THE FABRICATION OF HIGH-TECHNOLOGY CATALYSTS

To produce reaction products with 100% chemical selectivity, and to attain much higher turnover rates and number of turnovers, the development of new methods of catalyst preparation are necessary. Precise control of particle size, the separation between catalyst particles and their superior chemical and thermal stability must be achieved. To this end, five new methods of preparation of high-technology catalysts are being studied. These are: (A) the method successfully used by W.M.H. Sachtler for metal particle deposition in zeolite cages, (B) the deposition of metal particles by atomic layer epitaxy, (C) controlled nucleation and growth of metal particles by substrate spinning, (D) deposition of metals on oxides by evaporation, (E) preparation of ordered metal arrays by electron-beam lithography using microelectronic techniques. These different methods are described and discussed, and their present states of development are assessed.