An object of the present invention is to provide a method for selectively producing a hydroxycarboxylic acid ester, the method including reducing a dicarboxylic acid monoester by means of a heterogeneous reaction. According to a method for producing a hydroxycarboxylic acid ester in an embodiment of the present invention, a hydroxycarboxylic acid ester represented by Formula (2) is produced by reducing a substrate dicarboxylic acid monoester represented by Formula (1) in the presence of a catalyst.

The catalyst comprises: metal species including M.sub.1 and M.sub.2; and a support supporting the metal species, and wherein M.sub.1 is rhodium, platinum, ruthenium, iridium or palladium; M.sub.2 is tin, vanadium, molybdenum, tungsten or rhenium; and the support is hydroxyapatite, fluorapatite, or hydrotalcite.

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The present invention provides a method for selectively producing an alcohol by efficiently hydrogenating a lactone. The present invention is a method for producing an alcohol, the method including hydrogenating a substrate lactone represented by Formula (1), in the presence of a catalyst described below, to produce an alcohol that is represented by Formula (2).

In the formulae, R represents a divalent hydrocarbon group which may have a hydroxyl group.

The catalyst comprises: metal species including M.sub.1 and M.sub.2; and a support supporting the metal species, and wherein M.sub.1 is rhodium, platinum, ruthenium, iridium, or palladium; M.sub.2 is tin, vanadium, molybdenum, tungsten, or rhenium; and the support is hydroxyapatite, fluorapatite, hydrotalcite, or ZrO.sub.2.

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A member for a metal oxide nanofiber based gas sensor can include a metal nanoparticle catalyst and can be formed to be functionalized by binding the metal nanoparticle catalyst and an alkali or alkaline earth metal through electrospinning and heat treatment processes. The member can detect a trace amount of a gas with high selectivity and ultra-high sensitivity by uniformly binding the alkali or alkaline earth metal and the metal nanoparticle catalyst through electrospinning and high-temperature heat treatment.

Present invention relates to a process for production of isomerization catalyst, containing a base of zirconia, a binder based on alumina and/or silica at-least one component of Group VI of the periodic table in the form of their oxyanions, a hydrogenation/dehydrogenation component loaded on the base, at least one metal selected from the group consisting of Pt, Pd, Sn, Re or mixtures thereof, and an peptization agent, wherein the peptizing agent is an organic acid and polymers, which improve the physicochemical properties of the isomerization catalyst for the production of C4-C12 paraffin's.

Provided is a photocatalyst layer that improves the photocatalytic performance while suppressing detachment of photocatalyst particles. The photocatalyst layer has a front surface and a rear surface on the opposite side of the front surface. The photocatalyst layer includes photocatalyst particles and a binder. The photocatalyst layer has a first region containing the photocatalyst particles and a second region containing the binder and not containing the photocatalyst particles. The photocatalyst particles include tungsten oxide particles. The photocatalyst particles have contact points being in contact with the rear surface. The ratio of the thickness of the second region to the number-average secondary particle diameter of the photocatalyst particles is 0.20 or more and 0.80 or less.

The present disclosure provides a catalyst represented by Formula (I)

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wherein the moiety X[(RO.sub.a)(QO.sub.b)] and the moiety Z are mechanically mixed; wherein the weight percentage of the moiety Z is about 1% to about 99% of the total weight of the catalyst. Furthermore, the present disclosure provides a tunable, low-temperature, energy-efficient process for hydrocracking plastics to form a fuel, a lubricant, or a mixture thereof.

Proposed inventions are a recipe of denitrification-oxidation complex catalyst containing an SCR catalyst and an oxidation catalyst to simultaneously remove nitrogen oxides, carbon monoxide, hydrocarbons, and ammonia, a manufacturing method thereof, an exhaust gas treatment method using the denitrification-oxidation complex catalyst, and an SCR denitrification system including the denitrification-oxidation complex catalyst. The denitrification-oxidation complex catalyst simultaneously removes nitrogen oxides, carbon monoxide, hydrocarbons, and ammonia and exhibits an increased catalytic effect compared to the cases where the denitrification catalyst used alone and the denitrification and the oxidation catalyst ratios are and not properly balanced. When the denitrification-oxidation complex catalyst is applied to an SCR denitrification system, the structure is simplified, space is saved, cost is reduced, and catalyst maintenance is easy.

Provided are titanium oxide particles having a higher photocatalytic activity, particularly a higher visible light activity as compared to the conventional ones; a dispersion liquid thereof; a photocatalyst thin film formed using such dispersion liquid; a member having such photocatalyst thin film on its surface; and a method for producing the titanium oxide particle dispersion liquid. The titanium oxide particles are those with (1) a tin component and a visible light activity-enhancing transition metal component being solid-dissolved in the particles; and with (2) an iron component, a titanium component and a silicon component being adhered to the surfaces of the particles. The titanium oxide particle dispersion liquid is one with the titanium oxide particles being dispersed in an aqueous dispersion medium.

The present invention relates to a hydrocarbon conversion catalyst system comprising: a first composition comprising a dehydrogenation active metal on a solid support; and a second composition comprising a transition metal on an inorganic support and a hydrocarbon conversion process utilizing the hydrocarbon conversion catalyst system.

Processes are disclosed for the synthesis of an α-amino acid or α-amino acid derivative, from a starting compound or substrate having a carbonyl functional group (C═O), with hydroxy-substituted carbon atoms at alpha (α) and beta (β) positions, relative to the carbonyl functional group. According a particular embodiment, an α-, β-dihydroxy carboxylic acid or carboxylate is dehydrated to form a dicarbonyl intermediate by transformation of the α-hydroxy group to a second carbonyl group (adjacent a carbonyl group of the starting compound) and removal of the β-hydroxy group. The dicarbonyl intermediate is optionally cracked to form a second, in this case cracked, dicarbonyl intermediate having fewer carbon atoms relative to the dicarbonyl intermediate but preserving the first and second carbonyl groups. Either or both of the dicarbonyl intermediate and the cracked dicarbonyl intermediate may be aminated to convert the second carbonyl group to an amino (—NH.sub.2) group, for producing the corresponding α-amino acid(s).