(Press-News.org) Recently, the research team led by Researcher WANG Guozhong from the Institute of Solid State Physics, the Hefei Institutes of Physical Science of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, has developed a method to precisely control the size of nickel particles in catalysts, improving their performance in hydrogenation reactions.
The related research results were published in Advanced Functional Materials.
Catalysts are essential in speeding up chemical reactions without being consumed, and the size of the metal particles in them plays a key role in their effectiveness. Larger particles have more high-coordination sites, while smaller ones are dominated by low-coordination sites. These different sites play distinct roles in catalytic reactions.
In this study, the team synthesized mesoporous silica and used a strategy that adjusted the molar ratio of ethylenediamine (EDA) to nickel (Ni) to create Ni/MS catalysts with varying Ni particle sizes. They then explored how these particle size variations affected the hydrogenation performance of vanillin and examined the underlying reaction mechanisms using both experimental and theoretical approaches.
By adjusting particle size, researchers can optimize catalyst performance and product selectivity, though finding precise control methods has been challenging.
In this work, the team applied a hybrid strategy of amino-modification and vacuum-impregnation to prepare Ni/MS catalysts with controlled Ni particle sizes ranging from 2.2 to 12.6 nm. They found that the hydrogenation of vanillin into 2-methoxy-4-methylphenol (MMP) showed a peak productivity with the Ni/MS-4.8 catalyst, which had intermediate-sized particles. Their findings highlight that low-coordinated Ni atoms aid in the adsorption of reactants such as hydrogen and vanillin, while high-coordinated atoms facilitate hydrogen dissociation.
This research provides valuable insights into optimizing catalyst design for improved hydrogenation reactions.
END
New method improves catalyst performance for hydrogenation reactions
2025-03-05
[Attachments] See images for this press release:
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
Cracking the code on gypsum and silica scaling in water desalination
2025-03-05
Mineral scaling, a significant issue in membrane desalination, reduces water recovery rates and diminishes system performance. Gypsum and silica, are two prevalent types of scaling, each form through different processes—crystallization for gypsum and polymerization for silica. These formation mechanisms lead to contrasting behaviors: gypsum scaling, marked by rapid kinetics and intrusive crystal growth, causes pore wetting, while silica scaling forms highly adhesive, irreversible layers. The impact of these scales on desalination efficiency underscores the need for a deeper understanding of their formation and mitigation.
On October 20, ...
Creativity boosts NAPLAN literacy and numeracy scores
2025-03-05
When ‘Elephant’ toothpaste erupts from the science lab, history deals up Pokémon playing cards, and maths bakes a batch of chocolate brownies, it might seem like chaos.
Yet, a groundbreaking study from University of South Australia researchers, shows that creativity plays an essential role in academic success, suggesting that students who think outside the box are more likely to excel in literacy and numeracy assessments.
It’s an important finding, particularly when the most recent National Assessment Program – Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) data shows that one in three Australian students are behind in their numeracy ...
Beyond our solar system: scientists identify a new exoplanet candidate
2025-03-05
Scientists from UNSW Sydney have located a potential new exoplanet – a planet that orbits a star outside of our solar system – using a technique known as ‘transit timing variation’.
In research highlighted in a new paper, published today in The Astrophysical Journal, Scientia Senior Lecturer Ben Montet and PhD candidate Brendan McKee analysed changes in the timing of a known planet’s transit across its star, to infer the presence of a second exoplanet.
After ...
Amphibians bounce-back from Earth’s greatest mass extinction
2025-03-05
Ancient frog relatives survived the aftermath of the largest mass extinction of species by feeding on freshwater prey that evaded terrestrial predators, University of Bristol academics have found.
In the study, published today in the journal Royal Society Open Science, their findings suggest the amphibians’ success lay in their generalist feeding ecology, enabling them to feed on a wide variety of prey despite the array of environmental changes happening all around them through the Triassic. Broader examination of Triassic ecosystems also indicates that the freshwater habitats they preferred provided them with a relatively stable variety of food resources, allowing them ...
Better semen quality is linked to men living longer
2025-03-05
Men’s semen quality is associated with how long they live according to a study of nearly 80,000 men, which is published today (Wednesday) in Human Reproduction [1], one of the world’s leading reproductive medicine journals.
The study followed the men for up to 50 years and found that those with a total number of motile sperm (sperm that can move or ‘swim’) of more than 120 million could expect to live two to three years longer than men with a total motile sperm count of between 0 and 5 million.
This is the largest study to examine the link between semen quality and mortality. An accompanying editorial ...
Enhancing mosquito repellent effectiveness
2025-03-05
RIVERSIDE, Calif. -- In a recent study, researcher Anandasankar Ray at the University of California, Riverside, and his team employed machine learning techniques combined with cheminformatics to predict novel mosquito repellents that could greatly improve global mosquito control efforts. Using the same approach to combat the global threat of mosquito-borne diseases such as malaria and dengue, Ray, the recipient of a $2.5 million, five-year grant from the National Institutes of Health, or NIH, will now work on identifying novel spatial mosquito repellents ...
Prenatal maternal stressors linked to higher blood pressure during first year after birth, study shows
2025-03-05
Psychosocial stress during pregnancy could lead to higher blood pressure during the first year postpartum according to research from Keck School of Medicine of USC.
The study, published in Hypertension and supported by the National Institutes of Health, investigated whether mothers who reported higher perceived stress and depressive symptoms during pregnancy, developed higher blood pressure in the four-year period after birth. The findings showed higher stress and depressive symptoms during pregnancy were associated with greater blood pressure during the first year postpartum, but associations diminished thereafter.
“Pregnancy ...
Resistance exercise may be best type for tackling insomnia in older age
2025-03-05
Resistance or muscle strengthening exercise, using weights or the body itself, may be the best type of exercise for tackling insomnia in older age, suggests a pooled data analysis of the available research, published in the open access journal Family Medicine and Community Health.
Aerobic exercise or a mix of strength, aerobic, balance, and flexibility exercises also seem to be effective, the analysis indicates.
Sleep quality tends to decline with age. And up to 1 in five older adults has insomnia, ...
Global 130%+ rise in postmenopausal osteoarthritis and associated disability over past 3 decades
2025-03-05
The global number of cases of osteoarthritis, as well the disability associated with the condition, have risen by more than 130% over the past 3 decades among women who have gone through the menopause, indicates a data analysis spanning 1990 to 2021, and published in the open access journal BMJ Global Health.
During this period, East Asia and high income Asia Pacific countries experienced the fastest growth in the condition while excess weight accounted for 20% of the total years lived with the resulting disability, the analysis indicates.
Osteoarthritis is primarily characterised by the deterioration and damage ...
OU Health Sciences rises to 102 in national ranking
2025-03-05
OKLAHOMA CITY – The University of Oklahoma Health Sciences has achieved its highest ranking ever in National Institutes of Health funding awarded for research. NIH funding increased to $75.2 million in the previous federal fiscal year, improving the campus’s ranking to 102 out of 2,838 institutions and other entities that receive NIH funding.
OU Health Sciences’ previous ranking was 122. Of the total amount of funding, $65.3 million was awarded to the OU College of Medicine, whose faculty members cross 23 academic departments ...