The Code of Catalysts: Composition and Key Roles Revealed

In the mysterious field of chemistry, a catalyst is like a magical "magician". It is a substance that can change the rate of chemical reactions, but is not affected by chemical changes and will not be consumed. It mainly reduces the activation energy, just like opening a shortcut for chemical reactions, making the reaction easier to proceed, thereby exerting a wonderful catalytic effect, and its own composition, chemical properties and quality remain unchanged before and after the reaction.

1. About active components

Among the many components of catalysts, active components occupy a core position. It plays a key role in the catalytic system. Sometimes a single substance takes the lead, and sometimes multiple substances work together. From the perspective of chemical reactions, active components are like the "main force" that charges and breaks through, directly penetrating into the "battlefield" of catalytic reactions. It has absolute control over the direction of chemical reactions, can determine the direction in which the reaction proceeds, and at the same time plays a vital role in improving or restricting the efficiency of the reaction. Its own properties and composition are directly related to the effect of catalytic reactions, and are the key driving force for catalytic reactions to occur and proceed.

2. About the carrier

The carrier plays an indispensable role in the catalyst, just like a solid and reliable "stage". It serves as a dispersant, binder or support for catalytically active components and is the key skeleton structure that carries active components. In practical applications, there are many different types of materials that can be used as carriers, such as corundum and silicon carbide with low specific surface area and alumina and silica gel with high specific surface area. The main function of the carrier is to disperse the active components evenly and avoid aggregation of the active components. Through this dispersion, the contact area between the reactants is greatly increased, making the chemical reaction more complete and efficient. It is carried out on the ground, thereby significantly improving the catalytic effect and providing strong support and guarantee for the smooth progress of the catalytic reaction.

3. About cocatalysts

Although the cocatalyst itself has no activity or only has extremely weak activity, it is a veritable "assistant" in the catalyst system. When added to a catalyst, it can have a profound impact on the catalyst's properties in a number of key ways. It can adjust the chemical composition of the catalyst to better meet the needs of a specific reaction; it can optimize the chemical structure of the catalyst to make it more stable and efficient in the reaction; it can also change the ionic valence state of the catalyst, adjust its acidity and alkalinity, and even Reshape its lattice structure, etc. Through these various changes and optimizations, the cocatalyst has comprehensively improved the activity, selectivity, stability and service life of the catalyst, allowing the catalyst to exert more outstanding performance in chemical reactions and assisting the catalytic reaction to achieve better results.