Browsing by Subject "nanomaterials"

Plasmonic catalysis utilises light energy to drive chemical reactions. Compared to conventional catalytic processes, which are run by high temperatures and pressures, light-driven processes can lower energy consumption and increase selectivity. Conventional plasmonic nanoparticles (Ag, Au) are relatively scarce and expensive, and therefore the use of materials with earth-abundant elements in plasmonic catalysis is widely pursued. Despite their good optical properties, plasmonic nanoparticles are often unsuitable catalysts. Hybrid catalysts, structures consisting of a light-harvesting plasmonic part and a catalytical centre of different material, have emerged as an opportunity to address these challenges and obtain desired properties. This thesis consists of two parts: In the first part, properties of plasmonic materials are described, and previous studies of hybrid catalysts with earth-abundant plasmonic materials are reviewed. Experimental work on plasmonic-catalytic nanohybrids, with TiN as the plasmonic part and Pd as the catalytic entity, is described in the second part. In this context, a Pd/TiN (Pd nanoparticles supported into TiN) catalyst was synthesised, characterised and applied to test catalytical reactions. Contrary to the hypothesis, light-induced rate enhancement was not observed in our current catalytical studies. These results call for further optimisation of synthesis and reaction conditions to prepare an earth-abundant, light-active catalyst.