Chemical and Thermal Sintering of Supported Metals with Emphasis on Cobalt Catalysts During Fischer-Tropsch Synthesis.

This comprehensive critical review combines, for the first time, recent advances in nanoscale surface chemistry, surface science, DFT, adsorption calorimetry, and in situ XRD and TEM to provide new insights into catalyst sintering. This work provides qualitative and quantitative estimates of the extent and rate of sintering as functions of nanocrystal (NC) size, temperature, and atmosphere. This review is unique in that besides summarizing important, useful data from previous studies, it also advances the field through addition of (i) improved or new models, (ii) new data summarized in original tables and figures, and (iii) new fundamental perspectives into sintering of supported metals and particularly of chemical sintering of supported Co during Fischer-Tropsch synthesis.

One-step conversion of to its using salts for GC-MSdetection of bacterial endospores.

Methyl sulfate (MeSO4-) salts were explored as thermochemolysis-methylation (TCM) reagents for gas chromatographic (GC) analysis of dipicolinic acid (DPA) as its dimethyl ester (Me2DPA) from bacterial endospores. The reaction was carried out under non-pyrolytic conditions by inserting a small coiled wire filament coated with the sample and reagents directly inside a GC injection port at 290 °C. Above 10 : 1 methyl donor/DPA ratios, alkali metal salts of MeSO4- effected 80-90% conversion of DPA to Me2DPA, which was 10-20 times more active than the same amount of tetramethylammonium hydroxide (TMA-OH) at this temperature.

Sample introduction in gas chromatography using a coiled wire filament.

A simple device for field sampling and concentration of analytes for subsequent introduction into an injection port for gas chromatographic (GC) analysis has been developed. It consists of a tiny, coiled platinum wire filament (CWF) that is attached to a retractable plunger wire, which fits inside a syringe needle housing. Sampling is accomplished by dipping the end of the CWF in a liquid sample, which is drawn into the wire coil by capillary action, and introducing it into the injection port either before or after allowing the solvent to evaporate.

Temperature-programmed hydrogenation (TPH) and in situ Mössbauer spectroscopy studies of carbonaceous species on silica-supported iron Fischer-Tropsch catalysts.

Carbonaceous surface species and bulk iron carbides formed under realistic Fischer-Tropsch synthesis (FTS) conditions on moderately dispersed, active silica-supported iron catalysts (Fe/SiO2, FePt/SiO2, and FePtK/SiO2) were characterized. Bulk iron phase compositions were determined by Mössbauer spectroscopy and phase transformations of carbonaceous species during pretreatment with CO, H2, or H2/CO and following reaction were characterized using temperature-programmed hydrogenation (TPH). Isothermal transient rates of FTS were also measured for catalysts after different pretreatments.