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Cursus: SK-BKATA
SK-BKATA
Katalyse
Cursus informatie
CursuscodeSK-BKATA
Studiepunten (EC)7,5
Cursusdoelen
At the end of the course, you will be able to:
  • Formulate scientific questions concerning catalysis in molecular terms;
  • Select the proper type of catalysis, biocatalysis, homogeneous catalysis or heterogeneous catalysis to catalyze a particular transformation;
  • Describe the mechanistic, energetic and kinetic aspects of a chemical transformation;
  • Describe current methods for acquiring insight into transformations; and
  • Collect and summarize essential information into a poster presentation and use it to convince other people of the knowledge on catalysis you have acquired.
 
Inhoud
The course Catalysis (SK-BKATA) is part of the curricular build-up “Chemistry in Context”, that offers courses in the second and third year of the Chemistry bachelor to introduce the student to scientifically and socially relevant subjects. Catalysis (SK-BKATA) offers an introduction to courses and research themes within the UU Master’s program Nanomaterials Science.

Catalysis is everywhere!
Catalysts can be found in our body (enzymes are essential to life), in a gasoline-driven car (for exhaust gas purification), in washing powder (to help break down food residues on dirty clothes) and in chemical, food and process industries (no fuel, plastic, beer, bread or wine without the proper catalysts). Catalysis is also one of the key technologies required to drive the current energy, feedstock and circularity transitions demanded by the urgent need to transition to a more sustainable society. New catalysts are, for example, needed to make chemical building blocks, materials and fuels from more sustainable sources of carbon, such as biomass, municipal waste or CO2, or to achieve end-of-life circularity, e.g. by recycling plastics.

The aim of this course is to expand your understanding of chemical transformations and of substances, which can catalyze such transformations. The focus is on various types of catalysis, in particular molecular catalysis (bio- and homogeneous catalysis) and heterogeneous catalysis, and also the kinetics of catalytic processes. Together with a group of fellow students you will design a new catalytic route for the production of a key chemical building block, taking sustainability considerations explicitly into account. This new process will be detailed and presented as a poster presentation. Furthermore, the processes which lead to catalyst innovation will be explored.

Evidently, the concept of sustainability plays a central role in this course.

For excellent students, who wish to deepen their knowledge in catalysis (and, consequently earn up to 1 full extra point on the total course mark) we offer an extra assignment.
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