Prince%20Nana%20Amaniampong_0.jpg?itok=aaYuUFex "Ultrasound Catalysis: Advancements and Applications in Material Emulsification and Particle Size Reduction")
All means are good in catalysis. Prince Nana Amaniampong, research fellow at the Institute of Chemistry of Environments and Materials of Poitiers (IC2MP, CNRS/University of Poitiers), uses ultrasound. This expert leads his own research group focused on the subject.
« Low-frequency ultrasonics reduce particle size and improve material emulsificationsays Prince Nana Amaniampong. We are mainly interested in high frequency ultrasound which promotes cavitation. This formation of vapor bubbles under pressure in a liquid gives rise to free radicals which exhibit catalytic activity.
High-frequency ultrasound has the advantage of achieving this under mild conditions, far removed from the extreme temperatures and pressures needed to catalyze the same reactions without ultrasound. Hence a significant saving of time and money… Prince Nana Amaniampong has successfully used this technology for the synthesis of products of interest to industry. For example, that of glucuronic acid, a compound difficult to synthesize by “conventional” catalysis, used as a precursor of vitamin C or to test the presence of Escherichia coli, as well as for the synthesis of hyaluronic acid, very sought after by the cosmetics industry.
« I became interested in ultrasonic catalysis during my master’s degree in Bangkok, but moved away from it during my doctorate at Nanyang University of Technology, Singaporeexplains the globe-trotting researcher, originally from Ghana. I was able to come back to the subject and publish promising results after my recruitment in Poitiers at the CNRS. »
These efforts will experience a new impetus thanks to the obtaining of this ERC Starting Grant, which Prince Nana Amaniampong will implement within the framework of the CONCASM project.. « Like when you pour champagne into a glass, the cavitation bubbles burst and all go up in the same directionhe describes. However, ultrasonic catalysis would be even more effective if we managed to control the place where cavitation bubbles appear on the surface of materials, and if we could control their evolution.. »
Prince Nana Amaniampong will use a high-speed camera to visualize the interactions between bubbles and particles, as well as supervised learning models to predict their behavior. From there, he will be able to design catalysts and optimal surface morphologies. These solutions must, however, withstand prolonged exposure to ultrasound.
The CONCASM project could pave the way for a wide range of applications related to the activation of molecules such as carbon dioxide, methane or ammonia, with outlets in the production of biogas, water treatment , or ultrasound therapies, such as the destruction of cancer cells.
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