Cabot's proprietary Reactive Spray Technology is an attractive alternative to traditional catalyst production approaches such as impregnation, precipitation and other wet chemistry methods. The Reactive Spray Technology enables customized powders with unique combinations of composition, surface properties, particle size and morphology.  In this process, a liquid medium containing precursors to the final product is atomized into a fine spray and processed through a high temperature reactor where rapid heating and quenching converts precursors into desired catalysts powders.  We have developed several variations of the Reactive Spray Technology, including reactive flame spray technology, and used them to produce a variety of catalysts, including fuel cell electrocatalysts.  The key parameters such as residence time and temperature distributions are well understood and modeled.

 

• Simple, robust, reliable process
  • Sequential Control:
    • Liquid Phase:  precursor chemistry in solutions and dispersions
    • Aerosol phase: droplet size, dispersion
    • Reactor: time / temperature
    • Post processing
  • Reproducible
• Compositional flexibility
  • Inorganics, metals, metal oxides
  • Supported catalysts and supports
• Ability to engineer critical properties
  • Active phase dispersion
  • Particle morphology, porosity and size
  • Surface area
  • Surface chemistries and interfaces

Cabot has developed proprietary know-how to design catalysts with improved dispersion, more active non-equilibrium surface phases and alloys, better mass transfer and improved thermal and chemical durability.  We have experience with carbon-supported platinum and alloy electrocatalysts for fuel cell applications, precious metal catalysts, metal oxides and alloy catalysts for automotive and stationary emission control and various other catalysts and sorbents.

 

Examples of Cabot catalyst powders