A team of energy researchers led by the University of Minnesota Twin Cities has invented a groundbreaking device that electronically converts one metal into behaving like another to use as a catalyst for speeding chemical reactions. The fabricated device, called a "catalytic condenser," is the first to demonstrate that alternative materials that are electronically modified to provide new properties can yield faster, more efficient chemical processing.
The invention opens the door for new catalytic technologies using non-precious metal catalysts for important applications such as storing renewable energy, making renewable fuels, and manufacturing sustainable materials.
The research is published online in JACS Au, the leading open access journal of the American Chemical Society, where it was selected as an Editor's Choice publication. The team is also working with the University of Minnesota Office of Technology Commercialization and has a provisional patent on the device.
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