Nano catalysis

Nano catalysis is one of the most exciting subfields to have emerged from nanoscience. Its central
aim is the control of chemical reactions by changing the size, dimensionality, chemical
composition and morphology of the reaction center and by changing the kinetics using Nano
patterning of the reaction centers. Nano catalysts are used for this purpose. They are composed of
Nano sized particles (nonmetals or nonmetal oxides that are self-supported or dispersed on other
surfaces) with a large exposed surface area of active components, which enhances the accessibility
of the active sites to reactants and mimics homogeneous catalysts.

Their insolubility in reaction solvents and reactants renders them easily separable from
reaction mixtures, which enables their resemblance of heterogeneous catalysts. The activity and
selectivity of Nano catalysts can be rationally tuned by changing their chemical and physical
properties, such as size, shape, composition, and morphology. Nano catalyst involved reactions
have experienced exponential growth in chemical manufacturing, energy harvesting, conversion
and storage, and environmental protection.

Conversion of CO2 to fuel

Carbon dioxide (CO2) utilization technologies have emerged to reduce CO2 emissions by
developing beneficial uses of CO2. CO2 is a kinetically and thermodynamically stable molecule,
thus CO2 conversion reactions are endothermic and need efficient catalysts to obtain high yield.
Various renewable energies such as solar, wind, and hydroelectric are proposed as energy sources
for CO2 conversion. These largely intermittent kinetic energies are stored in the alternate fuels in
the stable form of chemical energy that can be transported and used on demand.

CO2 conversion to CO
Mimicking nature’s photosynthesis process, photo reduction of CO2 is one of the most
alluring methods for CO2 conversion due to the abundance and free access of sunlight. There are
several kinds of driving forces for the CO2 conversion. First, highly efficient artificial enzymes
which lowers the activation energy required for photo reduction of CO2. Kaneco has developed
metal-modified p-InP photo electrodes for the photo electrochemical reduction of CO2 in the
LiOH/ methanol-based electrolyte. Ag, Au, Pd, and Cu deposited p-InP photo electrodes show
higher selectivity to CO than that to H2.

CO2 conversion to methanol

Methanol can be produced directly from carbon dioxide sources by catalytic hydrogenation
and photo-assisted electrochemical reduction. Transitional metal oxides (Fe3O4, Mn3 O4, and Co3
O4). Copper oxide is a catalyst for the WGS reaction. Cu/Zr/A12O3 catalysts work for both CO and
CO3 hydrogenation in the methanol synthesis. The conversion efficiency of CO2 to fuel on a
ZnO/g-C3 N4 composite photo catalyst under simulated sunlight irradiation was determined. The
deposition of ZnO on g-C3N4 showed a CO2 conversion rate of 45.6_mol h−1 gcat−1, which was
4.9 and 6.4 times higher than those of g-C3N4.

Conversion of syngas
Conventional technology for the production of syngas is catalytic steam reforming of
methane and Catalytic partial oxidation of methane may offer an alternative route for producing
synthesis gas. Then this syngas is converted to ethanol and other fuels. The thermochemical
processes mainly consist of gasifying biomass through gasification technology (thermal treatment)
and pyrolysis technology. Although the conversion of syngas to ethanol and higher alcohols is also
desirable, highly active and selective catalysts still need to be developed.

Materials

 Two main types of higher alcohol synthesis catalysts have been reported. The first type
was established primarily from either high-temperature–pressure Zn-Cr-based catalysts or
low-temperature–pressure (Cu-Zn-Al/Cr) methanol synthesis catalysts.
 A Co-Cu mixed oxide with a definite structure such as perovskite or spinel could be a
promising catalytic material for conversion of syngas (H2/CO) into alcohols and
hydrocarbons.
 There are two types of heterogeneous catalysts used for mixed alcohols synthesis from
syngas: noble metal-based and non-noble metal-based catalysts. The noble metal-based
catalysts, mainly Rh based catalysts, show good catalytic performance but are too
 expensive for commercial application. The major non-noble metal-based catalysts include
Cu-based catalysts and Mo-based catalysts. Mo based catalysts (MoS2, Mo2C, etc.) are
sulfur resistant and less sensitive to CO2.

 Zn(electro-chemical promoter) and Mn(structural promoter) over co-modified Cu-Fe based

catalyst, which led to a rise in the overall performance with high CO conversion rate and
high selectivity of mixed alcohols.

Fischer-Tropsch synthesis
Fischer–Tropsch (FT) synthesis is a heterogeneous catalytic process for the transformation
of synthesis gas (syngas, CO+H2) into hydrocarbons. It is used to form liquid fuels. The FT process
generally includes the following reactions

(2𝑛 + 1)𝐻2 + 𝑛𝐶𝑜 → 𝐶𝑛 𝐻2𝑛+2 + 𝐻2 0

2𝑛𝐻2 + 𝑛𝐶0 → 𝐶𝑛 𝐻𝑛 + 𝑛𝐻2 𝑂

Both reactions are strongly exothermic (DH=_165–204 kJmol_1 CO). The hydrocarbon products
of FT synthesis can be sulfur- and nitrogen-free high-quality fuels such as diesel fuels, which have
been proven to be more environmentally benign than the petroleum-based fuels.

Materials
According to the Initial article, the alumina has been pretreated in the presence of medium
and then used to prepare the supported Co catalysts. These characterizations clearly show the
changes of morphology (surface area, pore volume, pore size distribution and crystallite phase) as
well as chemical properties (e.g. acidity) of the supports.
In the Second article Cobalt-based catalysts are known to be effective in CO hydrogenation. The
presence of Ru in supported cobalt catalysts enhanced the reduction of cobalt oxide. Co–Pt
catalysts with high Pt/Co ratios tends to favor the formation of oxygenate. Co–Pt catalysts with
low Pt/Co ratios and found that the cobalt oxide reducibility and dispersion were increased
significantly.
While the third article states that an original synthesis of cobalt–iron alloy/cobalt doped magnetite
catalysts (spinel structure) has been developed, in which cobalt and iron are obtained in the metallic
state without any reducing treatment. By heating under argon, the composition of the metallic
phase can be controlled within the range (Co0.8Fe0.2) to (Co0.95Fe0.05).

Petroleum refining
Petroleum refining or Oil refining is an industrial process in which crude oil is extracted from
the ground and transformed and refined into useful products like Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG),
kerosene, asphalt base, jet fuel, gasoline, heating oil, fuel oils etc. Crude Oil consists of hydrocarbon
molecules. There are three steps in the Petroleum refining process – Separation, Conversion, and
Treatment.

Materials
In some article the Molybdenum-containing catalysts are mostly used in petroleum-
refining industries for mild hydrogenation processes. While the some states the Nano sized ZSM‐
5 was synthesized and used for straight run gasoline reforming. The catalyst lifetimes were
prolonged when Nano sized molecular sieves were used as petroleum refining and petrochemical
catalysts. There was third article recent efforts to improve petroleum refining catalysts focus on
mesoporous zeolites to improve accessibility to active sites and enhance selectivity through
additional cracking within the mesoporous.
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