Scientists work on carbon catalysts to speed up reactions

The €4m (£3.2m) EU-backed FREECATS (Doped carbon nanostructures as metal free catalysts) project is aiming to develop environmentally friendly catalysts that can be used in fuel cells, water purification and the production of light olefins.

The scientists will attempt to build carbon structures on the atomic scale that are capable of binding or transforming substances in certain ways.

Prof Magnus Rønning from the Catalysis group at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology’s department of chemical engineering told The Engineer that his team would specifically be using nitrogen to dope carbon nanomaterials and that they would be exploring both in situ and ex situ doping techniques.

Rønning said that expensive metal catalysts often contribute to parallel chemical reactions that may compete with the main reaction. He claimed that metal-free catalysts have a higher selectivity and are more reliable in performing the desired reactions, which reduces the risk of reactions that create unwanted waste products that may be harmful to the environment.