Organic/Inorganic Hybrid Materials: Novel Pigments, Catalysts and More

Organic/Inorganic Hybrid Materials: Novel Pigments,  Catalysts and More

by Russell R. Chianelli

Professor of Chemistry, Materials and Environmental Science and Engineering Director of the Materials Research and Technology Institute.
University of Texas at El Paso 

Solid-state materials science is entering a new period in which complex hybrid materials are coming to the foreground. These materials combine the properties of both the organic and inorganic components in new and useful ways. Two examples will be discussed. The first example is intercalation compounds of MoS2 that combine "hydrogen donor" molecules such as THQ (1,2,3,4, tetrahydroquinoline) with the hydrogenation catalyst yielding new and useful catalytic properties. The second example is the complex organic/inorganic compounds that combine organic dyes with fibrous clays such as Palygorskite. This class of "surface compounds" opens a new area of important industrial pigments and other potential applications. Both examples involve structural studies of highly disordered materials using synchrotron data from SSRL (Stanford Synchrotron Radiation Laboratory) and spectroscopic techniques that will be described. In addition, theoretical studies calculating physical properties will also be discussed.