Catalytic deoxygenation is valuable in the production of liquid fuels from biomass due to its potential to reduce fossil fuel dependence.  Traditional catalysts are synthesized using incipient wetness techniques where size and shape tuning are difficult.   Wet chemical reduction methods allow for control of size and shape, thereby enhancing performance for a given catalytic process.  Previously reported PtRe catalysts have been shown to perform dehydration/hydrogenation reactions of polyols, producing monofunctional alkanes with lower oxygen content.  We hypothesize that by tuning shape and size of PtRe nanoparticles, we can optimize catalyst performance.  Here, we show adaptation of a well-known wet chemical reduction method developed for producing Pt nanoparticles by using combined Pt and Re precursors to form PtRe nanoclusters.  These novel materials have shown promising improvements in performance of polyol deoxygenation over previously reported PtRe materials.  By studying relationships between structure and activity, we can design novel materials with enhanced properties.

Controlled growth of PtRe nanocrystals for sorbitol dehydration/hydrogenation catalysts

245th National Meeting (2013)

The official archive and repository for all ACS Meetings & Expositions abstracts and select posters or presentations.