Heterogenous Catalysis and Surface Science – (Ph.D.)

This research group is the biggest in the country in these fields, consisting of 9 members of academic staff and 50 researchers in total. The research field encompasses catalysis by solid materials, the synthesis of nanomaterials, and their characterisation using a wide range of modern and novel techniques. Many new materials are discovered and some are patented. The group is closely involved with the newly founded Cardiff Catalysis Institute.

The group works closely with industry and has ties to a number of companies, such as BP, BASF, Sasol, Johnson Matthey and Toyota. The focus of the work is at the frontiers of nanomaterials and other properties. For example, several researchers are engaged in synthesising ‘nanogold’ because gold in such finely divided form is catalytically reactive. Another example is the fabrication of very small particles of Pd onto titania crystal surfaces, where it has been shown that the surface is not Pd at all, but an alloy of Pd and Ti.

Nanoscience, the fabrication of nanomaterials, imaging and analysis at very high resolution, is central to the work of the group. Much of the work relates to enhancing our environment. The Au catalysts mentioned above are used to remove poisonous CO from the environment at room temperature. New routes to speciality chemicals are being discovered, which remove by-products and therefore reduce the burden on the environment in terms of disposal. Work goes on relating to fuel cells, which have the potential to produce clean power for our cars by using hydrogen, producing only water in the exhaust. There are many other examples of work going on in this field.

Available research Areas:
* Catalysis
* Surface Science
* Nanomaterials
* Nanofabrication
* Analytical Science