🚀 go-pugleaf

Lithography has been used to fabricate a series of catalytic
towers on a chip (Science 20 Nov. '92, pg. 1337).  The towers
consist of alternating layers of SiO2 4.1 nm thick and Ni
2-10 nm thick.  The deposition process achieves nearly one atom
thickness control for both SiO2 and Ni.

Previously it was thought that positioning in three dimensions
was required for good catalysis, but this catalyst's nanoscale 1-d 
surface force reagants into the proper binding pattern.  It
achieved six times the reaction rate of traditional cluster catalysts 
on the hydrogenolysis of ethane to methane, C2H6 + H2 --> 2CH4.
The thickness of the nickel and silicon dioxide layers can be varied 
to match the size of molecules to be reacted.


Nick Szabo					szabo@techbook.com