The UK Catalysis Hub
Lead Research Organisation:
University College London
Department Name: Chemistry
Abstract
Catalysis is a core area of science that lies at the heart of the chemicals industry - an immensely successful and important part of the overall UK economy, where in recent years the UK output has totaled over £50B and is ranked 7th in the world. This position is being maintained in the face of immense competition worldwide. For the UK to sustain its leading position it is essential that innovation in research is maintained, which can be achieved through bringing together the internationally leading academic activity that exists in the UK in this key area of contemporary science. We therefore, aim to create a coordinated UK programme for Catalysis, with a hub in the Research Complex at Harwell, which will help to keep the UK at the forefront of this crucial scientific and technological sector. The location of the hub at Harwell will allow us to interact closely with both central facilities, to whose development the project will contribute, and with the broader scientific community on the Harwell/RAL Campus. The major developments in the in situ characterisation of catalytic materials that have taken place in the recent years have been of immense importance in addressing the complex scientific problems posed by catalytic science. The component of the programme based at the hub will focus on catalyst design and will develop state-of-the art in situ facilities that will be used for experiments to be conducted at the Diamond, Synchrotron Radiation, ISIS Neutron Scattering and Central Laser Facilities. Such experiments will allow us to probe the structure and evolution of catalysts at the molecular level during their operation; but their effectiveness will require integration with a wide ranging modeling programme which will explore and predict catalytic systems and performance across the relevant length and time scles form the nanao - to the macro-level.
The hub will couple with an extensive programme of applications, which will be distributed amongst the extensive range of collaborating institutions and will be built round the following central themes in contemporary catalytic science:
* Catalysis Design
* Catalysis for Energy
* Chemical Transformations
* Environmental Catalysis
By coordinating the expertise of the collaborative groups, in novel areas of catalytic science with a strong focal point in the Harwell/RAL campus, we will provide a platform for new initiatives that will provide a hub for UK catalysis research and will give substantial added value to the existing investment in catalytic science. Moreover by working together, the UK scientific team will be able take centre stage and lead the world in this crucial field.
The impact of the Centre will be further promoted by a vigorous and effective dissemination strategy which will develop strong interactions with a wide range of academic and industrial groups and with the broader scientific community.
The hub will couple with an extensive programme of applications, which will be distributed amongst the extensive range of collaborating institutions and will be built round the following central themes in contemporary catalytic science:
* Catalysis Design
* Catalysis for Energy
* Chemical Transformations
* Environmental Catalysis
By coordinating the expertise of the collaborative groups, in novel areas of catalytic science with a strong focal point in the Harwell/RAL campus, we will provide a platform for new initiatives that will provide a hub for UK catalysis research and will give substantial added value to the existing investment in catalytic science. Moreover by working together, the UK scientific team will be able take centre stage and lead the world in this crucial field.
The impact of the Centre will be further promoted by a vigorous and effective dissemination strategy which will develop strong interactions with a wide range of academic and industrial groups and with the broader scientific community.
Planned Impact
The establishment of the proposed coordinated UK programme in catalytic science with a physical hub in the Research Complex at Harwell will have wide ranging benefits and impact on the academic community and on industrial and manufacturing sectors in the UK; it will also have broader economic, environmental and social impact.
The chemical sector is a major component of UK industry, and includes global players such as GSK, Astra Zeneca, Pfizer, Johnson Matthey, BP and Unilever. Catalysis is at the heart of these industries and the underpinning fundamental science developed by the Centre will be of key importance in the development of future technologies.
The impact on the academic community will be broad. The coordinated programme will promote further collaborations between leading groups in catalytic science, but will also have impact on other disciplines including biosciences, materials and computational science. By contributing to facilities development, the project will also benefit the broader user community.
Societal impact will follow from advances enabled by the research in sustainable manufacturing, leading to greener and cleaner processes and products with reduced environmental impact. Contributions will also be made to the provision of sustainable energy and reductions in energy demands of manufacturing sectors. Additional societal impact will follow from the role of the fundamental research undertaken by the Centre in assisting the development of advanced routes to new pharmaceutical products.
The UK economy will benefit from the role of the Centre in assisting innovation in catalysis manufacture. The large and successful chemical sector, including over 3200 companies and a dynamic SME component, faces intense international competition. The collaborations and interactions both within the Centre and between the Centre and Industry will promote economic impact, which will extend beyond the chemical sector to industries that rely on advances in materials and processes, including automotive, aerospace and electronics sectors.
Knowledge exchange will be vigorously promoted by the programme through greater integration between the participating research groups and their extensive networks of collaborations and with scientists and facilities on the Harwell/RAL campus. This exchange will lead to scientific advances not only in the development of state-of-the-art equipment but also in sustainable chemical processes.
The impact on recruitment will be substantial by the provision of trained research workers whose skills will be necessary for R&D programmes required for market innovation to occur.
The management and dissemination plans are designed to maximise impact. The Management Board at the hub will monitor and advise on impact, while the annual dissemination conference will be aimed at the key beneficiaries.
The collaborating team has wide ranging experience in the dissemination of their science and the promotion of its impact to a wide range of stakeholders.
The chemical sector is a major component of UK industry, and includes global players such as GSK, Astra Zeneca, Pfizer, Johnson Matthey, BP and Unilever. Catalysis is at the heart of these industries and the underpinning fundamental science developed by the Centre will be of key importance in the development of future technologies.
The impact on the academic community will be broad. The coordinated programme will promote further collaborations between leading groups in catalytic science, but will also have impact on other disciplines including biosciences, materials and computational science. By contributing to facilities development, the project will also benefit the broader user community.
Societal impact will follow from advances enabled by the research in sustainable manufacturing, leading to greener and cleaner processes and products with reduced environmental impact. Contributions will also be made to the provision of sustainable energy and reductions in energy demands of manufacturing sectors. Additional societal impact will follow from the role of the fundamental research undertaken by the Centre in assisting the development of advanced routes to new pharmaceutical products.
The UK economy will benefit from the role of the Centre in assisting innovation in catalysis manufacture. The large and successful chemical sector, including over 3200 companies and a dynamic SME component, faces intense international competition. The collaborations and interactions both within the Centre and between the Centre and Industry will promote economic impact, which will extend beyond the chemical sector to industries that rely on advances in materials and processes, including automotive, aerospace and electronics sectors.
Knowledge exchange will be vigorously promoted by the programme through greater integration between the participating research groups and their extensive networks of collaborations and with scientists and facilities on the Harwell/RAL campus. This exchange will lead to scientific advances not only in the development of state-of-the-art equipment but also in sustainable chemical processes.
The impact on recruitment will be substantial by the provision of trained research workers whose skills will be necessary for R&D programmes required for market innovation to occur.
The management and dissemination plans are designed to maximise impact. The Management Board at the hub will monitor and advise on impact, while the annual dissemination conference will be aimed at the key beneficiaries.
The collaborating team has wide ranging experience in the dissemination of their science and the promotion of its impact to a wide range of stakeholders.
Organisations
- University College London (Lead Research Organisation)
- Cardiff University (Collaboration)
- UNIVERSITY OF GLASGOW (Collaboration)
- Science and Technologies Facilities Council (STFC) (Collaboration)
- Solar Fuels Network (Collaboration)
- Johnson Matthey (United Kingdom) (Collaboration)
- University of Cape Town (Collaboration)
Publications
Wangkawong K
(2020)
Kinetics of Water Gas Shift Reaction on Au/CeZrO4: A Comparison Between Conventional Heating and Dielectric Barrier Discharge (DBD) Plasma Activation
in Topics in Catalysis
Weetman C
(2018)
Destruction of chemical warfare agent simulants by air and moisture stable metal NHC complexes.
in Dalton transactions (Cambridge, England : 2003)
Xu R
(2019)
Nanoporous Carbon: Liquid-Free Synthesis and Geometry-Dependent Catalytic Performance.
in ACS nano
Xu S
(2019)
Sustaining metal-organic frameworks for water-gas shift catalysis by non-thermal plasma
in Nature Catalysis
Yang Q
(2016)
Exploring the mechanisms of metal co-catalysts in photocatalytic reduction reactions: Is Ag a good candidate?
in Applied Catalysis A: General
Ye G
(2016)
Probing pore blocking effects on multiphase reactions within porous catalyst particles using a discrete model
in AIChE Journal
Ye G
(2017)
Influence of catalyst pore network structure on the hysteresis of multiphase reactions
in AIChE Journal
Ye G
(2019)
Optimizing catalyst pore network structure in the presence of deactivation by coking
in AIChE Journal
Yeo B
(2016)
The surface of iron molybdate catalysts used for the selective oxidation of methanol
in Surface Science
Zachariou A
(2020)
The Effect of Co-feeding Methyl Acetate on the H-ZSM5 Catalysed Methanol-to-Hydrocarbons Reaction
in Topics in Catalysis
| Description | This is one of four awards that have enabled the UK Catalysis Hub to be established. 8 initial projects have been set up in the Environment theme of the UK Catalysis Hub and all pdras have been appointed. Key discoveries to date have included a new route to methanol from glycerol and a new catalyst for hydrogen peroxide synthesis The UK catalysis Hub has over the past 5 years developed a vibrant program of research integrated across the UK. This research has lead toover 200 publications across heterogeneous, homogeneous biocatalysis and engineering including journals such as Science, Nature, Nature Chemistry, Angewante and Chemical Reviews . The research has been represented at numerous international conferences including the International Catalysis Congress (ICC-2016) British Zeolite association conference, , Gordon Research Conferences June 2016 and multiple Faraday discussions. By having a number of calls for research the hub has funded 82 projects across its scientific themes and has evolved to keep addressing key current and future challenges - e.g. Catalysits for deNox reactions, and biobutanol productions - as well as ongoing support for strategically relevant problems such as water purification and particulate destruction in automotive exhaust. The use and development of Biocatalysis and biotransformations was identified as a key, industrially relevant are of research and was expanded by the addition of the Biocatalysis and Biotransformation's theme. The Catalysis Hub has developed strong relationships with the world leading facilities on the Harwell campus including Diamond, ISIS and the Central Laser Facility (CLF).The Catalysis Hub in association with Diamond has run a highly successful Block allocation Group (BAG) on the Core XAFS beamline and has supported more than 20 research groups across ten institutions including new users. This access to beam time has resulted in more than 32 publications. The hub has also developed a number of insitu analysis techniques including operando XAFS/DRIFTS techniques (Chem. Mater., 2015, 27 (10), pp 3714-3720) and ongoing projects include the development of combines SpaciFB-XAS techniques A strong relationship with ISIS has focused on community engagement as well as scientific research through conference and workshops (neutrons for catalysis November 2015 organised) has lead to increased uptake of neutron techniques for catalysis there has been an increase in catalysis related proposal with approximately 20% beamtime on the QENS instruments is catalysis,(15% due to the Hub), 40% on MAPS is catalysis, (20% Hub related), and 60% beamtime on TOSCA is catalysis(30% from the Hub) .The existence of the Hub is providing some of the drivers for upgrades to instruments and is certainly the major driver for the proposed catalysis lab within ISIS and based on research supported by the HUB isis scientist are developing (quasi) insitu techniques in this e.g for QUENS . Work by Hub member James McGregor (Sheffield) has lead to a catalysis Hub project on Optical tweezers for interrogation of catalysis at Cardiff and the CLF and projects funded by the hub and Researchers supported by the Hub (Beale, UCL) have developed techniques including Kerr gated Raman and Fluorescence Lifetime Imaging (FLIM) for catalysis applications. The applications of Laser techniques for catalysis was disseminated to the community in a workshop organised in collaboration with the CLF (Lasers for catalysis may 2016) |
| Exploitation Route | The research of the hub has been widely disseminated and is being continued in an number of research groups across the UK |
| Sectors | Agriculture, Food and Drink,Chemicals,Education,Energy,Environment,Manufacturing, including Industrial Biotechology,Pharmaceuticals and Medical Biotechnology |
| URL | http://www.ukcatalysishub.co.uk |
| Description | The UK Catalysis Hub is already producing outputs in key areas of catalytic science including in situ and operando studies, redox catalysis, homogeneous catalysis, polymerization catalysis and photocatalysis and new IP has been created in this initial phase. Research at the Hub is benchmarked internationally via our External Advisory Board and is closely linked with industry via our Industrial Advisory Panel which has over 20 members. These findings have been used to enable new projects that will start in 2015 as part of the UK catalysis Hub Grant. The findings have also be used to create interest and develop collaborations with industry, and to develop new techniques and understanding of catalytic processes that will be fundamental to developing better catalysts and processes The Catalysis Hub was founded with EPSRC funding in 2013 with three main aims: • To establish a world-leading, comprehensive and coordinated programme of catalytic science in the UK. • To develop new knowledge and promote innovation in and translation of catalytic science and technology. • To enable the UK to regain and retain a world leading position in catalysis. The Hub has fully achieved these objectives: it has coordinated and developed the UK Catalysis community; it has established strong and enduring interactions with UK industry; and it is now widely known and recognised internationally. Key to its success has been its inclusivity, its effective management structure (described in more detail in the Annex) and its physical hub, based in the Research Complex (RCaH) on the Harwell campus. Its network of forty-one university groups around the UK now includes the great majority of academic catalytic scientists, while its wide ranging scientific programme is increasingly integrating the different fields within catalytic science. Its physical centre at the Harwell campus has provided a focus for the community and has facilitated the application to catalytic science of the world-class neutron, synchrotron and laser facilities on the campus. Through its scientific programme and its wide ranging and vibrant programme of activities including conferences, specialised workshops and outreach activities, the Hub has energised a broad community of scientists and facilitated wide ranging collaboration through multidisciplinary and multi-institution projects. The scientific program has already had extensive impact including skills development for the research associates in the hub, a large number of publications and many scientific developments including patents. Below are three 'impact highlights' from the UK catalysis Hub Neutrons in Catalysis (Hub Harwell) In association with ISIS the Hub held a workshop on, "Neutron Techniques in Catalysis" in Nov 2014. There were a mix of delegates from industry and academia, with over fifty attendees. This helped to provide training and knowledge transfer to catalytic community who may previously not have used neutrons leading to a range of new users including Johnson Matthey, Academics from Southampton university and UCL. Following this workshop scientists from ISIS, The Catalysis Hub and Johnson Matthey proposed and led a special issue of PCCP edition, "Neutron scattering in catalysis and energy materials" (see Dissemination ) Industrial Importance: Use of Neutrons for catalysis research has led to industrial relevance NOx emissions from the energy and transport sectors represent a major hazard to human health and this has been the focus of significant industrial and academic research. One of the important processes in the armoury available for emissions control from vehicles, large and small, power stations, ships, trains and non-road machinery is the selective catalytic reduction reaction (SCR), in which a reductant such as ammonia, urea or hydrocarbon fuel, is injected into the exhaust to reduce the NO and NO2 (NOx) to harmless nitrogen. The use of urea (which is broken down to NH3 under operating conditions) as a reductant in SCR is a key successful strategy in R&D in diesel emissions control R&D and is already used on modern vehicles, but will become much more prevalent in the near future. The typical catalysts used for urea (and ammonia) SCR include those based on vanadium oxide, iron supported on a zeolite, and copper supported on a zeolite (Cu/zeo). The Cu/zeo materials have proven to be extremely active for SCR, and also demonstrate excellent long term stability, and are therefore often the prime choice for use in the catalytic SCR system. Research projects carried out at Johnson Matthey, as well as elsewhere, have highlighted the excellent performance of small pore zeolites, such as chabazite (CHA) combined with Cu for the SCR reaction. With such small pore systems it is very important to understand not only the intrinsic NH3-NO reaction kinetics and the chemistry of the active sites, but also the diffusion processes that might be important in the design of an optimum SCR catalyst. Presented by Johnson Matthey: 14th International Conference on Applications of Quasielastic Neutron Scattering, 5-8th September, 2016, Potsdam, Germany (I. Hitchcock, Measuring diffusion of ammonia in zeolite NOx emissions control catalysts). |
| Sector | Chemicals,Education,Energy,Environment,Manufacturing, including Industrial Biotechology,Pharmaceuticals and Medical Biotechnology,Transport |
| Impact Types | Economic |
| Description | CASE Award x 3 in association with the Catalysis Hub (Southampton and Glasgow) |
| Amount | £207,000 (GBP) |
| Organisation | Johnson Matthey |
| Sector | Private |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 10/2016 |
| End | 09/2020 |
| Description | EP/M013219/1 Biocatalysis & Biotransformation: A 5th Theme for the National Catalysis Hub |
| Amount | £3,103,987 (GBP) |
| Funding ID | EP/M013219/1 |
| Organisation | Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 04/2015 |
| End | 03/2020 |
| Description | Impact Acceleration Fellowships |
| Amount | £142,435 (GBP) |
| Funding ID | EP/M010538/1 |
| Organisation | Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 07/2014 |
| End | 07/2016 |
| Description | Industrial CASE Award |
| Amount | £69,524 (GBP) |
| Organisation | Johnson Matthey |
| Sector | Private |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 01/2015 |
| End | 01/2018 |
| Title | XAFS DRIFTS methods |
| Description | WE have developed a flow system, gas handling and use of a DRIFS spectrometer in combination with XAFS ( at both diamond light source and ESRF) to study insitu and operando catalysis reactions looking at the reaction and structure of the catalysis to increase mechanistic and fundamental understanding of catalytic processes the expertise and equipment through BLock access to B18 on diamond light-source is now available as a resource for the community |
| Type Of Material | Improvements to research infrastructure |
| Year Produced | 2016 |
| Provided To Others? | Yes |
| Impact | A number of publications have arisen from this research tool, additional funding for development of a flow Cell as been secured as an INDUSTRIAL CASE award |
| Title | Data for "Mechanistic insight into the framework methylation of H-ZSM-5 for varying methanol loading and Si/Al ratio using first principles molecular dynamics simulations" |
| Description | Data is presented for: a) The interaction distances between specific atoms of interest (defined in the manuscript) as a function of time during the molecular dynamics simulations b) The free energy profile as a function of a collective variable (defined in the manuscript) both at convergence of the metadynamics simulations, and after an additional 500 gaussian hills have been added to the free energy landscape (as defined in the manuscript) in order calculate error bars. The data is for simulations consisting of 1, 3 and 5 methanol molecules in the presence of 1 or 2 Al sites in the H-ZSM-5 structure (defined in the manuscript). |
| Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
| Year Produced | 2020 |
| Provided To Others? | Yes |
| URL | https://research.cardiff.ac.uk/converis/portal/detail/Dataset/111777454?auxfun=&lang=en_GB |
| Title | Directed Aqueous-Phase Reforming of Glycerol Through Tailored Platinum Nanoparticles |
| Description | The physicochemical properties of the catalysts were characterised in depth using a range of techniques, including XRD, MPAES, UV-vis spectroscopy, TEM, IR and XAFS. The dataset contains TEM micrographs, XRD, as well as Origin and Athena (XAFS) files relating to the catalyst characterisation. The catalytic performance data for the aforementioned aqueous-phase reforming reaction, including conversion profiles, yield, product distribution and first order kinetics, is also documented. |
| Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
| Year Produced | 2018 |
| Provided To Others? | Yes |
| Title | Raw data from publication entitled: Resolving the effect of oxygen vacancies on Co nanostructures using soft XAS/X-PEEM |
| Description | Raw data from the recent publication: Resolving the effect of oxygen vacancies on Co nanostructures using soft XAS/X-PEEM |
| Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
| Year Produced | 2022 |
| Provided To Others? | Yes |
| URL | https://rdr.ucl.ac.uk/articles/dataset/Raw_data_from_publication_entitled_Resolving_the_effect_of_ox... |
| Title | Raw data from publication entitled: Resolving the effect of oxygen vacancies on Co nanostructures using soft XAS/X-PEEM |
| Description | Raw data from the recent publication: Resolving the effect of oxygen vacancies on Co nanostructures using soft XAS/X-PEEM |
| Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
| Year Produced | 2022 |
| Provided To Others? | Yes |
| URL | https://rdr.ucl.ac.uk/articles/dataset/Raw_data_from_publication_entitled_Resolving_the_effect_of_ox... |
| Description | C*Change Catalysis Network south africa |
| Organisation | University of Cape Town |
| Department | Department of Oceanography |
| Country | South Africa |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | Organisation of network meeting between C*Change members and the Catalysis Hub leading to at least one Diamond beam line experiment as a collaboration (results pending) |
| Collaborator Contribution | intellect input and samples of collaborative experiments for Catalysis using Diamond lightsource |
| Impact | succesful beam time applications |
| Start Year | 2015 |
| Description | Collaboration with Ceri Hammond on research leading to publications |
| Organisation | Cardiff University |
| Department | Cardiff Catalysis Institute |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | Ceri traveld to the Hub and Centre at Harwell to collaborate on research wirth N Dimitratos leading to work including N. Dimitratos, C. Hammond, P. P. Wells; Liquid phase oxidation using Au-based catalyst; Book chapter in Gold Catalysis: Preparation, Characterization and Applications (2015) Pan Stanford Publishing |
| Collaborator Contribution | work on gold nanoparticles |
| Impact | Publications N. Dimitratos, C. Hammond, P. P. Wells; Liquid phase oxidation using Au-based catalyst; Book chapter in Gold Catalysis: Preparation, Characterization and Applications (2015) Pan Stanford Publishing |
| Start Year | 2013 |
| Description | Collaboration with ISIS neutron and muon source and Johnson Matthe and development of a special edition of PCCP |
| Organisation | Johnson Matthey |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Private |
| PI Contribution | In association with ISIS the Hub held a workshop on, "Neutron Techniques in Catalysis" in Nov 2014. There were a mix of delegates from industry and academia, with over fifty attendees. This helped to provide training and knowledge transfer to catalytic community who may previously not have used neutrons leading to a range of new users including Johnson Matthey, Academics from Southampton university and UCL. Following this workshop scientists from ISIS, The Catalysis Hub and Johnson Matthey proposed and led a special issue of PCCP edition, "Neutron scattering in catalysis and energy materials" |
| Collaborator Contribution | talks and co organsiation of papers, "Neutron Techniques in Catalysis" in Nov 2014 knowledge and interaction and the contribution of papers and newtork expertise for special issue of PCCP edition, "Neutron scattering in catalysis and energy materials" |
| Impact | special edition of PCCP Neutron scattering in catalysis and energy materials" and increasing use of ISIS beamtime for catalysis research and recognition of the importance of neutron techniques for Johnson matthey (industrial) especially in the region of automotive catalysis and Selective catalytic reduction |
| Start Year | 2015 |
| Description | Collaboration with ISIS neutron and muon source and Johnson Matthe and development of a special edition of PCCP |
| Organisation | Science and Technologies Facilities Council (STFC) |
| Department | ISIS Neutron and Muon Source |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | In association with ISIS the Hub held a workshop on, "Neutron Techniques in Catalysis" in Nov 2014. There were a mix of delegates from industry and academia, with over fifty attendees. This helped to provide training and knowledge transfer to catalytic community who may previously not have used neutrons leading to a range of new users including Johnson Matthey, Academics from Southampton university and UCL. Following this workshop scientists from ISIS, The Catalysis Hub and Johnson Matthey proposed and led a special issue of PCCP edition, "Neutron scattering in catalysis and energy materials" |
| Collaborator Contribution | talks and co organsiation of papers, "Neutron Techniques in Catalysis" in Nov 2014 knowledge and interaction and the contribution of papers and newtork expertise for special issue of PCCP edition, "Neutron scattering in catalysis and energy materials" |
| Impact | special edition of PCCP Neutron scattering in catalysis and energy materials" and increasing use of ISIS beamtime for catalysis research and recognition of the importance of neutron techniques for Johnson matthey (industrial) especially in the region of automotive catalysis and Selective catalytic reduction |
| Start Year | 2015 |
| Description | Collaboration with Johnson Matthey |
| Organisation | Johnson Matthey |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Private |
| PI Contribution | Johnson Matthey have placed a research fellow within the catalysis hub which has lead to a number of scientific advancements for both parties, , and events including the neutrons for catalysis workshop whihc was run between Johnson Matthey, the UK catalysis Hub and ISIS. Collaborations with the UK catalysis HUb ave lead to Johnson Matheys having increased interaction with Diamond and ISIS and CLF including developing new capability and discovering new techniques. It also lead to the appopintment of a IMPACT fellow from Johnson Matthey ~( Rachel O'malley) as part of the Impact acceleeration grant |
| Collaborator Contribution | JM have provided materials precursors and contrbuted to a number of projects intallectualy and finacially including awarding of several case Phd Projects |
| Impact | Chemistry, materials science |
| Start Year | 2014 |
| Description | Collaboration with Johnson Matthey |
| Organisation | Johnson Matthey |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Private |
| PI Contribution | The research team have approached Johnson Matthey in order to gain an industrial input, as part of an ongoing collaboration. |
| Collaborator Contribution | Contact between Johnson Matthey and the investigators of this project are helping to direct research towards areas of industrial interest. |
| Impact | This collaboration has lead to the inclusion of industrial expertise into our research planing. |
| Start Year | 2016 |
| Description | collaboration with Lennon Group From Glasgow university |
| Organisation | University of Glasgow |
| Department | Institute of Infection, Immunity and Inflammation |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | Hosting mentoring and consulting on the projects of two CASE Students from Glasgow who are seconded to Harwell with the Catalysis Hub. Providing access to Catalysis hub analysis and testing equipment |
| Collaborator Contribution | Aligning two case Students with the Hub research portfolio and ethos. |
| Impact | ongoing leading to two PHDs |
| Start Year | 2016 |
| Description | collaboration woth SFN |
| Organisation | Solar Fuels Network |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | discussions to match skills and research to maximise the potential for innovations in solar fuels and energy |
| Collaborator Contribution | discussions to match skills and research to maximise the potential for innovations in solar fuels and energy |
| Impact | meeting April 2014 to develop collaborations and proposals |
| Start Year | 2017 |
| Description | 18TH INTERNATIONAL ZEOLITE CONFERENCE 19-24TH JUNE, 2016 |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Arun Chitia gave a talk theoretical studies on the active site of Tin and cobalt substituted AFI |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2016 |
| Description | 2 talks atXAFS 2015 Karlsruhe, Germany, September 2015 - oral presentation |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Other audiences |
| Results and Impact | 2 taks on XAFS and XAFS/Drifts at the confernce |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2015 |
| Description | 2 talksand 2 posters at The science of Co2 capture and conversion , Varaderro Cuba 2015 |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Emma gibson (catalysis Hub), Scott rogers,Peter Wells (catalysis at Harwell), Alexander O'mallet and Pierre Senecal (related to impact project) gave talsk at the Science of CO2 conference in Cuba and spoke to the British ambassador in Cub as well as interacting with the international community |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2015 |
| Description | Bilateral meeting with South African Catalysis Newtworks |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Other audiences |
| Results and Impact | THe activity was a joint workshop between the UK catalysis Hub and The South Africa Catalysis network C*Change a number of scientist from both networks gave talks and designet to lead to collaboration there is currently a joint beamtime occuring at Diamond |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2016 |
| Description | Bloomsbury Festival |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Other academic audiences (collaborators, peers etc.) |
| Results and Impact | The Bloomsbury Festival is an annual, free celebration taking place across Bloomsbury. It was a programme of over 200 cultural events and activities taking place over 6 days (15-20th October 2013). CNIE presentation resulted in strong interests from participants and follow-up engagement activity afterwards. CNIE developed a good links with other research institutions, individual researches and professionals who have interest in area of Natural Inspired Engineering. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2013 |
| Description | EPR and Catalysis |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Other audiences |
| Results and Impact | The Catalysis Hub sponsored a one day (July 22, 2016) meeting devoted to EPR (or ESR) spectroscopy in catalysis research. The symposium focused on the broad range of applications for advanced EPR techniques in the study of catalytic systems, including heterogeneous, homogeneous and biological examples and more broadly for the investigation of advanced materials. The invited speakers covered topics including radicals and defects on metal oxide surfaces, earth abundant metals in homogeneous catalysis, spin-trapping techniques for the detection of free radical radicals in solution and applications of EPR for the investigation of complex materials. The symposium offered a non-technical introduction to EPR spectroscopy, exemplifying and demonstrating the power of the technique for studies in catalysis. The event was attended by over forty attendees, including numerous PhD students, with participants from Industry. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2016 |
| Description | Earth Abundant metal Catalysis conference |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Other audiences |
| Results and Impact | the first EAMCAT conference was hosted at the Harwell Campus jointly organised by the Catalysis Hub and Robin Bedford (Bristol) to interact with a new part of the catalysis Community and create engagement with industry |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2016 |
| Description | Harwell Open Day - catalysis Marquee |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an open day or visit at my research institution |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Regional |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | We hosted a catalysis Marquee with demonstrations and activities including a fuel cell car, bio waste reactor, gold catalysis photocatalysis and fuels |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2015 |
| URL | http://www.harwellcampus.com/open-days/ |
| Description | Lasers for Catalysis |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Lasers for Catalysis The UK Catalysis Hub in collaboration with the Central Laser Facility (STFC) arranged a one day workshop (May 2016) on the use of Laser techniques in for Catalysis. The workshop combined talks from Laser scientists and users. Prior knowledge was not needed and the workshop was aimed at increasing knowledge of laser techniques in the catalysis community. The event was attended by approximately fifty members of the Catalysis Hub and has already succeeded in promoting the use of laser technology in catalytic science. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2016 |
| Description | Neutrons in Catalysis |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Other audiences |
| Results and Impact | The UK Catalysis Hub, in association with the ISIS Neutron and Muon Facility, hosted and ran a two-day meeting about neutron scattering with an emphasis on catalytically relevant techniques. The meeting took place at the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory (RAL), and aimed to encourage use of the neutron facilities available both at ISIS and beyond. Speakers from ISIS and international neutron sources gave talks about a range of techniques used to probe catalyst systems, these were then complemented by successful examples and case studies by experienced users. Prior knowledge of neutron techniques was not needed, and current users were also encouraged to come and broaden their knowledge of associated techniques. Over fifty attendees from academic and industrial institutions across the UK attended the event. The workshop also included a lively poster session sponsored by Johnson Matthey and dinner to facilitate further discussions. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2015 |
| Description | Oral presentation and poster at Operando V, Deauville, France May 2015 - poster |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Other audiences |
| Results and Impact | E gibson )Catalysis Hub) and P Wells (Catalysis at Harwell) gave excellent talks on techniques developed by the hub and the centre at Harwell |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2015 |
| Description | Organiation and participation of a Royal society Discussion meeting Catalysis improving society |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Other audiences |
| Results and Impact | The successful operation of catalysis lies at the heart of the wellbeing of society and this meeting will address modern developments in designing improved catalysts especially in non traditional application areas such as water purification. We will bring together scientists across the breadth of catalysis (heterogeneous, homogeneous and bio) bridging the expertise of chemists, engineers, bio-scientists and theoreticians. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2015 |
| URL | https://royalsociety.org/science-events-and-lectures/2015/06/catalysis-dm/ |
| Description | Organisation of a Royal society satellite meeting |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Catalysis making the world a better place Scientific meeting Satellite meeting organised by Professor Graham Hutchings FRS, Professor Richard Catlow FRS, Professor Christopher Hardacre and Professor Matthew Davidson Catalysis image Event details This satellite meeting will address modern developments in designing improved catalysts for environmental benefit. We will bring together scientists across the breadth of catalysis (heterogeneous, homogeneous and bio) bridging the expertise of chemists, engineers, bio-scientists and theoretician |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2015 |
| URL | https://royalsociety.org/science-events-and-lectures/2015/06/catalysis-sm/ |
| Description | ROyal Society Summer Science Exhibition - Zoom for improvement 2017 |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Royal society summer sicience exhibition - Zoom for improvement Catalysis is everywhere - it makes chemical reactions more efficient and faster, so we can produce more products that we need for a cheaper price. The fuel in your car has been made from crude oil, using a series of catalytic reactions to allow the fuel to flow and burn correctly, delivering energy to your car. The gases produced are processed in the car's catalytic converter which uses catalysis to transform polluting carbon and nitrogen oxides that are the result of burning the fuel into environmentally benign compounds. Over 80% of the nitrogen in the proteins in your body has been derived from fertilizers produced using catalysis. We are working in the 'Green Chemistry' research field, working to realise a sustainable future for the world. We want to understand catalysis and the materials we use to produce everyday goods and energy - and to produce fuels and other chemicals using renewable resources from plant material. We want to move to a more sustainable economy where the things we use and the energy we need is produced in a renewable way. Because catalysis is a molecule by molecule process, we need to understand how it works and study materials at the level of individual atoms using very powerful 'electron microscopes'. We also use very high energy light to look at catalysts at this scale while they are working, to understand and improve catalyst materials. We are recreating industrial conditions in the lab and are working out what makes a good or bad catalyst. We have discovered that the most promising catalysts are solids containing molecules called nanoparticles. Our research is revealing more about catalysis and how it can help us move towards a more sustainable future |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2017 |
| URL | https://royalsociety.org/science-events-and-lectures/2017/summer-science-exhibition/exhibits/zoom-fo... |
| Description | Spotlight on drifts |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A magazine, newsletter or online publication |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
| Results and Impact | this is an informative piece and lead to more use of the machine |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
| URL | https://www.ses.ac.uk/2017/09/27/drifts-spectrometer/ |
| Description | UK Catalysis Hub Conferences |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Other audiences |
| Results and Impact | The Catalysis Hub runs two conferences per year for members of the Hub and for the wider catalysis community. These conferences showcase catalysis research focusing on the work of the Hub. Speakers include researchers from the Catalysis Hub and internationally renowned speakers and industrialists who cover a range of topics including biocatalysis, homogeneuos and heterogeneous catalysis, reaction engineering and industrial catalysis. In addition, poster sessions highlights the projects across the Hub and provide a lively forum for discussion and dissemination of catalytic science. One aim of the UK Catalysis Hub is to develop the next generation of researchers. To facilitate this aim, the UK Catalysis Hub arranges an annual summer conference focusing on providing a forum for the research associates to present their work and interact. Attendance at the conferences is consistently over 100 people. Dinner speakers have included EPSRC, international academics and industrialists |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2013,2014,2015,2016,2017 |
| Description | UK Catalysis Hub LAunch |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | the launch of the second phase of the UK Catalysis Hub to be held at the Royal Society on 15th February; phase 2 of the Hub is supported by a £16M investment from EPSRC, following a highly successful initial phase The Hub involves over 40 UK research groups throughout the UK working on collaborative programmes in key areas of catalytic science and with a physical centre on the Harwell Science and Innovation Campus. As catalysis is of key importance to the UK and global economy there is also strong and growing industrial involvement with the work of the Hub. The launch event will highlight both the achievements of the Hub and the wider significance and importance of catalytic science, while looking forward to the future opportunities and challenges. It will include presentations from both academic and industrial members of the Hub community and from key stakeholders. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| Description | Webinar for IChemE Catalysis Special Interest Group |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Other academic audiences (collaborators, peers etc.) |
| Results and Impact | The webinar discussed how we can learn lessons from nature (leaves, lungs and chaperonins) to design andtree synthesise more efficient porous catalysts, not only at the nm-scale but also up to macroscopic length scales relevant to practical applications. The nature-inspired catalyst designs implement fundamental mechanisms underlying desirable features in natural systems, like scalability, efficiency and robustness. It generated an interest from other academics. Some of the participants expressed an interest in collaborative research in the future. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2013 |
| URL | http://www.icheme.org/communities/special-interest-groups/catalysis/events/2013/a%20nature-inspired%... |
| Description | Working at the Bio-Chemo Interface |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Other audiences |
| Results and Impact | The UK Catalysis Hub organised an event jointly sponsored by the EPSRC Catalysis Hub and BBSRC BIOCATNET to stimulate and encourage collaborations at the interface of hetero-/homogeneous catalysis and biocatalysts. This event was attended by over eighty people from both traditional chemo catalysis and the biocatalysts community. Talks covered a wide range of topics including Hydrogen Activation, Biorefining, Biofuels, Synthesis, Modelling artificial enzymes, Upstream and Downstream Processing and Miniaturisation. The event was attended by 60 sciences from across both the Bio and Chemical catalysis community and from Industry and academia. Spirited discussions at the networking opportunities lead to a number of the proposals submitted to the bio transformations theme |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2016 |