COORDINATION
(Last 5 years)
MIT Portugal Program - MPP2030
2020-21
Producing methanol as sustainable fuel by coupling CO2 capture and hydrogenation
more information here
Programme for Cooperation in Science between Portugal and Poland
2019-21
Design of new heterogenized rhodium catalysts for sustainable hydroformylation of olefins and oxidation of alkanes
The project aims providing sustainable catalytic processes for hydroformylation (the most important industrial transformation for olefins valorization) and for organic oxidative synthesis from linear and cyclic alkanes (invaluable precursors for a wide range of synthetic targets), with significant advantages over the current industrial processes in terms of safety, simplicity, energy saving, economic and environmental concerns. To accomplish that, novel Rh catalysts (complexes / immobilized complexes) will be prepared and characterized. Follows the evaluation of their suitability to act as efficient and reusable catalysts for the important industrial oxidation reactions chosen (olefin hydroformylation and alkane oxidation) and the fine-tuning of their catalytic activity by optimizing operatory conditions for those reactions and by designing new catalysts. The overcome of scientific and technological hurdles on the way to industrial scaling-up will be also considered.
2019-21
Design of new heterogenized rhodium catalysts for sustainable hydroformylation of olefins and oxidation of alkanes
The project aims providing sustainable catalytic processes for hydroformylation (the most important industrial transformation for olefins valorization) and for organic oxidative synthesis from linear and cyclic alkanes (invaluable precursors for a wide range of synthetic targets), with significant advantages over the current industrial processes in terms of safety, simplicity, energy saving, economic and environmental concerns. To accomplish that, novel Rh catalysts (complexes / immobilized complexes) will be prepared and characterized. Follows the evaluation of their suitability to act as efficient and reusable catalysts for the important industrial oxidation reactions chosen (olefin hydroformylation and alkane oxidation) and the fine-tuning of their catalytic activity by optimizing operatory conditions for those reactions and by designing new catalysts. The overcome of scientific and technological hurdles on the way to industrial scaling-up will be also considered.
FCT Competitive Projects in all Scientific Domains
2016-20
Magnetic scorpionate ionic catalysts – improving sustainability of industrial catalytic oxidation processes
This project aims to provide novel magnetic ionic liquids (MScorpILs) and fluids (MScorpIFs) based on metal C- or B-scorpionate catalysts to design improved catalytic processes for selective oxidation reactions of industrial interest i) the oxidation of cyclohexane to the cyclohexanol/cyclohexanone mixture and ii) the one-pot oxidation of ethane to acetic acid.
2016-20
Magnetic scorpionate ionic catalysts – improving sustainability of industrial catalytic oxidation processes
This project aims to provide novel magnetic ionic liquids (MScorpILs) and fluids (MScorpIFs) based on metal C- or B-scorpionate catalysts to design improved catalytic processes for selective oxidation reactions of industrial interest i) the oxidation of cyclohexane to the cyclohexanol/cyclohexanone mixture and ii) the one-pot oxidation of ethane to acetic acid.
Portugal 2020 BIP Proof of Concept
2017-19
Catalytic process of partial oxidation of secondary alcohols to the corresponding ketones
This project aims to obtain financing for protection and economic valorization of the rights of intellectual property associated to the use of an efficient and recyclable catalyst consisting on an hybrid material, based on the dichloro hydrotris(pyrazol-1-yl)methane iron(II) complex anchored on carbon nanotubes functionalized with carboxylate surface groups, to be used in the partial oxidation of secondary alcohols to the corresponding ketones with t-butyl hydroperoxide, without the addition of solvents and using low power microwave irradiation.
Portugal-Germany Integrated Action
2017-18
Heterogenization of gold (and related metal) complexes on carbon and oxide supports and their use in catalysis
This project aims to immobilise homogeneous complexes (namely functionalized C-scorpionate gold complexes and the N-heterocyclic carbene gold(I) complexes onto heterogeneous supports (carbon materials, such as activated carbon, carbon xerogel, carbon nanotubes, and even nanodiamonds (which with regard to chemical and mechanical resistance probably represent an extraordinary support; and metal oxides, like silica and alumina). Those hybrid materials will be tested as catalysts for important industrial reactions like alkane or alcohol oxidations and well investigated and established reactions in homogeneous gold catalysis like the addition of nucleophiles to alkynes or the phenol synthesis.
IDI&CA Projects - Instituto Politécnico de Lisboa
2017-18
Carbon nanomaterials as catalysts for sustainable industrial oxidative processes
This project aims to provide novel carbon nanomaterials (CNM) produced from cork industry wastewater to design improved catalytic processes for selective oxidation reactions of industrial interest, in particular i) the oxidation of cyclohexane to the cyclohexanone/cyclohexanol mixture (KA oil) and ii) the oxidation of primary and secondary alcohols to, respectively, aldehydes and ketones.