Damien Debecker

Heterogeneous catalysis for the development of sustainable chemical processes.

Olefin metathesis

"MoO3-based heterogeneous catalysts for the metathesis of light alkenes

"

The metathesis of propene is studied in order to elucidate the mechanisms involved in the genesis of active catalytic sites and to propose guidelines for the production of more active catalysts. Innovative routes to prepare efficient Mo-based catalysts were also explored.

Most important results concern:

- the effect of Al in the silica-alumina support (Debecker et al. Appl. Catal A

, 2010)

- the comparison of catalysts prepared via wet impregnation of different Mo precursors (Debecker et al. J. Mol. Catal. A

2011)

- the preparation of MoO3/SiO2-Al2O3 metathesis catalysts via thermal spreading (Debecker et al. J. Phys. Chem. C

2010)

- non-hydrolytic sol-gel preparation of very efficient Mo-Si-Al mixed oxides (Debecker et al. Chem. Mater.

2009).

- highly dispersed molybdates stabilized via Flame Spray Pyrolysis are highly active (Debecker et al. J. Catal.

2011)

Total oxidation of volatile organic pollutants

The relevance of model VOC used to imitate dioxins in the evaluation of typical V2O5/TiO2 catalysts was studied. See Debecker et al. Appl. Catal. B,

74 (2007) 223 ; Debecker et al. J. Mol. Catal. A

, 289 (2008) 38 ; Delaigle et al. Top. Catal.,

52 (2009) 501; Debecker et al. Chemosphere

2011.

Alternative preparation methods are evaluated in comparison with existing technologies: non-hydrolytic sol-gel (collaboration with Dr. Mutin, Institut Charles Gerhardt, Montpellier, France), Flame Spray Pyrolysis (collaboration with Dr. Schimmoeller, ETH, Zurich, Switzerland).

See Debecker et al. Appl. Catal. B,

2010; Debecker et al. Catal. Today

2010 and Schimmoeller et al. Catal. Today

2010.

Bio-inorganic hybrids for the preparation of metal nanoparticle-based heterogeneous catalysts

Multilamellar organic vesicles are used to synthesis Ag and Au nanoparticles which are then transfered onto a support (collaboration with Dr. Faure, CRPP, Bordeaux, France).

See Debecker et al. Small

4 (2008) 1806 and Debecker et al. Stud. Surf. Sci. Catal.

(2010) Accepted.

Starting projects

Hydrotalcites and hydrotalcite-dervied materials as basic catalysts (see our review: Debecker et al. Chem. Eur. J.

15 (2009) 3920).

Enzymes, bio-catalysis and bio-inorganic hybrids.

Galactose oxidase: directed evolution, deracemization and oxidation of unnatural substrates collaboration with prof. N.J. Turner, Manchester Interdisciplinary Biocentre, the University of Manchester).

Dioxin formation and dioxin remediation in incineration plants (collaboration with Prof. Buekens).

Aerosol process for the production of porous catalysts (collaboration with Prof. C. Sanchez, UPMC, Paris)

Macrocellular silica monoliths as catalyst supports (collaboration with Prof. C. Sanchez (UPMC, Paris, FR) and Prof. R. Backov (CRPP, Bordeaux, FR))