Delft start-ups develop innovative and disruptive catalysts thanks to semicon, plasma sparks and in situ TEM
We live in a time of unprecedented interaction between technological disciplines. The developments are so disruptive, so disruptive, that a lot of resistance will have to be overcome before the industry will be able to reap the benefits. Because we have become somewhat accustomed to this in the current era and because the new generation of young companies has learned from the academic world how to survive in the run-up to the big breakthrough, it is therefore useful to keep a close eye on what is happening. in the pressure cooker. For example, we look at two Delft companies, Delft IMP and VSParticle, and we speak with the respective tech entrepreneurs Bart van Limpt and Aaike van Vugt. Intensified Materials Processing, that is what the letters IMP of Delft IMP stand for. Started two years ago from the chemical technology research group of Professor Ruud van Ommen. The young company focuses on coating powders to give them new functionality. “For example, this concerns cathode material for batteries, for a longer lifespan and fast charging. You do this coating with ALD technology, Atomic Layer Deposition. This technology is known from the world of semiconductors, ASM, and from solar cells, SoLayTec. A second example is extending the lifespan of phosphors in LED lighting, which converts UV into different colors of light.”
But what matters most is catalysis. Via ALD you can apply very specific functionality to the surface of catalyst support material. “This allows you to control the catalysis reaction in a very targeted manner, for example to purify exhaust gases. With ALD we can create islands on a nanometer scale in a controlled manner, making very efficient conversions possible. As a result, much less of the expensive precious metal such as platinum and palladium is needed.” The scaling up of this technology is what makes the Delft IMP proposition unique. Van Limpt: “We use reactor concepts that are known in the process industry, such as the pneumatic transport reactor. We transport the powdered carrier materials through a tube, and then we use ALD to add functionality. The particles are carried in a tube and coated according to a car wash principle. The longer the tube, the thicker the coating and the larger the diameter of the tube, the more can be produced. The advantage of this is that you get a continuous process with a higher throughput.” Van Limpt is talking about a production capacity of 10 kg per hour, via a pipe with a diameter of one centimeter and a length of 30 meters. “In a conventional fluid bed process, capacities of 10 kg per hour can also be achieved, but at a significantly higher investment. If you apply our elegant reactor design, you can achieve much more throughput with an investment of the same magnitude. Our reactor technology can be directly integrated into existing processes in the industry.” What are the future expectations for Delft IMP? “We are currently working with industrial partners to validate the products that can be made in our process. This validation allows us to define an optimal product for our customer. We think that the market for battery materials could become faster than the market for catalytic materials, mainly due to the demand for safe lithium batteries.” As far as catalysts for the chemical industry are concerned, the path is somewhat longer and more complex, according to Van Limpt, although the value creation there will ultimately be much greater. “The large chemical companies first want to validate large-volume processes for five to ten years. Validation processes are also often long in pharmaceuticals. We currently mainly carry out a lot of R&D and consultancy work on behalf of the industry. But we want to scale up quickly to be able to put a device on the market. We expect to have a product on the market within two years for around 60 kilograms of production per hour. Customers can then scale up based on that.”
Making catalysts as such is usually also a chemical process. This appears to still be the case at Delft IMP. VSParticle's technology is probably slightly more disruptive in that respect. “Our technology is no longer a chemical synthesis process, but a physical synthesis process,” Aaike van Vugt immediately makes clear what the biggest change is compared to existing catalysis technology. We do this by making nanoparticles from metal and depositing them directly.” Aaike explains it very nicely in 'layman's language'. “A chemical reaction can be compared to a 'click' between people. You depend on whether it is mutual. In chemistry, for example, you are dependent on whether the law of nature permits a reaction. If you want to repeat such a reaction, you must always create the right conditions and maintain those conditions in a controlled manner. This is not necessary for a physical synthesis process. It's always the same there. The molecules must react. They have no choice, because of the Van der Waals forces. The material you want is always formed. So you can suffice with simple intuitive control. You no longer need all kinds of recipes.” Just like Bart van Limpt, Aaike van Vugt knows that the process industry is conservative. “Current catalysts have largely been developed with knowledge gained through a lot of trial and error. People are only now beginning to understand which nanoparticles actually actively bring about the catalysis reaction and how the catalysts they have been using for years work." Van Vugt points out that with the VSParticle Technology we are now much better able to produce specific particles , both in terms of size and composition. “The better we can produce the different catalytic particles separately, the more we learn about specific properties. With the current particle generator from VSParticle we can distinguish between particles of, for example, 4, 5 or 6 nanometers. In the next generation we hope to be able to go even further and distinguish between particles of 100 and 101 atoms. The added value then arises if we can say exactly which particle is catalytically active and which is not.” Aaike is also very happy with the developments in research technology that are complementary and facilitating to VSParticle's technology. Via the new modules in electron microscopy, the in-situ TEM, Transmission Electron Microscopy, from Dens Solutions, and the SEM, Scanning Electron Microscopy, from Delmic, films can now be made on a nanoscale in the process. “Then you can see exactly which particles are active.” The two Delft microscopy companies have made enormous leaps, according to Aaike van Vugt. “By combining these new developments with VSParticle's production systems, an enormous amount of new knowledge can be developed in the coming years. Knowledge that is of great value for the development of very efficient catalysts, but also for related applications such as energy production and storage.” For the production of gold nanoparticles, researchers sometimes experiment for months to find a recipe that produces the correct particle. VSParticle wants to replace this complex and time-consuming process with a machine that produces the right particle in a few hours. Furthermore, VSParticle also wants to make this technology suitable for industrial production. The systems for research and industry will be based on one and the same technology, allowing rapid switching between research, testing and industrial production. “We generate the nanoparticles with a plasma spark between two conductive metal rods, whereby the material is heated to 20,000 degrees Celsius. The material evaporates and changes into the gas phase. Under the influence of Van der Waals forces, atoms in the gas cloud stick together to form increasingly larger particles while they are still floating in an inert conductive gas, Argon. In a final step, the correct particles from the gas phase are immobilized in the end product, for example on a catalyst support surface or a MEMS sensor for research. We achieve a fully continuous process, without chemicals or waste flows. Ultimately, this means that you can eliminate the inactive particles and achieve enormous savings in the expensive catalyst material required.” VSParticle has already sold a number of systems to researchers in the Netherlands in a short time. Van Vugt expects to make an international breakthrough in 2017. “The scaling up is going according to plan and we expect to have a first industrial pilot plant within three to five years, depending on the adoption speed of multinationals.” It is obvious. At the end of 2015, VSParticle was the rightful winner of MinacNed's micronano Start Up of the Year Contest.
But what matters most is catalysis. Via ALD you can apply very specific functionality to the surface of catalyst support material. “This allows you to control the catalysis reaction in a very targeted manner, for example to purify exhaust gases. With ALD we can create islands on a nanometer scale in a controlled manner, making very efficient conversions possible. As a result, much less of the expensive precious metal such as platinum and palladium is needed.” The scaling up of this technology is what makes the Delft IMP proposition unique. Van Limpt: “We use reactor concepts that are known in the process industry, such as the pneumatic transport reactor. We transport the powdered carrier materials through a tube, and then we use ALD to add functionality. The particles are carried in a tube and coated according to a car wash principle. The longer the tube, the thicker the coating and the larger the diameter of the tube, the more can be produced. The advantage of this is that you get a continuous process with a higher throughput.” Van Limpt is talking about a production capacity of 10 kg per hour, via a pipe with a diameter of one centimeter and a length of 30 meters. “In a conventional fluid bed process, capacities of 10 kg per hour can also be achieved, but at a significantly higher investment. If you apply our elegant reactor design, you can achieve much more throughput with an investment of the same magnitude. Our reactor technology can be directly integrated into existing processes in the industry.” What are the future expectations for Delft IMP? “We are currently working with industrial partners to validate the products that can be made in our process. This validation allows us to define an optimal product for our customer. We think that the market for battery materials could become faster than the market for catalytic materials, mainly due to the demand for safe lithium batteries.” As far as catalysts for the chemical industry are concerned, the path is somewhat longer and more complex, according to Van Limpt, although the value creation there will ultimately be much greater. “The large chemical companies first want to validate large-volume processes for five to ten years. Validation processes are also often long in pharmaceuticals. We currently mainly carry out a lot of R&D and consultancy work on behalf of the industry. But we want to scale up quickly to be able to put a device on the market. We expect to have a product on the market within two years for around 60 kilograms of production per hour. Customers can then scale up based on that.”
Making catalysts as such is usually also a chemical process. This appears to still be the case at Delft IMP. VSParticle's technology is probably slightly more disruptive in that respect. “Our technology is no longer a chemical synthesis process, but a physical synthesis process,” Aaike van Vugt immediately makes clear what the biggest change is compared to existing catalysis technology. We do this by making nanoparticles from metal and depositing them directly.” Aaike explains it very nicely in 'layman's language'. “A chemical reaction can be compared to a 'click' between people. You depend on whether it is mutual. In chemistry, for example, you are dependent on whether the law of nature permits a reaction. If you want to repeat such a reaction, you must always create the right conditions and maintain those conditions in a controlled manner. This is not necessary for a physical synthesis process. It's always the same there. The molecules must react. They have no choice, because of the Van der Waals forces. The material you want is always formed. So you can suffice with simple intuitive control. You no longer need all kinds of recipes.” Just like Bart van Limpt, Aaike van Vugt knows that the process industry is conservative. “Current catalysts have largely been developed with knowledge gained through a lot of trial and error. People are only now beginning to understand which nanoparticles actually actively bring about the catalysis reaction and how the catalysts they have been using for years work." Van Vugt points out that with the VSParticle Technology we are now much better able to produce specific particles , both in terms of size and composition. “The better we can produce the different catalytic particles separately, the more we learn about specific properties. With the current particle generator from VSParticle we can distinguish between particles of, for example, 4, 5 or 6 nanometers. In the next generation we hope to be able to go even further and distinguish between particles of 100 and 101 atoms. The added value then arises if we can say exactly which particle is catalytically active and which is not.” Aaike is also very happy with the developments in research technology that are complementary and facilitating to VSParticle's technology. Via the new modules in electron microscopy, the in-situ TEM, Transmission Electron Microscopy, from Dens Solutions, and the SEM, Scanning Electron Microscopy, from Delmic, films can now be made on a nanoscale in the process. “Then you can see exactly which particles are active.” The two Delft microscopy companies have made enormous leaps, according to Aaike van Vugt. “By combining these new developments with VSParticle's production systems, an enormous amount of new knowledge can be developed in the coming years. Knowledge that is of great value for the development of very efficient catalysts, but also for related applications such as energy production and storage.” For the production of gold nanoparticles, researchers sometimes experiment for months to find a recipe that produces the correct particle. VSParticle wants to replace this complex and time-consuming process with a machine that produces the right particle in a few hours. Furthermore, VSParticle also wants to make this technology suitable for industrial production. The systems for research and industry will be based on one and the same technology, allowing rapid switching between research, testing and industrial production. “We generate the nanoparticles with a plasma spark between two conductive metal rods, whereby the material is heated to 20,000 degrees Celsius. The material evaporates and changes into the gas phase. Under the influence of Van der Waals forces, atoms in the gas cloud stick together to form increasingly larger particles while they are still floating in an inert conductive gas, Argon. In a final step, the correct particles from the gas phase are immobilized in the end product, for example on a catalyst support surface or a MEMS sensor for research. We achieve a fully continuous process, without chemicals or waste flows. Ultimately, this means that you can eliminate the inactive particles and achieve enormous savings in the expensive catalyst material required.” VSParticle has already sold a number of systems to researchers in the Netherlands in a short time. Van Vugt expects to make an international breakthrough in 2017. “The scaling up is going according to plan and we expect to have a first industrial pilot plant within three to five years, depending on the adoption speed of multinationals.” It is obvious. At the end of 2015, VSParticle was the rightful winner of MinacNed's micronano Start Up of the Year Contest. 
Nederlands