Process intensification aims to dramatically improve processes and achieve more compact, cleaner, safer and more energy-efficient technologies. Catalysis is critical to chemical production and using two catalysts in one reactor has the potential to achieve many of the goals of process intensification. However, if there is a mismatch between supply and demand – when the first reaction proceeds more quickly than the second is able to use the products as reactants – the potential of these tandem catalytic processes is not realised. The EU-funded TANDEng project is tackling this bottleneck, seeking to overcome the problems arising from the proximity of catalysts by engineering a disengagement of chemical and thermal dependencies in tandem solid catalysts. Success will enable currently impossible tandem processes particularly relevant to meeting energy challenges.

ERC-2019-COG