Inquiry2015-2

Th e r e s a W i n d u s

I g o r S l o w i n g

Collaboration Equation:

Ames Lab Scientists Strengthen ResearchThroughTeamwork

hese days, the fictional stereotype of the

isolated and misunderstood scientist toiling alone in

his or her lab could not be further from the truth.

With scientific disciplines both widely diversified

and highly specific, it takes a team of researchers to integrate

those disciplines into a unified research goal.

At the Ames Laboratory’s Chemical and Biological

Sciences Division, a team of scientists advance the frontiers

of catalysis—the acceleration of chemical reactions—

through the use of three-dimensional nano-particles.

The beginnings of the 3D catalysis project in 2002 was

sparked by nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy expert

Marek Pruski and the late Ames Laboratory scientist Victor

Shang-Yi Lin. Together they wanted to pair the development

of three-dimensional scaffolds for catalysis designed by

Lin with the best possible NMR spectroscopy methods for

characterizing them developed by Pruski. “It was a natural

symbiotic relationship,” remembers Pruski.

And just like reactions are spoken of in the language of

chemical equations, over time the interactions of scientists

in the Ames Laboratory’s catalysis program have created an

equation of their own, where the right balance of experiment,

characterization and theory adds up to something more than

the sum of their individual parts.

Chemist

“We’re creating fundamental and unique chemical

functions for important transformations.”

– Aaron Sadow

Ames Laboratory scientist Aaron Sadow studies chemical

reactions that can be manipulated and controlled toward a

specific purpose. With an interest in organometallics, he hunts

for catalysts that can be stabilized and made more efficient

for petrochemical, biorenewable, and shale-gas chemical

processes.

“We’re creating fundamental and unique chemical functions

for important transformations,” said Sadow.

He collaborates with scientist Igor Slowing, who specializes

in developing mesoporous nanoparticles from silica and other

materials that provide a platform for these chemical reactions

to take place.

While the creation of new and useful catalysts is a goal,

so is understanding specifically how these three-dimensional

catalytic structures function the way they do.

“When we attach these catalysts to materials, we’re changing

how they perform. We’re comparing heterogeneous or non-

soluble forms to soluble forms of the catalyst, the effects of

immobilizing them in these support systems, and how they

work differently,” said Sadow.

“We’re trying to understand how the structure and design

of these platforms affect the catalytic processes,” said Slowing.

A a r o n S a d o w

M a r e k P r u s k i

Chemist2 + NMR Spectroscopy +Theorist3 =World-class Catalysis Research

Inqui r y I s sue

| 201 5

Inqui r y I s sue

| 201 5

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