Ultraviolet-Visible (UV-Vis) Spectroscopy

Charlotte Vogt, Caterina Suzanna Wondergem, Bert M. Weckhuysen*

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingChapterAcademicpeer-review

Abstract

Ultraviolet-Visible (UV-Vis) spectroscopy is a versatile and powerful analytical method, which allows to investigate a wide variety of catalysts in both the liquid-phase and solid-state and their interfaces at elevated temperatures and pressures. In the case of solid catalysts, they can be studied in the form of powders (e.g., in diffuse reflectance mode) and as thin wafers (in transmission mode), and when combined with a microscope even in the form of catalyst bodies (e.g., extrudates) and single crystals. In the past two decades, UV-Vis spectroscopy has been increasingly used under in situ and operando conditions to shed light on/gain insight in the working principles of heterogeneous catalysts, homogeneous catalysts, electrocatalysts, as well as photocatalysts. One of the advantages of this method is that it can simultaneously measure, e.g., the electronic transitions of organic molecules (mainly via their n → π* and π → π* transitions) and transition metal oxides or ions (via their d-d and charge transfer transitions). Unfortunately, absorption bands in the UV-Vis range are often broad and overlapping and hence their interpretations are not always trivial. Advanced theoretical calculations are required to provide a proper foundation of their interpretation, while, e.g., chemometrics can help prevent biased analysis when many (time-resolved) spectra are collected. Finally, UV-Vis spectroscopy is often combined with other analytical methods to provide complementary information. Examples include X-ray absorption spectroscopy and diffraction, next to vibrational spectroscopy (i.e., infrared and Raman) and magnetic resonance (i.e., electron spin resonance and nuclear magnetic resonance) methods. The above-described scientific and instrumental developments will be illustrated by using a selection of showcase examples, covering the different areas of catalysis. The chapter concludes with some main observations as well as some future developments on what might become possible in the not-too-distant future.

Original languageEnglish
Title of host publicationSpringer Handbooks
PublisherSpringer
Pages237-264
Number of pages28
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2023

Publication series

NameSpringer Handbooks
ISSN (Print)2522-8692
ISSN (Electronic)2522-8706

Bibliographical note

Funding Information:
This work is part of the Advanced Research Center for Chemical Building Blocks, ARC CBBC, which is co-founded and co-financed by the Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research (NWO) and the Netherlands Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate Policy. This work was supported by the Netherlands Center for Multiscale Catalytic Energy Conversion (MCEC), an NWO Gravitation program funded by the Ministry of Education, Culture and Science of the government of the Netherlands, and the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation program under the Marie Skłodowska-Curie grant agreement No 801359. The authors thank T. Hartman (Utrecht University) for the graphical illustrations.

Publisher Copyright:
© 2023, Springer Nature Switzerland AG.

Funding

versity, The Netherlands, in 2019. During this time, she worked on the development of in situ techniques for heterogeneous catalysis with professor Bert Weckhuysen. In 2020, she received a JSPS postdoctoral fellowship from the Japanese Society for the Promotion of Science to work on advanced X-ray imaging of electrocatalysts at Nagoya University. This work is part of the Advanced Research Center for Chemical Building Blocks, ARC CBBC, which is co-founded and co-financed by the Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research (NWO) and the Netherlands Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate Policy. This work was supported by the Netherlands Center for Multiscale Catalytic Energy Conversion (MCEC), an NWO Gravitation program funded by the Ministry of Education, Culture and Science of the government of the Netherlands, and the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation program under the Marie Skłodowska-Curie grant agreement No 801359. The authors thank T. Hartman (Utrecht University) for the graphical illustrations.

FundersFunder number
Advanced Research Center for Chemical Building Blocks
MCEC
Netherlands Center for Multiscale Catalytic Energy Conversion
Netherlands Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate Policy
Horizon 2020 Framework Programme
H2020 Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions801359
Australian Research Council
Japan Society for the Promotion of Science
Universiteit Utrecht
Ministerie van onderwijs, cultuur en wetenschap
Nederlandse Organisatie voor Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek
Nagoya University

    Keywords

    • Catalysis
    • In-situ spectroscopy
    • Operando characterization
    • UV-Vis spectroscopy

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