CROOKES PRIZE TALK
Plasma Catalysis for Sustainable Production of Fuels and Chemicals: Challenges and Perspectives
The conversion of inert molecules (e.g., CO2, CH4, and N2) with strong chemical bonds for the synthesis of value-added synthetic fuels and platform chemicals has attracted significant interest. However, the activation of these molecules remains a great challenge due to their thermodynamical stable, requiring a substantial amount of energy for activation. Non-thermal plasma (NTP) has emerged as a promising technology for gas conversions into fuels and chemicals under ambient conditions. The combination of NTP with heterogeneous catalysis has great potential for achieving a synergistic effect through the interactions between the plasma and catalysts, which can activate catalysts at low temperatures, improve their activity and stability, and lead to a notable increase in conversion, selectivity, and yield of end-products, as well as enhance the energy efficiency of the process. Furthermore, plasma processes can be switched on and off instantly, offering great flexibility in decentralised fuel and chemical production using renewable energy sources, particularly intermittent renewable energy. This presentation will discuss the challenges and opportunities in plasma catalytic gas conversion to fuels and chemicals, including various chemical processes such as CH4 activation, CO2 conversion, and ammonia synthesis.
Xin Tu
Xin Tu is a Chair Professor of Plasma Catalysis in the Department of Electrical Engineering and Electronics at the University of Liverpool, UK. His research primarily focuses on plasma chemistry and plasma catalysis for environmental clean-up and sustainable production of fuels and chemicals. He has published over 220 peer-reviewed papers in leading international journals, including Nature Rev. Mater., Chem, Nature Comm., JACS, and Angew. Chem. He has delivered over 90 invited talks at major national and international conferences and has chaired and co-chaired 7 international conferences/workshops. Prof. Tu was awarded the Baldur Eliasson Award from the ISPCEM in 2014 and the Club Liverpool Recognition Award from Liverpool City Council in 2023. He served as the leading Editor of the book “Plasma Catalysis: Fundamentals and Applications” (Springer Nature, 2019) and co-led the 2020 Plasma Catalysis Roadmap (J. Phys. D: Appl. Phys., downloaded >33500 times). He is the inventor of 5 PCT patents and is the Co-Founder of Plasma2X Ltd, a clean-tech start-up spun out from the University of Liverpool. More information can be found on following website https://www.liverpool.ac.uk/electrical-engineering-and-electronics/staff/xin-tu/.