Kim W. Cheung

Applied Materials and Surface Science Laboratory

Research:

Novel Materials for High Temp Microreactors

My research exploits a new process for depositing catalytic metal films in the fabrication of microreactor structures for operation at high temperatures using reactive gases.  My main focus is to look at the galvanic displacement of Rh films onto Si for catalytic use in microreactors running dry reforming of methane.  A unique feature of this deposition process is that the Rh is formed selectively on Si allowing for successful masking by SiC or Si₃N₄, at relatively low temperatures. 

My research involves: (i) characterizing Rh films from different Rh precursor salts catalytically as well as with AFM, XPS, SEM, and XRD; (ii) probing the mechanistic details of galvanic displacement and (iii) performing reactor studies to compare the performance of my novel catalytic films to Rh on traditional supports.

Master Thesis:

Novel Materials for High Temp Microreactors