J.W. Niemantsverdriet Explained

J.W. "Hans" Niemantsverdriet
Occupation:	Physical chemist, surface scientist, academic, author, editor, and research director
Education:	BSc., Physics and Mathematics MSc., Experimental Physics Ph.D., Technical Sciences (Catalysis)
Thesis Title:	A Mossbauer Investigation of Iron and Iron Alloy Fischer-Tropsch Catalysts
Thesis Url:	https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-1-4613-1827-9_34
Thesis Year:	1983
Academic Advisors:	A.M. van de Kraan J.J. van Loef V. Ponec
Workplaces:	Eindhoven University of Technology Syngaschem BV SynCat@Beijing

J.W. "Hans" Niemantsverdriet is a Dutch experimental physical chemist, surface scientist, author, and academic. He is a Professor Emeritus of Physical Chemistry of Surfaces at the Eindhoven University of Technology in the Netherlands and an Honorary Distinguished Professor at the Cardiff Catalysis Institute of Cardiff University.^[1]

Niemantsverdriet's research spans the field of surface science and catalysis. He has authored two textbooks, Spectroscopy in Catalysis,^[2] and Concepts of Modern Catalysis and Kinetics^[3] and has published more than 300 peer-reviewed articles.

Niemantsverdriet served as editor of the Journal of Catalysis^[4] and is the founder of the research enterprises Syngaschem BV, Catsurfchem BV, and SynCat Academy.^[5]

Education

Hans Niemantsverdriet earned his baccalaureate degree in physics and mathematics in 1973 and a master's degree in experimental physics in 1978 from the Free University Amsterdam. He then completed his PhD in technical sciences in 1983 from the Interuniversity Reactor Institute at Delft University under the supervision of A.M. van de Kraan, J.J. van Loef, and V. Ponec (Leiden University) followed by a postdoc from the same institute from 1983 to 1984. His thesis was titled, "A Mossbauer Investigation of Iron and Iron Alloy Fischer-Tropsch Catalysts".^[6]

In 1984, Niemantsverdriet was awarded the ZWO Huygens fellowship, enabling him to conduct research for five years. During this time, he worked at Eindhoven University of Technology (TU/e) in the Laboratory of Roel Prins within the Department of Chemical Engineering and Chemistry. Additionally, from September 1985 to August 1987, he worked and studied with Klaus Wandelt and Gerhard Ertl at the University of Munich and the Fritz-Haber-Institute, Berlin.^[4]

Career

Niemantsverdriet began his academic career as an associate professor at the Eindhoven University of Technology (TU/e) in 1989 and was appointed as a professor in 1999. He retired from TU/e in 2015. In October 2014, Aalto University, formerly known as Helsinki University of Technology, appointed him as Doctor Honoris Causa^[7] and he served as an Honorary Professor at the University of Cape Town from 2018 to 2022.^[8] In 2016, Jiangsu University appointed him Adjunct Professor for life. Since 2013, he has been serving as an Honorary Professor at Cardiff Catalysis Institute of Cardiff University.^[1]

Niemantsverdriet was the Dean of the Department of Chemical Engineering and Chemistry, and later of the Graduate School at the Eindhoven University of Technology, Chair of the Scientific Advisory Board of the School of Chemical Technology at Aalto University, Chair of the Scientific Advisory Board of the Institute of Chemical Engineering Sciences in Singapore, President of the European Federation of Catalysis Societies, and International Advisor and board member of the South African National Centre of Excellence at the University of Cape Town.^[9]

Since 2013, Niemantsverdriet has spent a substantial part of his time in Beijing – Huairou, as co-founder (together with Yong-Wang Li) and Director of SynCat,^[10] the new laboratory for fundamental research in catalysis and materials science of Synfuels China Technology. Associated with SynCat at Beijing and Syngaschem BV^[11] is the branch SynCat@DIFFER in Eindhoven (2016–2023), housed at the Dutch Institute for Fundamental Energy Research at Eindhoven.

Niemantsverdriet has developed and presented courses on how to prepare and give effective presentations at scientific meetings, make efficient posters, and write scientific articles. In collaboration with Ir. Jan Karel Felderhof, he founded Academy,^[12] an organization for courses in catalysis, surface science, and scientific leadership development.^[13] Together they wrote a book on the subject, entitled Scientific Leadership.^[14]

Research

Niemantsverdriet's research has been focused on investigating fundamental principles and mechanisms governing surface reactions and catalytic processes. His work encompasses aspects including surface chemistry, catalytic materials, reaction kinetics, and the development of efficient catalysts. He elucidated the mechanisms and kinetics of elementary reaction steps on surfaces, creating surface science models for sulfide catalysts, and exploring catalysis in syngas conversion.^[15] Fischer-Tropsch synthesis has been a notable research theme throughout his research career.^[16]

Surface science and catalysis

Niemantsverdriet's research primarily revolves around exploring the surface chemistry, which involves studying the reactions and transformations that occur when molecules interact with a solid surface^[17] and their importance in understanding atomic-level information on the structure, composition, and reactivity of supported catalysts.^[18] He disposed over modern surface science spectroscopies, and made use of synchrotrons and used Molecular Modeling (Density Functional Theory) for the interpretation of results.^[19] He specialised in modeling systems with nano particles^[20] or layered phases^[21] on planar supports and broadening the scope to organometallics,^[22] electrocatalysis^[23] and photocatalysis.^[24]

Collaborative research efforts

Niemantsverdriet's collaborative research has encompassed a range of fields, involving Fischer-Tropsch synthesis with Jan van de Loosdrecht^[25] and Philip Gibson; Hans Fredriksson, and Kees-Jan Weststrate,^[26] coordination chemistry with Jannie Swarts,^[27] and theoretical modeling in collaboration with Dani Curulla-Ferre,^[17] Jose Gracia,^[28] and Olusz Ozbek.^[29] Working together with Peter Thüne, they explored polymerization catalysis, using that polymerization and crystallization of polyolefins on flat model catalysts serves as an effective method for investigating polymer physics and crystal formation.^[30] Through collaborative research with Rob van Veen, Thomas Weber, Gurram Kishan, and Armando Borgna, they investigated several methods of preparing hydrodesulfurization catalysts and the studying reaction kinetics.^[31] Later, with Foteini Sapountzi, the interests broadened to include the field of electrocatalysis^[32] and they contributed among others a review on the electrochemical splitting of water to the literature.^[33]

In conjunction with Ben Nieuwenhuys, Niemantsverdriet contributed to the field of surface science. They studied the adsorption of CO and NO on various gold and rhodium surfaces, including low index and stepped surfaces.^[34] His collaboration with Yong-Wang Li and Kees-Jan Weststrate has also yielded numerous publications on fundamental surface science in the context of Fischer-Tropsch Synthesis.

Publications

Books

• Spectroscopy in Catalysis (1993) ISBN 978-3527302000
• Chemical Kinetics & Catalysis, with R.A. van Santen (1995) ISBN 978-0306450273
• Concepts of Modern Catalysis and Kinetics, with I. Chorkendorff (2003) ISBN 978-3527332687
• Scientific Leadership, with J.K. Felderhof (2017) ISBN 978-3110468885

Selected articles

• Niemantsverdriet, J. W., Van der Kraan, A. M., Van Dijk, W. L., & Van der Baan, H. S. (1980). Behavior of metallic iron catalysts during Fischer-Tropsch synthesis studied with Mossbauer spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, carbon content determination, and reaction kinetic measurements. The Journal of Physical Chemistry, 84(25), 3363–3370.
• De Jong, A. M., & Niemantsverdriet, J. W. (1990). Thermal desorption analysis: Comparative test of ten commonly applied procedures. Surface Science, 233(3), 355–365.
• Weber, T., Muijsers, J. C., Van Wolput, J. H. M. C., Verhagen, C. P. J., & Niemantsverdriet, J. W. (1996). Basic reaction steps in the sulfidation of crystalline MoO3 to MoS2, as studied by X-ray photoelectron and infrared emission spectroscopy. The Journal of Physical Chemistry, 100(33), 14144–14150.
• Gunter, P. L., Niemantsverdriet, J. W., Ribeiro, F. H., & Somorjai, G. A. (1997). Surface science approach to modeling supported catalysts. Catalysis Reviews, 39(1–2), 77–168.
• Saib, A.M., Moodley, D.J., Ciobîcă, I.M., Hauman, M.M., Sigwebela, B.H., Weststrate, C.J., Niemantsverdriet, J.W. and Van de Loosdrecht, J. (2010). Fundamental understanding of deactivation and regeneration of cobalt Fischer–Tropsch synthesis catalysts. Catalysis Today, 154(3–4), 271–282.
• Sapountzi, F. M., Gracia, J. M., Fredriksson, H. O., Weststrate C.J., & Niemantsverdriet, J. H. (2017). Electrocatalysts for the generation of hydrogen, oxygen and synthesis gas. Progress in Energy and Combustion Science, 58, 1–35.
• Dai, Y., Li, C., Shen, Y., Lim, T., Xu, J., Li, Y., Niemantsverdriet, H., Besenbacher, F., Lock, N. and Su, R. (2017). Light-tuned selective photosynthesis of azo-and azoxy-aromatics using graphitic C3N4. Nature communications, 9(1), 60.
• Weststrate, C. J., Sharma, D., Garcia Rodriguez, D., Gleeson, M. A., Fredriksson, H. O., & Niemantsverdriet, J. W. (2019). Mechanistic insight into carbon-carbon bond formation on cobalt under simulated Fischer-Tropsch synthesis conditions. Nature communications, 11(1), 750.
• Guo, W., Yin, J., Xu, Z., Li, W., Peng, Z., Weststrate, C. J., Yu, X., He, Y., Cao, Z., Wen, X., Yang, Y., Wu. K., Li. Y., Niemantsverdriet, J. W., & Zhou. X. (2022). Visualization of on-surface ethylene polymerization through ethylene insertion. Science, 375(6585), 1188–1191.

Notes and References

1. Web site: Prof. Hans Niemantsverdriet – SynCat@Beijing.
2. Book: Spectroscopy in Catalysis . 2007 . 10.1002/9783527611348 . Niemantsverdriet . J. W. . 9783527316519 .
3. Book: Concepts of Modern Catalysis and Kinetics . 8 October 2003 . Wiley . 10.1002/3527602658 .
4. Web site: Prof.Dr. J.W. (Hans) Niemantsverdriet (1951). 22 April 2022.
5. Web site: Scientificleaders – Scientificleaders.
6. Book: https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-1-4613-1827-9_34. Mössbauer Spectroscopy of Iron and Iron Alloy Fischer-Tropsch Catalysts. 10.1007/978-1-4613-1827-9_34 . Industrial Applications of the Mössbauer Effect . 1986 . Van Der Kraan . A. M. . Niemantsverdriet . J. W. . 609–634 . 978-1-4612-9021-6 .
7. Web site: Honorary Doctorate surprised at Ceremonial Conferment – Aalto University. 14 October 2014.
8. Web site: Academic Staff – University of Cape Town.
9. Web site: Honorary Professorship for Hans Niemantsverdriet at University of Cape Town – Syngaschem BV.
10. Web site: SynCat@Beijing – SynCat@Beijing.
11. Web site: Syngaschem BV.
12. Web site: Our vision – SynCat@Beijing.
13. Web site: CatalysisCourse.com. www.catalysiscourse.com.
14. Web site: Scientific Leadership by J. W. (Hans) Niemantsverdriet, Jan-Karel Felderhof | Waterstones.
15. Behavior of metallic iron catalysts during Fischer-Tropsch synthesis studied with Mössbauer spectroscopy, x-ray diffraction, carbon content determination, and reaction kinetic measurements. 1980 . 10.1021/j100462a011 . Niemantsverdriet . J. W. . Van Der Kraan . A. M. . Van Dijk . W. L. . Van Der Baan . H. S. . The Journal of Physical Chemistry . 84 . 25 . 3363–3370 .
16. Book: Fischer-Tropsch synthesis: catalysts and chemistry. 2013 . 10.1016/B978-0-08-097774-4.00729-4 . Van De Loosdrecht . J. . Botes . F.G. . Ciobica . I.M. . Ferreira . A. . Gibson . P. . Moodley . D.J. . Saib . A.M. . Visagie . J.L. . Weststrate . C.J. . Niemantsverdriet . J.W. . 525–557 . 9780080965291 .
17. A DFT Study of the Adsorption and Dissociation of CO on Fe(100): Influence of Surface Coverage on the Nature of Accessible Adsorption States – Bromfield – 2005 – ChemPhysChem – Wiley Online Library. ChemPhysChem . 11 February 2005 . 6 . 2 . 254–260 . 10.1002/cphc.200400452 . Bromfield . Tracy C. . Curulla Ferré . Daniel . Niemantsverdriet . J. W. . 15751347 .
18. Surface Science Approach to Modeling Supported Catalysts. 1997 . 10.1080/01614949708006469 . Gunter . Pieter L. J. . (Hans) Niemantsverdriet . J. W. . Ribeiro . Fabio H. . Somorjai . Gabor A. . Catalysis Reviews . 39 . 1–2 . 77–168 .
19. A Density Functional Theory Study on the Effect of Zero-Point Energy Corrections on the Methanation Profile on Fe(100). 2012 . 10.1002/cphc.201100733 . Govender . Ashriti . Curulla Ferré . Daniel . Niemantsverdriet . J. W. Hans . ChemPhysChem . 13 . 6 . 1591–1596 . 22419545 .
20. Iron oxide nanoparticles on flat oxidic surfaces—Introducing a new model catalyst for Fischer–Tropsch catalysis. 2010 . 10.1016/j.cattod.2010.03.020 . Moodley . P. . Scheijen . F.J.E. . Niemantsverdriet . J.W. . Thüne . P.C. . Catalysis Today . 154 . 1–2 . 142–148 .
21. Preparation and surface characterization of silica-supported ZrO2 catalysts; comparison of layered model systems with powder catalysts. 1992 . 10.1002/sia.740180607 . De Jong . A. M. . Eshelman . L. M. . Van Ijzendoorn . L. J. . Niemantsverdriet . J. W. . Surface and Interface Analysis . 18 . 6 . 412–416 . 97099507 .
22. Oxidation state of platinum in oxidative-addition reactions and .eta.1-iodine products from dihalogen reactions with organoplatinum(II) complexes, as inferred from monochromatic x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. 1992 . 10.1021/ic00038a064 . Muijsers . J. C. . Niemantsverdriet . J. W. . Wehman-Ooyevaar . I. C. M. . Grove . D. M. . Van Koten . G. . Inorganic Chemistry . 31 . 12 . 2655–2658 .
23. Electrocatalysts for the generation of hydrogen, oxygen and synthesis gas. 2017 . 10.1016/j.pecs.2016.09.001 . Sapountzi . Foteini M. . Gracia . Jose M. . Weststrate . C.J. (Kees-Jan) . Fredriksson . Hans O.A. . Niemantsverdriet . J.W. (Hans) . Progress in Energy and Combustion Science . 58 . 1–35 . free .
24. Mechanistic Insight into the Interaction Between a Titanium Dioxide Photocatalyst and Pd Cocatalyst for Improved Photocatalytic Performance. 2016 . 10.1021/acscatal.6b00982 . Su . Ren . Dimitratos . Nikolaos . Liu . Jinjia . Carter . Emma . Althahban . Sultan . Wang . Xueqin . Shen . Yanbin . Wendt . Stefan . Wen . Xiaodong . (Hans) Niemantsverdriet . J. W. . Iversen . Bo B. . Kiely . Christopher J. . Hutchings . Graham J. . Besenbacher . Flemming . ACS Catalysis . 6 . 7 . 4239–4247 . free .
25. Carbon deposition as a deactivation mechanism of cobalt-based Fischer–Tropsch synthesis catalysts under realistic conditions – ScienceDirect . Applied Catalysis A: General . 15 February 2009 . 354 . 1 . 102–110 . 10.1016/j.apcata.2008.11.015 . Moodley . D. J. . Van De Loosdrecht . J. . Saib . A. M. . Overett . M. J. . Datye . A. K. . Niemantsverdriet . J. W. .
26. Spectroscopic insights into cobalt-catalyzed Fischer-Tropsch synthesis: A review of the carbon monoxide interaction with single crystalline surfaces of cobalt – ScienceDirect. Journal of Catalysis . October 2016 . 342 . 1–16 . 10.1016/j.jcat.2016.07.010 . Weststrate . C. J. . Van De Loosdrecht . J. . Niemantsverdriet . J. W. .
27. Silica Nanopowder Supported Frustrated Lewis Pairs for CO2 Capture and Conversion to Formic Acid – Inorganic Chemistry. Inorganic Chemistry . 4 January 2021 . 60 . 1 . 55–69 . 10.1021/acs.inorgchem.0c02012 . Mentoor . Kgauhelo . Twigge . Linette . Niemantsverdriet . J. W. Hans . Swarts . Jannie C. . Erasmus . Elizabeth . 33351611 . 229696445 .
28. Chemistry of O- and H-Containing Species on the (001) Surface of Anatase TiO2: A DFT Study – Hussain – 2010 – ChemPhysChem – Wiley Online Library. ChemPhysChem . 23 June 2010 . 11 . 11 . 2375–2382 . 10.1002/cphc.201000185 . Hussain . Akhtar . Gracia . Jose . Nieuwenhuys . Ben E. . Niemantsverdriet . J. W. Hans . 20575137 .
29. Modeling the Surface Chemistry of Sugars: Glycolaldehyde on Rhodium (100) . 2015 . 10.1021/acs.jpcc.5b05916 . Caglar . Basar . Ozbek . M. Olus . Niemantsverdriet . J. W. (Hans) . Weststrate . C. J. (Kees-Jan) . The Journal of Physical Chemistry C . 119 . 40 . 22915–22923 .
30. Polymerization and Crystallization of Polyethylene on a Flat Model Catalyst. 1999 . 10.1021/ma990891z . Loos . J. . Thüne . P. C. . Niemantsverdriet . J. W. . Lemstra . P. J. . Macromolecules . 32 . 26 . 8910–8913 . 1999MaMol..32.8910L .
31. Basic Reaction Steps in the Sulfidation of Crystalline Tungsten Oxides – The Journal of Physical Chemistry B. The Journal of Physical Chemistry B . April 2002 . 106 . 13 . 3449–3457 . 10.1021/jp0138734 . van der Vlies . A. J. . Kishan . G. . Niemantsverdriet . J. W. . Prins . R. . Weber . Th .
32. Spark Ablation for the Fabrication of PEM Water Electrolysis Catalyst-Coated Membranes. 2022 . 10.3390/catal12111343 . free . Sapountzi . Foteini M. . Lavorenti . Marek . Vrijburg . Wilbert . Dimitriadou . Sofia . Tyburska-Pueschel . Beata . Thüne . Peter . Niemantsverdriet . Hans . Pfeiffer . Tobias V. . Tsampas . Mihalis N. . Catalysts . 12 . 11 . 1343 .
33. FeP Nanocatalyst with Preferential [010] Orientation Boosts the Hydrogen Evolution Reaction in Polymer-Electrolyte Membrane Electrolyzer – Energy & Fuels ]. Energy & Fuels . 21 May 2020 . 34 . 5 . 6423–6429 . 10.1021/acs.energyfuels.0c00793 . Sapountzi . Foteini M. . Orlova . Elena D. . Sousa . Juliana P. S. . Salonen . Laura M. . Lebedev . Oleg I. . Zafeiropoulos . Georgios . Tsampas . Mihalis N. . Niemantsverdriet . Hans J. W. . Kolen'Ko . Yury V. . 216195201 .
34. DFT study of CO and NO adsorption on low index and stepped surfaces of gold – ScienceDirect. Surface Science . September 2009 . 603 . 17 . 2734–2741 . 10.1016/j.susc.2009.07.023 . Hussain . A. . Curulla Ferré . D. . Gracia . J. . Nieuwenhuys . B. E. . Niemantsverdriet . J. W. .