Scientists study thermodynamic stability of layered manganese oxide in oxidation reaction

Iranian researchers from the Institute for Advanced Studies in Basic Sciences in association with researchers from the University of California studied thermodynamic stability of layered components of manganese oxide, and compared them to other manganese oxides. They showed that layered manganese oxide had vindicator properties with high performance in oxidation reactions. The research can result in designing and producing more effective catalysts for the oxidation of water and production of hydrogen as a green fuel. In this research, various concentrations of potassium permanganate were dissolved in water, and manganese acetate and calcium acetate were added to it in alkaline media. In the next stage, the obtained solid was strained and dried. It results in the synthesis of a number of layered oxides with various characteristics. High area of the compounds helps the oxidation of water due to their nanometric scale. Moreover, it is considered as an active and effective catalyst due to its high thermodynamic stability and high surface area and low surface energy. “By using nanotechnology, a nanostructured layer was obtained although distance regularity is not observed in it. The structure provides a very high area. Besides, thermodynamically speaking, it can be assumed that this type of oxide has been formed during the reaction between an acidic compound (manganese oxide) and an alkaline oxide (calcium oxide). This assumption explains the high stability of the oxide,” Nayyeri, one of the researchers, said, elaborating on the research. Results of the research have been published in details in Proceedings of National Academy of Sciences of USA, vol. 110, issue 22, 28 May 2013, pp. 8801-8806.