Nano-enhanced palladium reacts to light
7 Feb 2019 by Evoluted New Media
An optical-enhanced form of palladium could be the key to a more environmentally friendly chemical manufacturing industry.
Researchers at RMIT University in Australia manipulated the optical properties of palladium nanoparticles to make a nano-enhanced material that can more effectively convert natural light to chemical reactions.
Professor Daniel Gomez at RMIT said: "The photo catalyst we've developed can catch 99% of light across the spectrum, and 100% of specific colours.
"It's scaleable and efficient technology that opens new opportunities for the use of solar power - moving from electricity generation to directly converting solar energy into valuable chemicals."
Although palladium is both rare and expensive, this technique uses just 4 nanometres – 0.004% the thickness of a human hair. This is enough to absorb 99% of light and achieve a chemical reaction.
The nano-enhanced palladium could pave the way for a more sustainable chemical manufacturing industry, reducing the impact of chemical manufacturing.
Currently, chemical manufacturing accounts for about 10% of global energy consumption and 7% of industrial greenhouse gas emissions. Photo catalysis – the use of light to drive chemical reactions – is growing as an alternative but materials’ costs and lack of responsiveness to light are obstacles to wider take-up.
“Chemical manufacturing is a power-hungry industry because traditional catalytic processes require intensive heating and pressure to drive reactions,” Gomez said.
"Our ultimate goal is to use this technology to harness sunlight efficiently and convert solar energy into chemicals, with the aim of transforming this vital industry into one that's renewable and sustainable."
The technique could also be applied to technologies such as infrared cameras and solar-powered water desalination, or better night vision technology.
The RMIT team had its research published ACS Applied Energy Materials.
