{"id":29151,"date":"2026-02-12T15:51:00","date_gmt":"2026-02-12T14:51:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/materialneutral.info\/project\/nemkat\/"},"modified":"2026-03-30T14:41:17","modified_gmt":"2026-03-30T12:41:17","slug":"nemkat","status":"publish","type":"project","link":"https:\/\/materialneutral.info\/en\/project\/nemkat\/","title":{"rendered":"NEMKAT"},"content":{"rendered":"

Base metals as substitutes for precious metals in catalysis<\/h2>\n

NEMKAT investigates the replacement of precious metals with non-precious metals in homogeneous catalysis. The focus lies on applications in the pharmaceutical and fine chemical industries. This approach aims to save critical raw materials and reduce environmental impacts.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Untersuchung
Investigation of potential catalysts through parallel reactions in well-plates @ Ruhr-Universität Bochum<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The joint project NEMKAT addresses a key challenge facing the pharmaceutical and chemical industries: their heavy dependence on platinum group metals (PGMs), which are predominantly imported from politically and economically unstable regions.<\/p>\n

The aim of the project is to develop a portfolio of high-performance non-PGM-based homogeneous catalysts that can replace PGMs in important reaction classes of pharmaceutical synthesis. To this end, nickel<\/a>, copper<\/a>, cobal<\/a>t and manganese<\/a> catalysts are being systematically screened for a wide range of relevant reactions, further developed and made available in scalable manufacturing processes.<\/p>\n

The project combines expertise from industry, academic research and process development. Umicore coordinates the project management, the development and manufacture of precursors and intermediates, as well as safety testing and analytical characterisation. Ruhr University Bochum is developing catalytic precursors and ligands and is carrying out screening and catalytic optimisation work.<\/p>\n

In addition, NEMKAT contributes to the substitution of critical raw materials, the improvement of the CO2<\/sub> balance and the reduction of potential environmental impacts. The project also focuses on digitalisation according to FAIR principles in order to make catalyst data interoperable and sustainable.<\/p>\n

Close cooperation between all partners is intended to create a technological basis that will significantly advance the large-scale use of non-precious metal catalysts in the pharmaceutical and chemical industries.<\/p>\n

As part of the project, Ruhr University Bochum (Prof. Dr. Lukas Gooßen and Prof. Dr. Viktoria Däschlein-Gessner) is responsible for the development, optimisation and data-based further development of novel nickel catalysts. Model-based catalyst development is carried out using machine learning methods. On this basis, suitable nickel precursors are identified, potential catalyst precursors are selected and suitable ligand systems are defined. The selected components are synthetically implemented and combined to form a structurally diversified catalyst library. The nickel systems developed in this way are compared with established palladium catalysts in terms of activity, selectivity and range of applications. At the same time, a concept for targeted catalyst activation is being developed and experimentally validated.<\/p>\n

In parallel, the catalysts are systematically screened in suitable model reactions. The aim is to identify high-performance systems and optimise them in a targeted manner. To this end, automated test procedures are being established to ensure reproducible and efficient screening processes. One focus is on the analysis of structure-activity relationships in order to understand the molecular determinants of catalytic performance. The experimental data obtained is iteratively incorporated into AI-supported models, which are used to predict and specifically improve further catalyst structures.<\/p>\n

All catalytic data generated in the project is recorded and digitised in a structured manner at the RUB. A connection to existing research data infrastructures, in particular NFDI4Cat and Material-Digital, ensures interoperability and long-term reusability.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"template":"","cluster":[],"modul":[531],"class_list":["post-29151","project","type-project","status-publish","hentry","modul-modul-2"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nNEMKAT - MANTRA<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/materialneutral.info\/en\/project\/nemkat\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"NEMKAT - MANTRA\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Base metals as substitutes for precious metals in catalysis NEMKAT investigates the replacement of precious metals with non-precious metals in […]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/materialneutral.info\/en\/project\/nemkat\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"MANTRA\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-03-30T12:41:17+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/materialneutral.info\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Katalysaturen-Lab_RUB.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1390\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1020\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/materialneutral.info\\\/en\\\/project\\\/nemkat\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/materialneutral.info\\\/en\\\/project\\\/nemkat\\\/\",\"name\":\"NEMKAT - 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