Exploring Multicomponent Oxide Catalysts and Sulfide-
Oxide Synergies by in situ and operando Studies
Prof.in Karin Föttinger (TU Vienna)
20.01.2026, 17:15 Uhr
Johannes Kepler Universität Linz, HS 11
ABSTRACT: Multicomponent oxides are complex materials and understanding their properties and reactivity is challenging, even more so when considering defect-rich nanoparticles under actual reaction conditions. Here, we use an operando IR spectroscopy approach to investigate cobaltite nanoparticles combined with the evaluation of the catalyst performance in the selective oxidation of C3 and C4 alcohols. This reaction proceeds both in the liquid and gas phase, which affects the observed activity and selectivity and leads to different molecular interfacial structure as observed by spectroscopy. Aspects such as the influence of composition and pretreatment will be discussed.
An additional level of complexity arises when combining oxides with sulfides. MoS2 has been studied as a promising catalyst for CO2 hydrogenation reaction in virtue of its selectivity, stability, and tolerance to sulfur impurities. Although bulk MoS2 typically catalyzes the hydrogenation of CO2 into methane, methanol production is known to occur in the presence of abundant basal plane sulfur vacancies. In our current research, the effects of promoting and supporting MoS2 on selected metal oxides are studied by catalytic testing and spectroscopic methods to explore the interaction between the active phase and promoters.