The Daily Bulletin

Please join the Chemistry and Physics departments for the seminar “Toward Rational Synthesis of Catalysts for Low Temperature Emissions Control,” presented by Eleni A. Kyriakidou, assistant professor in the Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering at the University at Buffalo, on Thursday, October 14, from 12:15 to 1:30 p.m. in Science and Mathematics Complex 170.

Abstract
Vehicle aftertreatment systems, including diesel oxidation catalysts (DOCs) and three-way catalysts (TWCs), have been successful in reducing diesel/gasoline vehicle emissions (CO, NOx, and hydrocarbons) in the past decades. However, with the continued improvements in engine efficiency (lower emission temperatures) and more stringent emission regulations, future aftertreatment systems require an improved activity at low emission temperatures and durability in a prolonged lifetime. Rational catalyst design is essential to tackle those challenges. Metal oxide supports such as ZrO2 and CeO2 are widely used in the automotive industry to promote catalytic activity. However, both ZrO2 and CeO2 suffer from severe deactivation due to their grain growth at elevated temperatures. Herein, ZrO2 is incorporated on SiO2and CeO2spheres forming a ZrO2 layer with varying thickness and CeO2 nanocrystals aredeposited onto penta-site rich Al2O3 nanosheets. Novel structured DOCs, TWCs catalysts,bimetallic PdPt/SiO2@Zr, Pt/CeO2@ZrO2, and Pt/CeO2-Al2O3 nanosheet catalysts are developed and their catalytic performance (low-temperature activity and hydrothermal stability) compared to state-of-the-art catalysts is explored. The impact of the catalyst support/active metal compositions, local catalyst structure designs, aging conditions on low-temperature oxidation activity and hydrothermal stability will be discussed.