German Society for Materials Science awards publication with HZB scientist as co-author

At its annual conference on September 22, 2014, the German Society for Materials Science (DGM), presented the Werner Köster Award for best publication. The work, whose authors include HZB scientist Dr. Michael Tovar and which has been published in the International Journal of Materials Research, examines the catalytic effect of vanadium pentoxide in propene synthesis from propane using spectroscopic, microscopic, and radiographic methods.

In order to better understand the various processes involved in propene synthesis from propane using the catalyst V2O5-x, scientists at the TU Berlin's Institute for Materials Sciences together with a team of researchers from Humboldt University and HZB's own Michael Tovar analyzed samples of this catalyst. They were able to show that reduction of V2O5-x starts at temperatures of 380 degrees C. Radiographic measurements that were analyzed with the help of HZB support offered important clues about how, during the reduction of oxygen, its release leads to formation of oxygen vacancies within the crystalline lattice.

 Publication:

Thermally activated redox-processes in V2O5-x under high oxygen partial pressures investigated by means of impedance spectroscopy and Rutherford backscattering

doi: 10.3139/146.110906

arö

  • Copy link

You might also be interested in

  • Electrocatalysts: New model for charge separation at the solid-liquid interface
    Science Highlight
    16.04.2026
    Electrocatalysts: New model for charge separation at the solid-liquid interface
    Hydrogen is at the heart of the transition to carbon neutrality, as both an energy carrier and a reagent for green chemistry. However, large-scale production of hydrogen via electrolysis, as well as the production of many other chemical products, requires significantly cheaper and more efficient catalysts. A precise understanding of the electrochemical processes that take place at the interface between the solid catalyst and the liquid medium is highly useful for developing better electrocatalysts. In the journal Nature Communications, an European team has now presented a powerful model that determines charge separation at the interface, the formation of the electric double layer and local electric potential variations, and the resulting influence on the catalytic activity.
  • Environmental Chemistry at BESSY II: Radicals in waterways
    Science Highlight
    09.04.2026
    Environmental Chemistry at BESSY II: Radicals in waterways
    How do radicals form in aqueous solutions when exposed to UV light? This question is important for health research and environmental protection, for example with regard to the overfertilisation of water bodies by intensive agriculture. A team at BESSY II has now developed a new method of investigating hydroxyl radicals in solution. By using a clever trick, the scientists gained surprising insights into the reaction pathway.
  • Theory meets practice – We’re heading back to HTW Berlin!
    News
    07.04.2026
    Theory meets practice – We’re heading back to HTW Berlin!
    The HZB’s BIPV consultancy office (BAIP) is once again coordinating and delivering the lecture series “Building-Integrated Photovoltaics”.