Invited Speakers to the 2008 Spring Symposium

CCP - 9 April 2008

The Catalysis Club of Philadelphia Spring Symposium will be held on May 22, 2008, at Clayton Hall, University of Delaware. The theme of the symposium will be Environmental Catalysis. The program and registration form is available in our web site at catalysisclubphilly.org/symp08.php. Deadline for early registration is May 8, 2008. The invited speakers are:

  • Dr. Bob Farrauto, BASF/Columbia University
  • Prof. Ray Gorte, University of Pennsylvania
  • Prof. Harold Kung, Northwestern University
  • Dr. Chuck Peden, PNNL
  • Prof. Fabio Ribeiro, Purdue University
  • Prof. Chunshan Song, Pennsylvania State University
  • Prof. Dion Vlachos, University of Delaware
  • Dr. Andy Walker, Johnson Matthey

Travel Grants for Participation in the 14th ICC

NACS - 29 April 2008

The North American Catalysis Society, NACS, will disperse funding from the National Science Foundation and the Department of Energy to support participation by US catalytic scientist and engineers in the 14th International Congress on Catalysis, 14th ICC, to be held in Seoul, Korea from 13-18 July 2008. We hope to support the air travel by US carriers for at least two dozen participants.

Applications will be chosen based on several criteria:

  • Young US faculty and/or members of underrepresented or minority participants active in catalysis research.
  • Chosen presenters of oral or poster presentations at the 14th ICC.
  • Participants as session chairs or other ICC or NACS proceedings in Seoul.

Please apply to Wm. Curtis Conner (Foreign Secretary of NACS) before 15 May 2008 by email at wconner@ecs.umass.edu, or by Fax to 413-545-0316 or by postal mail to:

Wm. Curtis Conner
Foreign Secretary of NACS
Dept. Chem. Engineering
University of Massachusetts
Amherst, MA 01003

Your one page application should document your qualifications as specified in the criteria, 1-3, above and include:

  • Your position, including years in present position and activity in catalysis research in the last four years (publications, grants and presentations in catalysis).
  • Your accepted participation in the 14th ICC: oral presentations and/or poster(s).
  • Other participation such as session chair.
  • Any other factors the independent panel should consider.

The Independent panel will inform the applicants of their travel grants before 1 June 2008.

Again, young faculty, participating students and under represented groups are encouraged to apply and will be considered positively! However, these grants are restricted primarily to travel expenses by US carrier. Registration and hotel costs are not generally to be covered by these grants (other specified funds are required).

Elected Officers for the 2008-2009 Season

CCP - 30 April 2008

Elections for the 2008-2009 officers were held on Thursday, April 24, 2008. The elected officers are: Michael Smith, Chair-Elect (Villanova University); Steve Harries,Treasurer (LyondellBasell Industries); Joe Fedeyko, Director (Johnson Matthey); Haiming Liu, Director (Arkema Inc.); and Elizabeth Ross-Medgaarden, Director (LyondellBasell Industries). Congratulations!

DOE Catalysis for Energy Report Defines Future Research Directions

CCP - 30 April 2008

A recently published report, Basic Research Needs: Catalysis for Energy, identifies research opportunities for catalysis to help meet the nation’s energy needs, assesses the current state of catalysis science and technology, and recommends fundamental research directions to meet the goals described in the report. The report is based on a workshop held in August, 2007, co-chaired by Alexis Bell of the University of California at Berkeley, Bruce Gates of the University of California at Davis, and Douglas Ray of the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory.

The report concluded that, on the basis of current trends, the United States must seriously reassess its energy future. The urgent need for fuels in an era of declining resources and pressing environmental concerns demands a resurgence in catalysis science, requiring a massive commitment of programmatic leadership and improved experimental and theoretical methods to make it possible to follow, in real time, catalytic reactions on an atomic scale on surfaces that are nonuniform and laden with large molecules undergoing complex competing processes. Ultimately, a goal should be development of sustainable technologies for converting carbon dioxide and water into fuel feedstocks. Until that future state is reached, new understanding of more traditional catalyst form and function can ease the way to a more sustainable energy future.

Details are available in the full 222-page report, which is accessible on line at www.sc.doe.gov/bes/reports/files/CAT_rpt.pdf.

Breaking the Chemical and Engineering Barriers to Lignocellulosic Biofuels

CCP - 30 April 2008

Workshop Chair: George W. Huber, University of Massachusetts-Amherst

Sponsors: National Science Foundation: Chemical, Bioengineering, Environmental and Transport Systems, John Regalbuto;
Department of Energy: Office of the Biomass, Paul Grabowski;
American Chemical Society-Green Chemistry Institute

A recent roadmap outlines the vital importance of catalysts for cellulosic biofuels. This roadmap is available electronically at www.ecs.umass.edu/biofuels and is the result of a 2 day workshop sponsored by the National Science Foundation and Department of Energy. This workshop brought together more than 70 participants from acadamia, industry and government agencies to provide a unified document on how cellulosic biofuels can become a practical reality. The roadmap articulates the central role of chemistry, chemical catalysis, thermal processing, and engineering in the conversion of lignocellulosic biomass into liquid transportation fuels including green gasoline, green diesel and green jet fuel.

Six thrust areas are discussed in the roadmap including:

  • Selective Thermal Processing of Lignocellulosic Biomass
  • Utilization of Petroleum Refining Technologies for Biofuel Production
  • Aqueous-phase Catalytic Processing of Sugars and Bio-oils
  • Catalytic Conversion of Syn-gas
  • Process Engineering and Design
  • Cross Cutting 21st Century Science, Technology, and Infrastructure for a New Generation of Biofuel Research

This workshop builds on the success of four previous NSF and DOE workshops. The previous NSF workshops include: “Catalysis for Biorenewables Conversion (www.egr.msu.edu/apps/nsfworkshop)” and “Design of Catalyst Systems for Biorenewables (www3.cbe.iastate.edu/nsfbioren/)”. The previous DOE workshops include: “Breaking the Biological Barriers to Cellulosic Ethanol (genomicsgtl.energy.gov/biofuels/b2bworkshop.shtml)” and “Thermochemical Conversion of Biomass (www.thermochem.biomass.govtools.us/)”.

For cellulosic biofuels to realize their full potential it is vital to overcome the chemical and engineering barriers. Recent advances in theoretical chemistry combined with new in-situ catalyst characterization methods allow us to understand chemistry at a fundamentally new level. Combining fundamental chemical understanding with new methods to synthesize nanostructured catalytic materials, the ability to design and simulate complicated reaction networks, and the ability to perform conceptual design and optimization problems will allow us to engineer efficient and economical processes for biofuel production.

Jingguang G. Chen is the winner of the 2008 Award for Excellence in Catalysis

NYCS - 6 April 2008

Jingguang G. Chen, LeClaire Professor of Chemical Engineering and the director of University of Delaware’s Center for Catalytic Science and Technology, has won the 2008 Award for Excellence in Catalysis presented by the Catalysis Society of Metropolitan New York.

Chen is being recognized for his strong contributions to the field of catalysis. In particular, his work to understand the physical and chemical properties of bimetallic and metal carbide surfaces has inspired new application to catalytic and fuel cell processes. Chen is also well known for his expertise in applying advanced techniques such as NEXAFS to identify and characterize reactive species in real world catalysts.

Chen is the cofounder and the principal investigator of the Synchrotron Catalysis Consortium (SCC) at the National Synchrotron Light Source, Brookhaven National Laboratory. He is a member of the board of directors of the North American Catalysis Society and also serves as the catalysis secretary-general of the American Chemical Society.

The Excellence in Catalysis Award lecture will take place in May 21st where Chen will also receive a plaque and cash award. For more details, visit www.nycsweb.org.