Stabilization mechanism of catalytically active metal nanoparticles on carbon supports

One of the most important tasks of a catalyst support is to anchor metal nanoparticles and thus stabilize the catalyst against
sintering. Previously we found hints that during catalyst reduction also carbothermal metal reduction took place on defect-rich, easy-tooxidize
carbon surfaces, which was not observed on defect-free carbon supports. In this proposal we want to establish a general mechanism
of metal nanoparticle anchoring on carbon supports by studying the reduction and carbothermal reduction of a variety of catalytically
important metal nanoparticles (Fe, Ni, Co) on defect-rich and defect-free carbon supports. In situ XAS/XRD experiments will provide
information on metal phase changes, while online off-gas analysis will detect carbon gasification from carbothermal metal reduction. Carbon
nanostructures will be identified that provide superior long-term stability to carbon-supported catalysts.