METHANOL STEAM REFORMING
(MSR, CH₃OH + H₂O → 3H₂ + CO₂)
is considered as one of the most promising routes to produce high
purity hydrogen for mobile fuel cell applications. However, the main drawback is the formation of CO as a byproduct, which has to be kept at a level of about 10 ppm to prevent poisoning of fuel cell catalysts.

MSR on single-phase samples of the intermetallic compound ZnPd, all possessing the CuAu type of crystal structure, proved that Pd-rich catalysts showed very low selectivity to CO₂, while Zn-rich catalysts possessed CO₂ selectivities up to 99.4%.

In situ XPS studies revealed that only Zn-rich samples exhibited oxidized Zn species AND intermetallic ZnPd on the surface, thus making this combination very likely to be responsible for the excellent catalytic properties

(M. Friedrich, D. Teschner,
A. Knop-Gericke, M. Armbrüster,
J. Catal. 285, 2012, 41–47;
DOI: 10.1016/j.jcat.2011.09.013).

Welcome to the network for intermetallic compounds
as catalysts for steam reforming of methanol - the COST
Action CM0904.

This programme (supported by the COST Office through the auspices of the European Science Foundation) aims to support cooperation and integration of European academic and industrial research efforts directed towards the development of intermetallic compounds as methanol steam reforming catalysts.

The CM0904-Action began in May 2010 and will last until 2014. The primary research objective of this European programme is the discovery of new, highly innovative, pre-competitive research that lays the foundation for providing new industrial products and processes with significant advantages over the current state-of-the-art.

News

TWO OPEN PhD POSITIONS at the Max Planck Institute for Chemical Physics of Solids in Dresden. The "Intermetallic Compounds in Catalysis" team is looking for highly skilled and motivated students having finished their Master or Diploma who want to gain deep understanding of the ongoing processes."
More information can be found here.

27.06.2012 - 29.06.2012
Ismaning, Commundo Tagungshotel
2^nd INTERNATIONAL SYMPOSIUM ON INTERMETALLIC COMPOUNDS
IN METHANOL STEAM REFORMING
More information can be found here:
www.symposium.methanol-to-hydrogen.eu

A CALL FOR PHD POSITIONS will open in the coming weeks at Universite Paris-Sud.
Prof. M.-G. Barthes-Labrousse is looking for a good candidate with skills in materials science or chemistry. Knowledge in French is not a prerequisite.
More information can be found here.

22.04.2012 - 27.04.2012
Dresden - Germany
JOINT C-MAC AND COST CM0904 EUROSCHOOL ON INTERMETALLIC COMPOUNDS
IN CATALYSIS

September 18^th to 20^th 2011
Berlin - Germany
1^st INTERNATIONAL SYMPOSIUM ON INTERMETALLIC COMPOUNDS IN METHANOL STEAM REFORMING
The symposium is open to the international community and also comprises the meetings of the Working Group, Core Group and Management Committee in the framework of the COST action. More information can be found at
www.fhi-berlin.mpg.de/acnew/cost0904/

24.01.2011
CALL FOR STMS ISSUED
The first call for the submission of applications for Short Term Scientific Missions (STSM) was issued. The STSM are a backbone of the network and allow members of the network to learn and perform experiments with methods available at partner laboratories.

28.11.2010
TTYR STARTED!
The Think Tank of Young Reserchers (TTYR) started its work! Seven ESRs coming from Austria, France, Germany, Great Britain, Poland and Switzerland will address innovative aspects of the network in a maverick style.

This Web Site should be regarded as an adjunct to those of the COST Organisation itself and the ESF mounted CM0904 summary page. If any discrepancy is found between this site and the official COST office web pages the latter should be deemed to take precedence