High-throughput droplet microreactor for catalytic activity screening of solid catalyst particles

Heterogeneous catalyst particles differ greatly in size, morphology, and most important, activity [1]. Studying these catalyst particles in batch only results in ensemble averages, without information about individual particles. So far, the study of individual catalyst particles has been rewarding, but still slow and cumbersome [2]. Here we report the development of a fluorescence-based, high-throughput screening microreactor for measuring activity of individual heterogeneous Fluid Catalytic Cracking (FCC) particles. Furthermore, we demonstrate the potential future addition of a dielectrophoretic (DEP) sorting system to extract the most catalytically active particles