Inexpensive Metal Catalysts for the Conversion of CO2 into Value-Added Products
Duration: 4 weeks to 12 months depending on the type of internship (Duration can be extended to suit the interest of potential candidates)
Detalhes
BACKGROUND
The use of carbon dioxide (CO2) as a renewable C1 feedstock to produce value-added products has attracted enormous attention from the scientific community in the last decade. Among the existing processes, the addition of CO2 to epoxides represents one of the most promising reactions; a process that allows easy access to cyclic carbonates, which are valuable products widely used in industrial applications. In this project we propose the preparation of metal complexes, based on Earth-abundant metals, for their application as catalysts in the synthesis of cyclic carbonates through the reaction of CO2 with epoxides.
OBJECTIVES
This project will allow students to receive laboratory training in the synthesis of metallic compounds (working under inert atmosphere conditions-Schlenk-line methodology), organic synthesis, and gas handling (CO2 reactions carried out in depressurized millireactors), as well as in the characterization of chemical compounds (NMR, IR, MS, etc.).