Professor Mike Bowker
Professor of Surface Science and Deputy Director of the Cardiff Catalysis Institute
- Email:
- bowkerm@cardiff.ac.uk
- Telephone:
- +44 (0)29 2087 0120
- Fax:
- +44 (0)29 2087 4030
- Media commentator
Prof. Bowker leads the Heterogeneous Catalysis and Surface Science group in Cardiff, consisting of nine academic members of staff and 70 researchers. He founded the Wolfson Nanoscience Laboratory at Cardiff in 2006 and is Deputy Director of the recently established Cardiff Catalysis Institute. His research has focused on surface structure/reactivity and catalysis, ranging from theoretical studies of the effect of sintering on product yields, to selective oxidation catalysis on oxide nanomaterials, to studies of adsorption on well-defined surfaces. He has used STM for 20 years to study various aspects of surface structure and reactivity, pioneering the use of high temperature, atomic resolution STM in this field. The group continues to focus on aspects of surface science and catalysis, now extending to include nanofabrication, nanoengineering and bio-surface interactions.
Links
Research Group: Cardiff Catalysis Institute
PhD in Surface Science, University of Liverpool, 1977, supervisor Prof David King
Research Fellow, Dept. Chem. Eng., Stanford University, California, with Prof R.J. Madix 1977-9, working on catalytic reactions on well-defined surfaces.
Senior Research Scientist, ICI Corporate Laboratory, Runcorn, England 1979-87. Working on various aspects of industrial catalysis, using traditional catalytic methods and surface science. Reactions included ethylene epoxidation, ammonia synthesis, methanol synthesis, shift reaction and others.
Founding Assistant Director, Leverhulme Centre for Innovative Catalysis,Dept. Chemistry, University of Liverpool. 1987-93. Developing this centre from foundation. Covering a range of catalytic processes and surface science.
Principal Scientist, IRC in Surface Science, 1988-95. Again, a founding member of this centre, leading a team devoted to the study of adsorption, reactions and structure of well-defined surfaces.
Professor and Head of Physical Chemistry, Department of Chemistry, University of Reading, 1993-2003. Responsible for organising Physical Chemistry teaching, researching aspects of surface science and catalysis and developing physical chemistry research in the department.
Professor of Surface Chemistry, School of Chemistry, Cardiff University, 2003. Head of Heterogeneous Catalysis and Surfaces Group. Development of surface science of nano particles. Focus on Slective oxidation catalysis and photocatalysis. Founder of the Wolfson Nanoscience Laboratory, 2006. Appointed Deputy Director, Cardiff Catalysis Institute, 2009
2018
- Brookes, C.et al. 2018. Correction: In situ spectroscopic investigations of MoOx/Fe2O3 catalysts for the selective oxidation of methanol. Catalysis Science & Technology 8(11), pp. 2998. (10.1039/C8CY90033G)
- Bahruji, H.et al. 2018. Hydrogenation of CO2 to dimethyl ether over brønsted acidic PdZn catalysts. Industrial and Engineering Chemistry Research 57(20), pp. 6821-6829. (10.1021/acs.iecr.8b00230)
- Bahruji, H.et al. 2018. Solvent free synthesis of PdZn/TiO2 catalysts for the hydrogenation of CO2 to methanol. Topics in Catalysis 61(3-4), pp. 144-153. (10.1007/s11244-018-0885-6)
- Kennedy, J.et al. 2018. Hydrogen generation by photocatalytic reforming of potential biofuels: polyols, cyclic alcohols and saccharides. Journal of Photochemistry and Photobiology A: Chemistry 356, pp. 451-456. (10.1016/j.jphotochem.2018.01.031)
2017
- Hellier, P.et al. 2017. VOx/Fe2O3 Shell-Core Catalysts for the selective oxidation of methanol to formaldehyde. Topics in Catalysis (10.1007/s11244-017-0873-2)
- Bahruji, H.et al. 2017. PdZn catalysts for CO2 hydrogenation to methanol using chemical vapour impregnation (CVI). Faraday Discussions (10.1039/C6FD00189K)
- Hayward, J.et al. 2017. The effects of secondary oxides on copper-based catalysts for green methanol synthesis. ChemCatChem 9(9), pp. 1655-1662. (10.1002/cctc.201601692)
- Niemantsverdriet, H.et al. 2017. Catalysis for fuels: general discussion. Faraday Discussions 197, pp. 165-205. (10.1039/C7FD90010D)
- Sharpe, R., Counsell, J. D. and Bowker, M. 2017. Pd segregation to the surface of Au on Pd(111) and on Pd/TiO2(110). Surface Science 656, pp. 60-65. (10.1016/j.susc.2016.10.005)
- Jones, W. V.et al. 2017. A comparison of photocatalytic reforming reactions of methanol and triethanolamine with Pd supported on titania and graphitic carbon nitride. Applied Catalysis B: Environmental (10.1016/j.apcatb.2017.01.042)
- Subramanian, N.et al. 2017. Sustainable hydrogen and/or syngas production: new approaches to reforming. In: Hutchings, G. J. et al. eds. Modern Developments in Catalysis. World Scientific Publishing, pp. 1-39., (10.1142/9781786341228_0001)
2016
- Chutia, A.et al. 2016. Adsorption of formate species on Cu(h,k,l) low index surfaces. Surface Science 653, pp. 45-54. (10.1016/j.susc.2016.05.002)
- Bahruji, H.et al. 2016. Pd/ZnO catalysts for direct CO2 hydrogenation to methanol. Journal of Catalysis 343, pp. 133-146. (10.1016/j.jcat.2016.03.017)
- Caravaca, A.et al. 2016. H2 production by the photocatalytic reforming of cellulose and raw biomass using Ni, Pd, Pt and Au on titania. Proceedings of the Royal Society A: Mathematical, Physical and Engineering Science 472(2191), article number: 20160054. (10.1098/rspa.2016.0054)
- Brookes, C., Bowker, M. and Wells, P. B. 2016. Catalysts for the selective oxidation of methanol. Catalysts 6(7), article number: 92. (10.3390/catal6070092)
- Yeo, B.et al. 2016. The surface of iron molybdate catalysts used for the selective oxidation of methanol. Surface Science 648, pp. 163-169. (10.1016/j.susc.2015.11.010)
- Yang, Q.et al. 2016. Exploring the mechanisms of metal co-catalysts in photocatalytic reduction reactions: Is Ag a good candidate?. Applied Catalysis A: General 518, pp. 213-220. (10.1016/j.apcata.2015.10.023)
- Rogers, S.et al. 2016. The adsorbed state of a thiol on palladium nanoparticles. Physical Chemistry Chemical Physics 18, pp. 17265-17271. (10.1039/C6CP00957C)
- Bowker, M. 2016. The role of precursor states in adsorption, surface reactions and catalysis. Topics in Catalysis 59(8-9), pp. 663-670. (10.1007/s11244-016-0538-6)
- Bowker, M. and Waugh, K. C. 2016. From surface science to catalysis: The importance of methoxy and formate species on Cu single crystals and industrial catalysts. Surface Science 650, pp. 93-102. (10.1016/j.susc.2016.01.001)
- Bowker, M.et al. 2016. Methanol oxidation on Fe2O3 catalysts and the effects of surface Mo. Faraday Discussions 188, pp. 387-398. (10.1039/C5FD00225G)
- Brookes, C.et al. 2016. In situ spectroscopic investigations of MoOx/Fe2O3 catalysts for the selective oxidation of methanol. Catalysis Science and Technology 6, pp. 722-730. (10.1039/C5CY01175B)
- Chapman, S.et al. 2016. Design and stabilisation of a high area iron molybdate surface for the selective oxidation of methanol to formaldehyde. Faraday Discussions 188, pp. 115-129. (10.1039/C5FD00153F)
2015
- Marin, R. P.et al. 2015. Supercritical antisolvent precipitation of TiO2 with tailored anatase/rutile composition for applications in redox catalysis and Ppotocatalysis. Applied Catalysis A: General 504, pp. 62-73. (10.1016/j.apcata.2015.02.023)
- Bowker, M. 2015. Rules for selective oxidation exemplified by methanol selective oxidation on iron molybdate catalysts. Topics in Catalysis 58(10-11), pp. 606-612. (10.1007/s11244-015-0399-4)
- Bowker, M.et al. 2015. Selectivity determinants for dual function catalysts: applied to methanol selective oxidation on iron molybdate. Catalysis, Structure & Reactivity 1(2), pp. 95-100. (10.1179/2055075815Y.0000000002)
- Booyens, S.et al. 2015. The adsorption of ethene on Fe(1 1 1) and surface carbide formation. Catalysis Today 244, pp. 122-129. (10.1016/j.cattod.2014.06.025)
- Bahruji, H.et al. 2015. Rutile TiO2-Pd photocatalysts for hydrogen gas production from methanol reforming. Topics in Catalysis 58(2-3), pp. 70-76. (10.1007/s11244-014-0346-9)
- Kennedy, J.et al. 2015. Photocatalytic hydrogen production by reforming of methanol using Au/TiO2, Ag/TiO2and Au-Ag/TiO2catalysts. Catalysis, Structure & Reactivity 1(1), pp. 35-43. (10.1179/2055075814Y.0000000006)
- Bahruji, H.et al. 2015. The importance of metal reducibility for the photo-reforming of methanol on transition metal-TiO2 photocatalysts and the use of non-precious metals. International Journal of Hydrogen Energy 40(3), pp. 1465-1471. (10.1016/j.ijhydene.2014.11.097)
- Bowker, M.et al. 2015. The photocatalytic window: photo-reforming of organics and water splitting for sustainable hydrogen production. Catalysis Letters 145(1), pp. 214-219. (10.1007/s10562-014-1443-x)
- Villa, A.et al. 2015. Tailoring the selectivity of glycerol oxidation by tuning the acid-base properties of Au catalysts. Catalysis Science & Technology 5, pp. 1126-1132. (10.1039/C4CY01246A)
- Bowker, M. and Sharpe, R. 2015. Pd deposition on TiO2(110) and nanoparticle encapsulation. Catalysis, Structure & Reactivity 1(3), pp. 140-145. (10.1179/2055075815Y.0000000008)
2014
- Jones, W. V.et al. 2014. Optimised photocatalytic hydrogen production using core-shell AuPd promoters with controlled shell thickness. Physical Chemistry Chemical Physics 16, pp. 26638-26644. (10.1039/C4CP04693E)
- Brookes, C.et al. 2014. The nature of the molybdenum surface in iron molybdate. The active phase in selective methanol oxidation. Journal of Physical Chemistry C 118(45), pp. 26155-26161. (10.1021/jp5081753)
- Booyens, S., Bowker, M. and Willock, D. J. 2014. The adsorption and dissociation of CO on Fe(111). Surface Science 625, pp. 69-83. (10.1016/j.susc.2014.02.019)
- Schoenherr, P.et al. 2014. Comparison of Au and TiO2 based catalysts for the synthesis of chalcogenide nanowires. Applied Physics Letters 104(25), pp. 253103-253103. (10.1063/1.4885217)
- Bowker, M.et al. 2014. Hydrogen production by photoreforming of biofuels using Au, Pd and Au-Pd/TiO2 photocatalysts. Journal of Catalysis 310, pp. 10-15. (10.1016/j.jcat.2013.04.005)
- Brookes, C.et al. 2014. Molybdenum oxide on Fe2O3 Core-Shell catalysts: Probing the nature of the structural motifs responsible for methanol oxidation catalysis. ACS Catalysis 4(1), pp. 243-250. (10.1021/cs400683e)
- Bowker, M. 2014. Editorial. Catalysis, Structure & Reactivity 1(1), pp. 1-3. (10.1179/2055074X14Z.0000000003)
2013
- Bamroongwongdee, C.et al. 2013. Fabrication of complex model oxide catalysts: Mo oxide supported on Fe3O4(111). Faraday Discussions 162, pp. 201-212. (10.1039/c2fd20134h)
- Bahruji, H.et al. 2013. The adsorption and reaction of alcohols on TiO2 and Pd/TiO2 catalysts. Applied Catalysis A: General 454, pp. 66-73. (10.1016/j.apcata.2013.01.005)
- Davies, R. J.et al. 2013. A facile route to model catalysts: the synthesis of Au@Pd core-shell nanoparticles on y-Fe2O3 (0001). Nanoscale 5, pp. 9018-9022. (10.1039/c3nr03047d)
- Bowker, M.et al. 2013. Encapsulation of Au nanoparticles on a silicon wafer during thermal oxidation. Journal of Physical Chemistry C 117(41), pp. 21577-21582. (10.1021/jp4074043)
2011
- Bahruji, H.et al. 2011. New insights into the mechanism of photocatalytic reforming on Pd/TiO2. Applied Catalysis B - Environmental 107(1-2), pp. 205-209. (10.1016/j.apcatb.2011.07.015)
- Yaseneva, P., Bowker, M. and Hutchings, G. J. 2011. Structural and magnetic properties of Zn-substituted cobalt ferrites prepared by co-precipitation method. Physical Chemistry Chemical Physics 13(41), pp. 18609-18614. (10.1039/c1cp21516g)
- Bowker, M.et al. 2011. The decarbonylation of acetaldehyde on Pd crystals and on supported catalysts. Applied Catalysis A: General 391(1-2), pp. 394-399. (10.1016/j.apcata.2010.05.012)
- Davies, R. J.et al. 2011. The oxidation of Fe(111). Surface Science 605(17-18), pp. 1754-1762. (10.1016/j.susc.2011.06.017)
- Bowker, M. 2011. Sustainable hydrogen production by the application of ambient temperature photocatalysis. Green Chemistry 13(9), pp. 2235-2246. (10.1039/c1gc00022e)
- Uhlrich, J. J.et al. 2011. Preparation and characterization of iron-molybdate thin films. Surface Science 605(15-16), pp. 1550-1555. (10.1016/j.susc.2011.05.028)
2010
- Bahruji, H.et al. 2010. Sustainable H2 gas production by photocatalysis. Journal of Photochemistry and Photobiology A: Chemistry 216(2-3), pp. 115-118. (10.1016/j.jphotochem.2010.06.022)
- Davies, P. R. and Bowker, M. 2010. On the nature of the active site in catalysis: the reactivity of surface oxygen on Cu(1 1 0). Catalysis Today 154(1-2), pp. 31-37. (10.1016/j.cattod.2009.12.011)
- Bowker, M. 2010. The role of precursor states in adsorption, surface reactions and catalysis. Journal of Physics: Condensed Matter 22(26), article number: 263002. (10.1088/0953-8984/22/26/263002)
- Bowker, M.et al. 2010. Carbon dissolution and segregation in Pd(110). Journal of Physical Chemistry C 114(11), pp. 5060-5067. (10.1021/jp9108046)
- Bowker, M.et al. 2010. Effects of the nanostructuring of gold films upon their thermal stability. Acs Nano 4(4), pp. 2228-2232. (10.1021/nn901614e)
- Bowker, M.et al. 2010. Influence of thermal treatment on nanostructured gold model catalysts?. Langmuir 26(21), pp. 16261-16266. (10.1021/la101372w)
- Bowker, M.et al. 2010. Dehydrogenation versus decarbonylation of oxygenates on Pd(110): pure, clean Pd is a poor catalyst. Journal of Physical Chemistry C 114(40), pp. 17142-17147. (10.1021/jp104837t)
- Bowker, M. and Bennett, R. A. 2010. Surface science studies of strong metal-oxide interactions on model catalysts. In: Rioux, R. M. ed. Model Systems in Catalysis: Single Crystals to Supported Enzyme Mimics. New York: Springer, pp. 155-173., (10.1007/978-0-387-98049-2_8)
2009
- Bowker, M. and Bennett, R. A. 2009. The role of Ti3+interstitials in TiO2(110) reduction and oxidation. Journal of Physics: Condensed Matter 21(47), article number: 474224. (10.1088/0953-8984/21/47/474224)
- Bahruji, H., Bowker, M. and Davies, P. R. 2009. Photoactivated reaction of water with silicon nanoparticles. International Journal of Hydrogen Energy 34(20), pp. 8504-8510. (10.1016/j.ijhydene.2009.08.039)
- Bowker, M. 2009. A prospective: Surface science and catalysis at the nanoscale. Surface Science 603(16), pp. 2359-2362. (10.1016/j.susc.2009.06.017)
- Morgan, C. and Bowker, M. 2009. The reaction of vinyl acetate with Pd(110) studied with TPD and molecular beams. Surface Science 603(1), pp. 54-59. (10.1016/j.susc.2008.10.024)
- Weng, X. L.et al. 2009. Synthesis and characterization of doped nano-sized ceria-zirconia solid solutions. Applied Catalysis B-Environmental 90(3-4), pp. 405-415. (10.1016/j.apcatb.2009.03.031)
- Zhang, Z.et al. 2009. Photocatalytic activities of N-doped nano-titanias and titanium nitride. Journal of the European Ceramic Society 29(11), pp. 2343-2353. (10.1016/j.jeurceramsoc.2009.02.008)
- Bowker, M., Davies, P. R. and Al-Mazroai, L. S. 2009. Photocatalytic reforming of glycerol over gold and palladium as an alternative fuel source. Catalysis Letters 128(3-4), pp. 253 - 255. (10.1007/s10562-008-9781-1)
- Bowker, M. and Davies, P. R. eds. 2009. Scanning Tunneling Microscopy in Surface Science. Weinheim: Wiley-VCH.
2008
- House, M. P.et al. 2008. Effect of Varying the Cation Ratio within Iron Molybdate Catalysts for the Selective Oxidation of Methanol. Journal of Physical Chemistry C 112(11), pp. 4333-4341. (10.1021/jp711251b)
- Bowker, M. 2008. Automotive catalysis studied by surface science. Chemical Society Reviews 37(10), pp. 2204-2211. (10.1039/b719206c)
- Bowker, M., Carley, A. F. and House, M. P. 2008. Contrasting the behaviour of MoO3 and MoO2 for the oxidation of methanol. Catalysis Letters 120(1-2), pp. 34-39. (10.1007/s10562-007-9255-x)
- Bowker, M. and Fourre, E. 2008. Direct interactions between metal nanoparticles and support: STM studies of Pd on TiO2(110). Applied Surface Science 254(14), pp. 4225-4229. (10.1016/j.apsusc.2008.01.014)
- Bowker, M.et al. 2008. The selective oxidation of methanol on iron molybdate catalysts. Topics in Catalysis 48(1-4), pp. 158-165. (10.1007/s11244-008-9058-3)
- House, M. P., Shannon, M. D. and Bowker, M. 2008. Surface segregation in iron molybdate catalysts. Catalysis Letters 122(3-4), pp. 210-213. (10.1007/s10562-008-9467-8)
- Soderhjelm, E.et al. 2008. On the Synergy Effect in MoO3-Fe-2(MoO4)(3) Catalysts for Methanol Oxidation to Formaldehyde. Topics in Catalysis 50(1-4), pp. 145-155. (10.1007/s11244-008-9112-1)
- Youngs, T. G. A., Haq, S. and Bowker, M. 2008. Formic acid adsorption and oxidation on Cu(110). Surface Science 602(10), pp. 1775-1782. (10.1016/j.susc.2008.03.013)
2007
- Bowker, M. 2007. Resolving catalytic phenomena with scanning tunnelling microscopy. Physical Chemistry Chemical Physics 9(27), pp. 3514-3521. (10.1039/b703327n)
- Bowker, M. 2007. The 2007 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for surface chemistry: Understanding nanoscale phenomena at surfaces. Acs Nano 1(4), pp. 253-257. (10.1021/nn700356g)
2005
- Bowker, M.et al. 2005. Model catalyst studies of the strong metal-support interaction: surface structure identified by STM on Pd nanoparticles on TiO2(110). Journal of catalysis 234(1), pp. 172-181. (10.1016/j.jcat.2005.05.024)
- Bowker, M.et al. 2005. Ethene Adsorption, Dehydrogenation and Reaction with Pd(110): Pd as a Carbon 'Sponge'. Journal of Physical Chemistry B 109(6), pp. 2377-2386. (10.1021/jp0402232)
2002
- Smith, R. D., Bennett, R. A. and Bowker, M. 2002. Measurement of the surface-growth kinetics of reduced TiO2(110) during reoxidation using time-resolved scanning tunneling microscopy. Physical Review B: Condensed Matter and Materials Physics 66, article number: 35409. (10.1103/PhysRevB.66.035409)
- Catalysis, particularly selective oxidation and photocatalysis, the latter mainly for hydrogen production.
- Fundamental research into the preparation and characteristics of catalysts used for environmental protection, especially for the removal of pollutants from cars
- Nanofabrication and nanoengineering
- Nanofabrication of model catalysts, consisting of nanoparticles anchored to oxide surfaces, and imaging them with scanning tunnelling microscopy
- Investigation of the atomic-scale structure and reactivity of crystalline surfaces
The work of my group is aimed at gaining an understanding aspects of heterogeneous catalysis. This especially involves aspects of the structure and reactivity of anchored nanoparticles, that is, small metal particles (e.g. Au, Pd, Pt) bound to inorganic surfaces. This is of great importance in relation to the understanding of nanostructures generally, but it is also of practical relevance - for example, we work on iron molybdate catalysts for the selective oxidation of methanol to formaldehyde, and on the production of new fuels (especially hydrogen) using photocatalysis.
We use a wide range of experimental methods and have recently made significant new investments in equipment. We have the ability to image surfaces and nanoparticles at the atomic scale using scanning tunnelling microscopy (STM) and examples of this type of work are shown below. Members of the group regularly give presentations at scientific meetings in the UK and abroad.
