomic-level details of how an important platinum-based catalyst works in the water gas shift reaction.
Scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Brookhaven National Laboratory, Stony Brook University (SBU), and other collaborating institutions have uncovered dynamic, atomic-level details of how an important platinum-based catalyst works in the water gas shift reaction. This reaction transforms carbon monoxide (CO) and water (H2O) into carbon dioxide (CO2) and hydrogen gas (H2)—an important step in producing and purifying hydrogen for multiple applications, including use as a clean fuel in fuel-cell vehicles, and in the production of hydrocarbons.
But because platinum is rare and expensive, scientists have been seeking ways to create catalysts that use less of this precious metal. Understanding exactly what the platinum does is an essential step.
The new study, published in Nature Communications, identifies the atoms involved in the catalyst’s active site, resolving earlier conflicting reports about how the catalyst operates. The experiments provide definitive evidence that only certain platinum atoms play an important role in the chemical conversion.
Read more at: DOE/Brookhaven National Laboratory
Lead author Yuanyuan Li, a research scientist at Stony Brook University's Materials Science and Chemical Engineering Department who has a guest appointment in Brookhaven Lab's Chemistry Division, performs an analysis on a sample using an infrared spectrometer. (Photo Credit: Brookhaven National Laboratory)
