<< Chapter < Page Chapter >> Page >

Introduction

Surface area is a property of immense importance in the nano-world, especially in the area of heterogeneous catalysis. A solid catalyst works with its active sites binding to the reactants, and hence for a given active site reactivity, the higher the number of active sites available, the faster the reaction will occur. In heterogeneous catalysis, if the catalyst is in the form of spherical nanoparticles, most of the active sites are believed to be present on the outer surface. Thus it is very important to know the catalyst surface area in order to get a measure of the reaction time. One expresses this in terms of volume specific surface area, i.e., surface area/volume although in industry it is quite common to express it as surface area per unit mass of catalyst, e.g., m 2 /g.

Overview of nmr

Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) is the study of the nuclei of the response of an atom to an external magnetic field. Many nuclei have a net magnetic moment with I 0 , along with an angular momentum in one direction where I is the spin quantum number of the nucleus. In the presence of an external magnetic field, a nucleus would precess around the field. With all the nuclei precessing around the external magnetic field, a measurable signal is produced.

NMR can be used on any nuclei with an odd number of protons or neutrons or both, like the nuclei of hydrogen ( 1 H), carbon ( 13 C), phosphorous ( 31 P), etc. Hydrogen has a relatively large magnetic moment (μ = 14.1 x 10 -27 J/T) and hence it is used in NMR logging and NMR rock studies. The hydrogen nucleus composes of a single positively charged proton that can be seen as a loop of current generating a magnetic field. It is may be considered as a tiny bar magnet with the magnetic axis along the spin axis itself as shown in [link] . In the absence of any external forces, a sample with hydrogen alone will have the individual magnetic moments randomly aligned as shown in [link] .

A simplistic representation of a spinning nucleus as bar magnet. Copyright: Halliburton Energy Services, Duncan, OK (1999).
Representation of randomly aligned hydrogen nuclei. Copyright: Halliburton Energy Services, Duncan, OK (1999).

Advantages of nmr over bet technique

BET measurements follow the BET (Brunner-Emmet-Teller) adsorption isotherm of a gas on a solid surface. Adsorption experiments of a gas of known composition can help determine the specific surface area of the solid particle. This technique has been the main source of surface area analysis used industrially for a long time. However BET techniques take a lot of time for the gas-adsorption step to be complete while one shall see in the course of this module that NMR can give you results in times averaging around 30 minutes depending on the sample. BET also requires careful sample preparation with the sample being in dry powder form, whereas NMR can accept samples in the liquid state as well.

How does nmr work?

Polarization

Polarization involves the alignment of the individual magnetic nuclei in the presence of a static external magnetic field B o . This external field exerts a torque that forces the spinning nuclei to precess around it by a frequency given by the Larmor frequency given by [link] , where γ is the gyromagnetic ratio which is a characteristic property of the nucleus. For hydrogen, γ/2π = 42.58 MHz/Tesla. This value is different for different elements.

Questions & Answers

what is mutation
Janga Reply
what is a cell
Sifune Reply
how is urine form
Sifune
what is antagonism?
mahase Reply
classification of plants, gymnosperm features.
Linsy Reply
what is the features of gymnosperm
Linsy
how many types of solid did we have
Samuel Reply
what is an ionic bond
Samuel
What is Atoms
Daprince Reply
what is fallopian tube
Merolyn
what is bladder
Merolyn
what's bulbourethral gland
Eduek Reply
urine is formed in the nephron of the renal medulla in the kidney. It starts from filtration, then selective reabsorption and finally secretion
onuoha Reply
State the evolution relation and relevance between endoplasmic reticulum and cytoskeleton as it relates to cell.
Jeremiah
what is heart
Konadu Reply
how is urine formed in human
Konadu
how is urine formed in human
Rahma
what is the diference between a cavity and a canal
Pelagie Reply
what is the causative agent of malaria
Diamond
malaria is caused by an insect called mosquito.
Naomi
Malaria is cause by female anopheles mosquito
Isaac
Malaria is caused by plasmodium Female anopheles mosquitoe is d carrier
Olalekan
a canal is more needed in a root but a cavity is a bad effect
Commander
what are pathogens
Don Reply
In biology, a pathogen (Greek: πάθος pathos "suffering", "passion" and -γενής -genēs "producer of") in the oldest and broadest sense, is anything that can produce disease. A pathogen may also be referred to as an infectious agent, or simply a germ. The term pathogen came into use in the 1880s.[1][2
Zainab
A virus
Commander
Definition of respiration
Muhsin Reply
respiration is the process in which we breath in oxygen and breath out carbon dioxide
Achor
how are lungs work
Commander
where does digestion begins
Achiri Reply
in the mouth
EZEKIEL
what are the functions of follicle stimulating harmones?
Rashima Reply
stimulates the follicle to release the mature ovum into the oviduct
Davonte
what are the functions of Endocrine and pituitary gland
Chinaza
endocrine secrete hormone and regulate body process
Achor
while pituitary gland is an example of endocrine system and it's found in the Brain
Achor
what's biology?
Egbodo Reply
Biology is the study of living organisms, divided into many specialized field that cover their morphology, physiology,anatomy, behaviour,origin and distribution.
Lisah
biology is the study of life.
Alfreda
Biology is the study of how living organisms live and survive in a specific environment
Sifune
Got questions? Join the online conversation and get instant answers!
Jobilize.com Reply

Get Jobilize Job Search Mobile App in your pocket Now!

Get it on Google Play Download on the App Store Now




Source:  OpenStax, Nanomaterials and nanotechnology. OpenStax CNX. May 07, 2014 Download for free at http://legacy.cnx.org/content/col10700/1.13
Google Play and the Google Play logo are trademarks of Google Inc.

Notification Switch

Would you like to follow the 'Nanomaterials and nanotechnology' conversation and receive update notifications?

Ask