A method for producing a cluster-supporting catalyst, the cluster-supporting catalyst including porous carrier particles that has acid sites, and catalyst metal clusters supported within the pores of the porous carrier particles, includes the following steps: providing a dispersion liquid containing a dispersion medium and the porous carrier particles dispersed in the dispersion medium; and in the dispersion liquid, forming catalyst metal clusters having a positive charge, and supporting the catalyst metal clusters on the acid sites within the pores of the porous carrier particles through an electrostatic interaction.

A photocatalytic layer arrangement includes a carrier substrate on which a chromium layer with a defined nitrogen content is deposited. A titanium oxide layer having the formula TiO.sub.x (x=2-4) is grown on the chromium layer, and the anatase phase of the titanium oxide layer with respect to the rutile phase of the titanium oxide layer has a percentage in the range of 30%-90%.

A device and method for producing a thin-film catalyst are provided. The device includes a vacuum chamber, a plurality of evaporators, a plurality of gas guide pipes, an ion generator, and a control unit. The plurality of evaporators are configured to evaporate at least one film material. The plurality of gas guide pipes are configured to introduce a reactive gas. The ion generator is configured to ionize the reactive gas and the evaporated film material. The control unit is configured to control the vacuum chamber to be vacuumed, control at least two evaporators of the plurality of evaporators to be simultaneously started, control the plurality of gas guide pipes to introduce the reactive gas, and control an ion source current of the ion generator to be adjusted, such that the evaporated film material reacts with the reactive gas to form a catalytic film layer on a surface of a substrate.

Catalysts and processing useful in the dry reforming of methane (DRM) are provided. Catalyst are composed of nickel (Ni) nanoparticles supported on a hollow fiber substrate, such as an -Al.sub.2O.sub.3 hollow fiber. The nickel (Ni) nanoparticles can be deposited onto the hollow fiber substrate support by atomic layer deposition. If desired, one or more layers of an overcoat of a promoter can be applied to increase catalyst performance such as in the reforming of methane.

If a conductive mayenite compound having a large specific surface area is obtained, the usefulness thereof in respective applications is remarkably increased. A conductive mayenite compound powder having a conduction electron density of 10.sup.15 cm.sup.?3 or more and a specific surface area of 5 m.sup.2g.sup.?1 or more is produced by: the following steps: (1) forming a precursor powder by subjecting a mixture of a starting material powder and water to a hydrothermal treatment; (2) forming a mayenite compound powder by heating and dehydrating the precursor powder; (3) forming an activated mayenite compound powder by heating the compound powder in an inert gas atmosphere or in a vacuum; and (4) injecting electrons into the mayenite compound through a reduction treatment by mixing the activated mayenite compound powder with a reducing agent.

A method of forming a self-cleaning film system includes depositing a photocatalytic material onto a substrate to form a first layer. The method also includes disposing a photoresist onto the first layer and then exposing the photoresist to light so that the photoresist has a developed portion and an undeveloped portion. The method includes removing the undeveloped portion so that the developed portion protrudes from the first layer. After removing, the method includes depositing a perfluorocarbon siloxane polymer onto the first layer to surround and contact the developed portion. After depositing the perfluorocarbon siloxane polymer, the method includes removing the developed portion to thereby form the self-cleaning film system.

A catalytically active material is provided. The material includes a mixed oxide having a first metal selected from group 4 of the periodic table of elements and/or a second metal, and at least one further metal selected from group 11 of the periodic table of elements, wherein the macroscopic composition of the material given by the chemical formula corresponds to the composition of the material at a molecular level. A coating made of such a material is also provide, as is an article having such a coating, and a method for producing such a material.

A photocatalyst electrode decomposes water with light to generate gas. The photocatalyst electrode has a laminate including a substrate, a conductive layer provided on a surface of the substrate, and a photocatalyst layer provided on a surface of the conductive layer, and a first co-catalyst electrically connected to the photocatalyst layer. The light is incident from the surface side of the photocatalyst layer of the laminate, and in a case where a region where the light is incident on the surface of the photocatalyst layer and above the surface is defined as a first region and the region other than the first region is defined as a second region, the first co-catalyst is provided at least in the second region. The first co-catalyst and the photocatalyst layer are electrically connected to each other by at least one of a transparent conductive layer provided on the surface of the photocatalyst layer or a wiring line.

Single walled carbon nanotubes can be synthesized and production efficiency of carbon nanotubes can be enhanced by a method including a supplying step (S11) in which particulate carriers are supplied into a drum, a sputtering step (S12) for supporting a catalyst, in which sputtering is performed while this drum 10 is rotated around the axis and is swung so that one end portion and the other end portion in the axial direction of the drum 10 are relatively vertically switched, and a recovering step (S13) in which the particulate carriers are recovered by inclining the drum to discharge the particulate carriers from the drum.

A method of treating a powder (P) made from cerium oxide using an ion beam (F) in which: the powder is stirred once or a plurality of times; the ions of the ion beam are selected from the ions of the elements of the list consisting of helium (He), boron (B), carbon (C), nitrogen (N), oxygen (O), neon (Ne), argon (Ar), krypton (Kr), xenon (Xe)the acceleration voltage of the ions of the beam is between 10 kV and 1000 kV; the treatment temperature of the powder (P) is less than or equal to Tf/3; the ion dose per mass unit of powder to be treated is chosen from a range of between 1016 ions/g and 1022 ions/cm2 so as to lower the reduction temperature of the powder made from cerium oxide (P).