MCEC Newsletter December 2022



In our latest MCEC Newsletter you can read about:

  • Catalysis Connected 2022
  • MCEC @ Weekend van de Wetenschap 2022
  • Ferdy Coumans (TU/e) visits University of Hokkaido in Sapporo Japan
  • Scientific Research Community: WOG – Catalysis for Carbon Capture and Utilisation (CCU)
  • MCEC Publications

Important dates:

  • Now – January 31 2023: Abstract submission EuropaCat
  • Now – February 15 2023: Abstract submission IUPAC CHAINS
  • March 6 – 8 2023: NCCC, The Netherlands’ Catalysis and Chemistry Conference

Get in touch with us on LinkedIn!

Catalysis Connected 2022

Back in September the second edition of Catalysis Connected was held in Eindhoven. As you may remember, Catalysis Connected is a collaboration of three research partners: ARC CBBC, CAPTURE, and of course MCEC Research Center. We thank EFCATS ( European Federation of Catalysis Societies) for sponsoring our event.

The event brought together a diverse group of junior and senior researchers, scientists and industry professionals in the field of catalysis. There was plenty of time to mingle and discuss research topics during the five different focus sessions. We want to thank all MCEC speakers once more for their interesting, inspiring and high quality talks.

Keynote talks were given by:

In addition conference host Bert Weckhuysen officially opened Catalysis Connected with an inspirational talk.

By the end of the conference Thimo Jacobs (UU) was announced winner of the poster session.

Read more about Catalysis Connected –>

MCEC @ Weekend van de Wetenschap 2022

On October 2nd 2022 all major Universities in the Netherlands opened its doors for young and old to figure out the answers to questions like: What is so much fun about playing? Which bone belongs to which animal? Where is the plastic soup?

MCEC attended this festival of science at Utrecht Science Park with two Demonstrator Projects: Storing Green Energy for the Future and the Plastic Waste Game. During the workshops kids discovered how green energy can be stored so we can continue to use it in the future and they learned which choices they can make to minimize plastic waste.

Ferdy Coumans (TU/e) visits University of Hokkaido in Sapporo Japan

Ferdy Coumans (TU/e) visited the University of Hokkaido in Sapporo Japan to investigate the conversion of protected furanic compounds. We asked him a couple of questions about his stay:

I went to the University of Hokkaido in Sapporo Japan. The original goal of the project was to investigate the conversion of protected furanic compounds. The group I went to has a history in synthesizing these compounds: Dr. Jan Wiesfeld and Prof. Kiyotaka Nakajima from the Institute of Catalysis (hokudai.ac.jp)
The trip was quite successful. We managed to synthesize the compounds in >90% purity. Working in a laboratory in Japan is not much different than in Europe (except the language barrier). However, I experienced that the Western view of Japan is not entirely accurate. Unfortunately, this visit took place in my final year due to the strict covid measures in Japan. It would have been nicer if I could have gone a bit earlier during my PhD, although I am pleased that I was still able to go.

Are you thinking of visiting a lab abroad or do you want to know more about Ferdy’s experiences in Japan (and Western view of Japan for that matter)? Get in touch with Ferdy –>

Scientific Research Community: WOG – Catalysis for Carbon Capture and Utilisation (CCU)

‘Catalysis for CCU’ is a multidisciplinary network of scientists, connected with well-established research groups in Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands, focused on Carbon Capture and Utilization (CCU) technologies as an essential step to developing the know-how for a low-carbon circular economy. MCEC is a partner in this network, set up by CAPTURE.

So, if you:

  • are looking for an expert for a Master or PhD defense within the field of CCU
  • want to share your lecture or seminar with a broad audience
  • need sponsoring for a CCU related event that is open for external applicants
  • want to send your PhD or PD researchers to one of the affiliated research groups in Belgium (all partners of CAPTURE) or Germany (the group of prof. Walter Leitner) for an internship
  • are looking for partners in a new funding application

Please contact us via science.mcecoffice@uu.nl for more information and we will connect you to the CCU project officer from CAPTURE.

MCEC Publications

Have a look at the latest MCEC Publications:

Structure Sensitivity of CO2 Conversion over Nickel Metal Nanoparticles Explained by Micro-Kinetics Simulations
Ellen B. Sterk, Anne-Eva Nieuwelink, Matteo Monai, Jaap N. Louwen, Eelco T. C. Vogt, Ivo A. W. Filot, Bert M. Weckhuysen
JACS Au – 14 October 2022

Fabrication of Si-Au nanocone-nanoparticle array for homogeneous enhancement factor in Raman scattering(Conference Paper)
Srivastava, K., Jonker, D., Lafuente, M., Susarrey-Arce, A., van den Berg, A., Gardeniers, H.J.G.E., van der Stam, W., Odijk, M.
Proceedings of SPIE – The International Society for Optical Engineering – Volume 12197, October 2022

Classification-based motion analysis of single-molecule trajectories using DiffusionLab
Maris, J.J.E., Rabouw, F.T., Weckhuysen, B.M., Meirer, F.
Scientific Reports – Volume 12, Issue 1, December 2022