Catalysis research at HZB gets new facility
The facility consists of a total of eight chemical reactors in which catalytic systems can be tested. © D. Amkreutz/HZB
Each block of the chemical reactors is roughly 3 to 4 meters wide and a bit under 2 meters high. The facility consists of two blocks and weighs 3 tons in total. © R. Schlatmann/HZB
As part of the CatLab project, HZB has acquired a unique facility for measuring the catalytic performance of thin-film catalysts. Built by ILS in Adlershof, it has now been delivered. The facility consists of a total of eight chemical reactors in which catalytic systems can be tested. At over €2.5 million, this is the largest single investment in the CatLab project.
‘The reactors enable thin-film and powder samples to be examined continuously or in batches under adjustable conditions, from room temperature to 780 °C, at pressures up to 50 bar and different flow rates and residence times. This allows us to investigate a wide range of chemical reactions that are important for the energy transition,’ says project manager Dr. Ing. Albert Gili from HZB.
Examples of such reactions include the conversion of carbon dioxide to methanol, the dry reforming of methane, and the Fischer-Tropsch synthesis, which can be used to produce synthetic fuels. The facility enables the screening of catalyst candidates, kinetic investigations, and studies on the long-term stability of catalysts. The latter is a decisive factor for the industrial implementation of any catalytic reaction. ‘The facility will be a cornerstone for the further development of thin-film catalyst production, not only for CatLab, but also for our in-house research and other important projects such as CARE-O-SENE, Greenquest and several new ones in the pipeline,’ says Prof. Dr. Rutger Schlatmann, CatLab overall project lead at HZB.
- 83 pupils at Girls'Day at HZBOn 23 April 2026, the annual Girl’s Day took place, giving pupils an insight into various career paths in the fields of science and technology. 83 pupils visited the Adlershof and Wannsee sites and enjoyed a day full of exciting experiments.
- Electrocatalysts: New model for charge separation at the solid-liquid interfaceHydrogen 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 waterwaysHow 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.