Catalysis is one of the most crucial fields, such as alkylation reaction¹, alkane aromatization and dehydrogenation^2-4, bio-oil upgrading^5-8, sugar utilization and ethanol conversion⁹. Hence, to achieve these potential reactions, the synthesis of catalysts is one of the most challenging researches. Regarding to mass/heat transportation limitation of conventional zeolites, we are focusing on the design of hierarchical zeolites, which compose of micropores and mesopores or/and macropores to facilitate to increase the selectivity of desired products and prevent catalyst deactivation. Therefore, we are developing various types of hierarchical zeolites such as Faujasite (FAU)^{1, 5-7}, ZSM-5 (MFI)^{2-4, 8-9}and Ferrierite (FER) nanosheets¹⁰. In addition, we are not only focusing on the monofunctional catalyst to utilize in the reactions, but we are also focusing on the development of hybrid catalysts. It is undeniable that there are a large number of crucial chemicals, which can be produced using at least two types of active sites, for example, Brønsted acid/Lewis acid sites and acid/basic sites. From these perspectives, we are developing metals modified zeolites and also zeolite-based hybrid catalysts, such as zeolite@Metal-organic Frameworks (MOFs) composite⁷, zeolite@zeolite composites and porous silica/alumina composites for achieving the reactions.

 References

1. Rodaum, C.; Thivasasith, A.; Iadrat, P.; Kidkhunthod, P.; Pengpanich, S.; Wattanakit, C.*
   Ge‐Substituted Hierarchical Ferrierite for n‐pentane Cracking to Light Olefins: Mechanistic Investigations via In‐situ DRIFTS Studies and DFT Calculations 
   ChemCatChem., 2021, https://doi.org/10.1002/cctc.202101045
   
   
2. Salakhum, S.; Prasertsab, A.; Klinyod, S.; Saenlung, K.; Witoon, T.; Wattanakit, C.* 
   
   Sustainable transformation of natural silica-rich solid and waste to hierarchical zeolites for sugar conversion to hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF)
   Microporous and Mesoporous Mater., 2021, 111252.
   
   

3. Wetchasat, P.; Salakhum, S.*; Imyen, T.; Suttipat, D.; Wannapakdee, W.; Ketkaew, M.; Prasertsab, A.; Kidkhunthod, P.; Witoon, T.; Wattanakit, C.                            
   One-Pot Synthesis of Ultra-Small Pt Dispersed on Hierarchical Zeolite Nanosheet Surfaces for Mild Hydrodeoxygenation of 4-Propylphenol
   Catalysts, 2021, 11, 333.
   
   

4. Iadrat, P.; Hori, N.; Atithep, T.; Wattanakit, C.*
   Effect of Pore Connectivity of Pore-Opened Hierarchical MOR Zeolites on Catalytic Behaviors and Coke Formation in Ethanol Dehydration
   ACS Appl. Mater. Interfaces, 2021, 13, 8294-8305.
   
   
5. Suttipat, D.; Saenluang, K.; Wannapakdee, W.; Dugkhuntod, P.; Ketkaew, M.; Pornsetmetakul, P.; Wattanakit, C.*
   Fine-tuning the surface acidity of hierarchical zeolite composites for methanol-to-olefins (MTO) reaction
   Fuel., 2020, 286, 119306.
   
   
6. Ketkaew, M.; Klinyod, S.; Saenluang, K.; Rodaum, C.; Thivasasith, A.; Kidkhunthod, P.; Wattanakit, C.*

   Fine-tuning the chemical state and acidity of ceria incorporated in hierarchical zeolites for ethanol dehydration
   Chem. Commun., 2020, 56, 11394-11397.
   
   

7. Imyen, T.; Wannapakdee, W.; Ittisanronnachai, S.; Witoon, T.; Wattanakit, C.*
   
   Tailoring hierarchical zeolite composites with two distinct frameworks for fine-tuning product distribution in benzene alkylation with ethanol
   Nanoscale Adv., 2020, 2, 4437-4449.
   
   
8. Saenluang, K.;  Imyen, T.;  Wannapakdee, W.;  Suttipat, D.;  Dugkhuntod, P.;  Ketkaew, M.;  Thivasasith, A.; Wattanakit, C.*
   Hierarchical Nanospherical ZSM-5 Nanosheets with Uniform Al Distribution for Alkylation of Benzene with Ethanol 
   ACS Appl. Nano Mater., 2020, 3, 3252–3263.
   
   
9. Salakhum, S.; Saenluang K.; Wattanakit, C.*
   Stability of monometallic Pt and Ru supported on hierarchical HZSM-5 nanosheets for hydrodeoxygenation of lignin-derived compounds in aqueous-phase
   Sustainable Energy & Fuels, 2019, 4, 1126-1134.
   
   
10. Ketkaew, M.; Suttipat, D.; Kidkhunthod, P.; Witoon, T.; Wattanakit, C.*
    Nanoceria-modified platinum supported on hierarchical zeolites for selective alcohol oxidation
    RSC Adv., 2019, 9, 36027-36033.
    
    
11. Suttipat, D.; Yutthalekha, T.; Wannapakdee, W.; Dugkhuntod, P.; Wetchasat, P.; Kidkhunthod, P.;
    Wattanakit, C.*
    Tunable Acid‐Base Bifunction of Hierarchical Aluminum‐Rich Zeolites for the  One‐Pot Tandem Deacetalization‐Henry Reaction
    ChemPlusChem, 2019, 84, 1–6.
    
    

12. Imyen, T.; Wannapakdee, W.; Limtrakul, J.; Wattanakit, C.*
    Role of Hierarchical Micro-Mesoporous Structure of ZSM-5 Derived from an Embedded Nanocarbon Cluster Synthesis Approach in Isomerization of Alkenes, Catalytic Cracking and Hydrocracking of Alkanes.
    Fuel, 2019, 254, 115593–115605.
    
    

13. Dugkhuntod, P.; Imyen, T.*; Wannapakdee, W.; Yutthalekha.; Salakhum, S.; Wattanakit, C.
    Synthesis of Hierarchical ZSM-12 Nanolayers for Levulinic Acid Esterification with Ethanol to Ethyl Levulinate.
    RSC Adv. 2019, 9, 18087–18097.
    
    

14. Wannapakdee, W.; Meng, L.; van Hoof, Arno J. F.; Bolshakov, A.; Wattanakit, C.; Hensen, E. J. M.
    The Important Role of Rubidium Hydroxide in the Synthesis of Hierarchical ZSM‐5 Zeolite Using Cetyltrimethylammonium as Structure‐Directing Agent.
    Eur. J. Inorg. Chem. 2019, 2493–2497.
    
    

15. Wannapakdee, W.; Yutthalekha, T.; Dugkhuntod, P.; Rodponthukwaji, K.; Thivasasith, A.; Nokbin, S.; Witoon, T.; Pengpanich, S.; Wattanakit, C.*
    Dehydrogenation of propane to propylene using promoter-free hierarchical Pt/silicalite-1 nanosheets.
    Catalysts, 2019, 9, 174.
    
    
16. Shetsiri, S.; Thivasasith, A.; Wannapakdee, W.; Saenluang, K.; Wetchasat, P.; Salakhum, S.; Nokbin, S.; Limtrakul, J.; Wattanakit, C.*
    Sustainable production of ethylene from bioethanol over hierarchical ZSM-5 nanosheets.
    Sustainable Energy & Fuels, 2019, 3, 115-126.
    
    
17. Wannapakdee, W.; Suttipat, D.; Dugkhuntod, P.; Yutthalekha, T.; Thivasasith, A.; Kidkhunthod, P.; Nokbin, S.; Pengpanich, S.; Limtrakul, J.; Wattanakit, C.*
    Aromatization of C₅ hydrocarbons over Ga-modified hierarchical HZSM-5 nanosheets. 
    Fuel, 2019, 236, 1243-1253.
    
    
18. Suttipat, D.; Wannapakdee, W.; Yutthalekha, T.; Ittisanronnachai, S.; Ungpittagul, T.; Phomphrai, K.; Bureekaew, S.; Wattanakit, C.*
    Hierarchical FAU/ZIF‑8 hybrid materials as highly efficient acid-base catalysts for aldol condensation. 
    ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces, 2018, 10, 16358-16366.
    
    
19. Salakhum, S.; Yutthalekha, T.; Chareonpanich, M.; Limtrakul J.; Wattanakit, C.*
    Synthesis of hierarchical faujasite nanosheets from corn cob ash-derived nanosilica as efficient catalysts for hydrogenation of lignin-derived alkylphenols. 
    Microporous and Mesoporous Materials, 2018, 258, 141-150.
    
    
20. Yutthalekha, T.; Suttipat, D.; Salakhum, S.; Thivasasith, A.; Nokbin, S.; Limtrakul J.; Wattanakit, C.*
    Aldol condensation of biomass-derived platform molecules over amine-grafted hierarchical FAU-type zeolite nanosheets featuring basic sites.
    Chemical Communications, 2017, 53, 12185—12188 (Back cover page).
    
    
21. Rodponthukwaji, K.; Wattanakit, C.^*; Yutthalekha, T.;  Assavapanumat, S.; Warakulwit, C.; Wannapakdee, W.; Limtrakul, J.
    Catalytic upgrading of carboxylic acids as bio-oil models over hierarchical ZSM-5 obtained via an organosilane approach.
    RSC Advances, 2017, 7, 35581-35589.
    
    
22. Yutthalekha, T.; Wattanakit, C.; Warakulwit, C.; Wannapakdee, W.; Rodponthukwaji, K.; Witoon, T.; Limtrakul, J.^* 
    Hierarchical FAU-type zeolite nanosheets as green and sustainable catalysts for Benzylation of Toluene.
    Journal of Cleaner Production, 2017, 142 (3), 1244-1251.
    
    
23. Warakulwit, C.; Yadnum, S.; Boonyuen, C.; Wattanakit, C.; Karajic, A.; Garrigue, P.; Mano, N.; Bradshaw, D.; Limtrakul, J.; Kuhn, A.
    Elaboration of metal organic framework hybrid materials with hierarchical porosity by electrochemical deposition-​dissolution.
    CrystEngComm, 2016, 18, 5095-5100.
    
    
24. Wannapakdee, W.; Wattanakit, C.^*; Paluka, V.; Yutthalekha, T.; Limtrakul, J.
    One-​pot synthesis of novel hierarchical bifunctional Ga​/HZSM-​5 nanosheets for propane aromatization.
    RSC Advances, 2016, 6, 2875-2881.
    
    
25. Wuamprakhon, P.; Wattanakit, C.; Warakulwit, C.; Yutthalekha, T.; Wannapakdee, W.; Ittisanronnachai, S.; Limtrakul, J. 
    Direct synthesis of hierarchical ferrierite nanosheet assemblies via an organosilane template approach and determination of their catalytic activity.
    Microporous and Mesoporous Materials, 2016, 219, 1–9.

Enantioselective synthesis and separation are of crucial importance for many potential applications ranging from sensing to catalysis. We have successfully elaborated chiral imprinted mesoporous platinum, obtained by the electrochemical reduction of platinum salts in the simultaneous presence of a liquid crystal phase of nonionic surfactants and various chiral template molecules, such as enantiomers of 3,4-dihydroxyphenylalanine (DOPA), mandelic acid and phenylethanol. The chiral encoded mesoporous platinum perfectly retains the chiral information after removal of the template, confirmed by a very significant discrimination between two enantiomers when using these materials as electrodes in Differential Pulse Voltammetry. Interestingly, such nanostructured metals are also able to break the symmetry during the electrosynthesis of chiral molecules such as mandelic acid, and phenylethanol. We were able to demonstrate that by optimizing the electrochemical synthesis parameters it is possible to achieve very high enantiomeric excess (>90 %). Apart from asymmetric synthesis, chiral separation can also be achieved using such imprinted mesoporous platinum as a stationary phase in a microfluidic channel. It is possible to fine-tune the electrostatic interactions between the encoded surfaces and the corresponding chiral molecules by applying an electric field, allowing the complete separation of chiral compounds. Therefore, these novel materials open up new promising perspectives in various fields ranging from electrosynthesis to chiral separation technologies.

References:

1. Wattanakit, C.; Kuhn, A. book chaper in the title of Chiral Metal Electrodes for Enantioselective Analysis, Synthesis, and Separation was published by Sustainable and Functional Redox Chemistry 
   https://doi.org/10.1039/9781839164828-00274
   
   
2. Butcha, S.; Yu, J.; Pasom, Z.; Goudeau, B.; Wattanakit, C*.; Sojic, N*.; Kuhn, A*.
   Electrochemiluminescent enantioselective detection with chiral-imprinted mesoporous metal surfaces 
   Chem. Commun., 2022, https://doi.org/10.1039/D2CC02562K
   
   
3. Butcha, S.; Lapeyre, V.; Wattanakit, C*.; Kuhn, A.* 
   Self-assembled monolayer protection of chiral-imprinted mesoporous platinum electrodes for highly enantioselective synthesis
   Chem. Sci., 2022, Advance Article. DOI https:/doi.org/10.1039/D2SC00056C
   
   
4. Assavapanumat, S.; Butcha, S.;  Ittisanronnachai, S; Kuhn, A.; Wattanakit, C.*
   Heterogeneous Enantioselective Catalysis with Chiral Encoded Mesoporous Pt-Ir Films Supported on Ni Foam
   Chem. Asian J., 2021, 16(21), 3345-3353.
   
   
5. Butcha, S.; Assavapanumat, S.; Ittisanronnachai, S; Lapeyre, V.; Wattanakit, C.*; Kuhn, A.*
   Nanoengineered chiral Pt-Ir alloys for high-performance enantioselective electrosynthesis
   Nat. Commun., 2021, 12, 1314.
   
   
6. Assavapanumat, S.; Ketkaew, M.; Kuhn, A.*;  Wattanakit, C.*
   Synthesis, Characterization and Electrochemical Applications of Chiral Imprinted Mesoporous Ni Surfaces
   J. Am. Chem. Soc., 2019, 141, 18870−18876.
   
   
7. Assavapanumat, S.; Gupta, B.; Salinas, G.; Goudeau, B.; Wattanakit, C.*; Kuhn, A.*
   Chiral platinum–polypyrrole hybrid films as efficient enantioselective actuators
   Chem. Commun., 2019, 55, 10956-10959.
   
   
8. Assavapanumat, S.; Yutthalekha, T.; Garrigue, P.; Goudeau, B.; Lapeyre, V.; Perro, A.; Sojic, N.; Wattanakit, C.*; Kuhn, A.*
   Potential Induced Fine‐tuning the Enantioaffinity of Chiral Metal Phases. 
   Angew .Chem. Int.Ed. 2019, 58, 3471–3475.
   
   
9. Wattanakit, C.*
   Chiral metals as electrodes. 
   Current Opinion in Electrochemistry, 2017, 7:54–60.
   
   
10. Yutthalekha, T.; Wattanakit, C.; Lapeyre, V.; Nokbin, S.; Warakulwit, C.; Limtrakul, J.; Kuhn, A.^*
    Asymmetric synthesis using chiral encoded metal.
    Nature Communications, 2016, 7, 12678.
    
    
11. Wattanakit, C.; Bon Saint Côme, Y.; Lapeyre, V.; Bopp. A., P.; Heim, M.; Yadnum, S.; Nokbin, C.; Warakulwit, C.; Limtrakul, J.; Kuhn, A.
    Enantioselective recognition at mesoporous chiral metal surfaces.
    Nature Communications, 2014, 5:3325.

Energy demand and chemical consumption have been increased in the past century due to the limitation of fossil fuels, and therefore other alternative renewable resources have gained a lot of interest from researchers around the world.  One of the most interested resources is Biomass. Biomass has the potential to supply renewable transportation fuels, organic chemicals and materials demand. In our group, we divided our research topics into three different topics, which are sugar conversion to chemicals, bioethanol/methanol to chemicals, and bio-oil upgrading to chemicals and transportation fuels.

Selected publications

1. Rodaum, C.; Klinyod, S.; Nunthakitgoson, W.; Chaipornchalerm, P.; Liwathananukul, N.; Iarat, P.; Wattanakit, C.* Binder-free hierachical zeolite pellets and monoliths derived from ZSM-5@LDH composites for bioethanol dehydration to ethylene
   ChemComm., 2022, https://doi.org/10.1039/D2CC02200A
   
   
2. Salakhum, S.; Prasertsab, A.; Klinyod, S.; Saenlung, K.; Witoon, T.; Wattanakit, C.* 
   
   Sustainable transformation of natural silica-rich solid and waste to hierarchical zeolites for sugar conversion to hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF)
   Microporous and Mesoporous Mater., 2021, 111252.
   
   
3. Shetsiri, S.; Thivasasith, A.; Wannapakdee, W.; Saenluang, K.; Wetchasat, P.; Salakhum, S.; Nokbin, S.; Limtrakul, J.; Wattanakit, C.*
   Sustainable production of ethylene from bioethanol over hierarchical ZSM-5 nanosheets.
   Sustainable Energy & Fuels, 2019, 3, 115-126.
   
   
4. Suttipat, D.; Wannapakdee, W.; Yutthalekha, T.; Ittisanronnachai, S.; Ungpittagul, T.; Phomphrai, K.; Bureekaew, S.; Wattanakit, C.*
   Hierarchical FAU/ZIF‑8 hybrid materials as highly efficient acid-base catalysts for aldol condensation. 
   ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces, 2018, 10, 16358-16366.
   
   
5. Salakhum, S.; Yutthalekha, T.; Chareonpanich, M.; Limtrakul J.; Wattanakit, C.*
   Synthesis of hierarchical faujasite nanosheets from corn cob ash-derived nanosilica as efficient catalysts for hydrogenation of lignin-derived alkylphenols. 
   Microporous and Mesoporous Materials, 2018, 258, 141-150.
   
   
6. Yutthalekha, T.; Suttipat, D.; Salakhum, S.; Thivasasith, A.; Nokbin, S.; Limtrakul J.; Wattanakit, C.*
   Aldol condensation of biomass-derived platform molecules over amine-grafted hierarchical FAU-type zeolite nanosheets featuring basic sites.
   Chemical Communications, 2017, 53, 12185—12188 (Back cover page).
   
   
7. Rodponthukwaji, K.; Wattanakit, C.^*; Yutthalekha, T.;  Assavapanumat, S.; Warakulwit, C.; Wannapakdee, W.; Limtrakul, J.
   Catalytic upgrading of carboxylic acids as bio-oil models over hierarchical ZSM-5 obtained via an organosilane approach.
   RSC Advances, 2017, 7, 35581-35589.
   

International Research Project (IRP) « ChiraChem »

Principle investigators:
Prof. Alexander Kuhn / Bordeaux, France
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Chularat Wattanakit / School of Energy Science and Engineering / VISTEC, Thailand

Partners:
Prof. Adrian Flood / School of Energy Science and Engineering / VISTEC, Thailand

The roots

A very fruitful long-term collaboration thatstarted in 2006 with Prof. Jumras Limtrakul and continued in 2015 with Assoc. Prof. Dr. Chularat Wattanakit

 Total output:

• >20 high impact publications
• >10 co-supervised PhD students

Precursor CNRS project: ChiraCat

Website:  IRP CHIRACHEM - CNRS Singapore