Disclosed is a method of manufacturing a ternary catalyst for an oxygen reduction reaction. The method may include constructing a database including catalytic activity of oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) of PtFeCu nanoparticles using machine-learning-based neural network potential (NNP), determining thermodynamically stable PtFeCu nanoparticles through Monte Carlo calculation, and selecting a type of the PtFeCu nanoparticles by analyzing a structure of PtFeCu nanoparticles.

In a method of manufacturing a bimetallic catalyst for reductively decomposing nitrate nitrogen, a powder including a trivalent iron oxide, a powder including a trivalent iron oxyhydroxide powder or a combination thereof is mixed in an aqueous solution. A copper precursor and a palladium precursor are mixed in the aqueous solution to form a precursor mixture. The precursor mixture is dried. The dried precursor mixture is fired at a temperature from about 300° C. to about 450° C. to form a fired product. The fired product is reduced by a reducing agent. A hydrochloric acid solution is mixed in the aqueous solution, or mixed with the copper precursor or the palladium precursor.

Disclosed is a process for the preparation of cis-1,1,1,4,4,4-hexafluoro-2-butene comprising contacting 1,1,1-trifluorotrichloroethane with hydrogen in the presence of a catalyst comprising ruthenium to produce a product mixture comprising 1316mxx, recovering said 1316mxx as a mixture of Z- and E-isomers, contacting said 1316mxx with hydrogen, in the presence of a catalyst selected from the group consisting of copper on carbon, nickel on carbon, copper and nickel on carbon and copper and palladium on carbon, to produce a second product mixture, comprising E- or Z-CFC-1326mxz, and subjecting said second product mixture to a separation step to provide E- or Z-1326mxz. The E- or Z-1326mxz can be dehydrochlorinated in an aqueous basic solution with an alkali metal hydroxide in the presence of a phase transfer catalyst to produce hexafluoro-2-butyne, which can then be selectively hydrogenated to produce Z-1,1,1,4,4,4-hexafluoro-2-butene using either Lindlar's catalyst, or a palladium catalyst further comprising a lantanide element or silver.

A hydrogen permeable membrane device is provided that includes a porous ceramic layer having a material that includes zirconia, Yttria-stabilized zirconia (YSZ), γ/Al.sub.2O.sub.3, and/or YSZ— γ/Al.sub.2O.sub.3, and a porous Pd film or porous Pd-alloy film deposited on the a mesoporous ceramic layer.

A copper-palladium-loaded mesoporous silicon carbide-based catalyst, a preparation method, and an application thereof are provided. First, a mesoporous silicon carbide material is prepared by using mesoporous silica as a hard template; subsequently, the mesoporous silicon carbide material is mixed with a copper-palladium precursor mixed solution, and dried after the solvent is completely volatilized. The dried powder is successively subjected to calcination with N.sub.2 and reduction with H.sub.2 to finally obtain the copper-palladium-loaded mesoporous silicon carbide-based catalyst. The catalyst is made into an electrode, and the nitrate in water body is catalytically reduced by electrochemical method. The preparation method of the catalyst of the present invention is simple. The catalyst can realize high-efficiency catalytic denitrification at a low metal loading amount, with high selectivity of nitrogen. Moreover, the catalyst has the advantages of high activity, good stability, wide application range and low cost.

A catalyst comprising a microporous crystalline metallosilicate having a Constraint Index of 12, or 10, or 8, or 6 or less, a binder, a Group 1 alkali metal or a compound thereof and/or a Group 2 alkaline earth metal or a compound thereof, a Group 10 metal or a compound thereof, and, optionally, a Group 11 metal or a compound thereof; wherein the catalyst is calcined in a first calcining step before the addition of the Group 10 metal or compound thereof and optionally the Group 11 metal or compound thereof; and wherein the first calcining step includes heating the catalyst to first temperatures of greater than 500° C.; and wherein the catalyst is calcined in a second calcining step after the addition of the Group 10 metal or compound thereof and optionally the Group 11 metal or compound thereof wherein the second calcining step includes heating the catalyst to temperatures of greater than 400° C.

A group of reductive 2D materials (R2D) with extended reactive vacancies and a method for making the R2D with extended reactive vacancies are provided, especially the example of the reductive boron nitride (RBN). To create defects such as vacancies, boron nitride (BN) powders are milled at cryogenic temperatures. Vacancies are produced by milling, and the vacancies can be used to reduce various metal nanostructures on RBN. Due to the thermal stability of the RBN and the enhanced catalytic performance of metal nanostructures, RBN-metals can be used for different catalysts, including electrochemical catalysts and high temperature catalysts.

Systems and methods of synthesizing nanoparticles on substrates using rapid, high temperature thermal shock. A method involves depositing micro-sized particles or salt precursors on a substrate, and applying a rapid, high temperature thermal shock to the micro-sized particles or the salt precursors to become nanoparticles on the substrate. A system may include a rotatable member that receives a roll of a substrate sheet having micro-sized particles or salt precursors; a motor that rotates the rotatable member so as to unroll the substrate; and a thermal energy source that applies a short, high temperature thermal shock to the substrate. The nanoparticles may be metallic, ceramic, inorganic, semiconductor, or compound nanoparticles. The substrate may be a carbon-based substrate, a conducting substrate, or a non-conducting substrate. The high temperature thermal shock process may be enabled by electrical Joule heating, microwave heating, thermal radiative heating, plasma heating, or laser heating.

A method for producing plasmonic nanomaterials that are catalytically or photocatalytically active by fabricating plasmonic nanostructures on substrates using electrodeposition into a nano-template structure and forming a plurality of nanorods in an array, wherein the nanorods are made from materials chosen from the group consisting of materials that are plasmonic and/or catalytic, and materials that are catalytically activated by depositing pure elemental metals, alloys, or alternating layers of different metals or alloys, and producing catalytic plasmonic nanomaterials. Catalytic plasmonic nanomaterials made from the above method. An optical reactor device that utilizes catalytic nanomaterials for photocatalytic synthesis of methanol or ammonia. A method of photocatalytic synthesis of methanol and ammonia by using catalytic plasmonic nanomaterial to convert CO.sub.2 and H.sub.2 to methanol and N.sub.2 and H.sub.2 to ammonia using optical power. A hybrid plasma-plasmonic reactor for the utilization of CO.sub.2 and CH.sub.4 to produce methanol, ethylene, and acetic acid.

A method of and apparatus for desalinating sea water using geothermal energy. A low voltage (such as less than 0.9V) is applied to a hydrogen generating catalysts to generate hydrogen and oxygen, wherein geothermal heat is used as a heat source. The hydrogen and oxygen are used to drive a gas turbine to generate electricity. The oxygen and hydrogen are transported away and combusted to generate heat and pure water, as such salt are separated from the pure water.