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Updated: Feb 18, 2026

Development of Heterogeneous Enantioselective Catalysts using Chiral Metal-Organic Frameworks MOFs
Published on: January 17, 2020
Heterogeneous Catalysis "On Demand": Mechanically Controlled Catalytic Activity of a Metal Surface
Tomasz Mazur1, Slawomir Lach1, Bartosz A Grzybowski1
1IBS Center for Soft and Living Matter and the Department of Chemistry, Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology , Ulsan, South Korea.
Abstract:
A metal surface passivated with a tightly packed self-assembled monolayer (SAM) can be made catalytically active upon the metal's mechanical deformation. This deformation renders the SAM sparser and exposes additional catalytic sites on the metal's surface. If the deformation is elastic, return of the metal to the original shape "heals" the SAM and nearly extinguishes the catalytic activity. Kelvin probe force microscopy and theoretical considerations both indicate that the catalytic domains "opening up" in the deformed SAM are of nanoscopic dimensions.
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