PROFESSOR

Diploma with Highest Honors (Chemistry) Moscow State University, 1987
M.A. (Chemistry) Princeton University,1993
Ph.D. (Chemistry) Princeton University,1995

Phone: (513) 556-0203; FAX: (513) 556-3473
E-Mail: vguliant@alpha.che.uc.edu
Web: http://alpha.che.uc.edu/matcat

RESEARCH INTERESTS

· Materials Chemistry for Heterogeneous Catalysis and Separations

· Heterogeneous Oxidation Catalysis

· Membranes and Thin Films for Separations, Controlled Release and Nanoelectronics

· Computational Chemistry for Catalysis, Separations and Interfacial Phenomena

 

Meso- and macroporous multicomponent mixed metal V-M-O oxides (M= P, Mo, Nb, Te, Sb) for selective oxidation of lower alkanes (C₃-C₄) are being synthesized via two novel self-assembly approaches employing molecular and nanocrystalline building blocks in the presence of mesoscale supramolecular surfactant arrays and macroscale ordered arrays of colloidal latex spheres, respectively. Various surface chemical probes are being employed to elucidate the nature, number, structure and specific activity of surface redox, acidic and basic sites present in these model mixed metal oxide catalysts. Further fundamental insights are coming from parallel molecular modeling studies (MP2, B3LYP-DFT) of structure and reactivity of surface VO_x, MoO_x, NbO_x, SbO_x and TeO_x species present in these model mixed metal oxide catalysts. The molecular structure-reactivity/selectivity relationships from this research program are used to assist in the design of improved catalysts and the development of fundamental mechanistic models for lower alkane oxidation over mixed metal oxide catalysts.

Ordered mesoporous silica membranes with 3D hexagonal and cubic pore symmetries and containing surface-attached functional groups are being synthesized and characterized by XRD, SAXS, IR, NMR, SEM, TEM, TGA, and gas permeation studies. One of the potential applications of these novel membrane systems is carbon dioxide separation from dilute streams, such as flue gas emitted from fossil-fuel burning power plants.

Ordered mesoporous inorganic thin films ("Swiss cheese") assembled on planar substrates (e.g. Si, ITO, and SiC) are being characterized by XRD, SAXS, SEM, TEM, and investigated as nanolithographic shadow masks for the fabrication of ordered 2D arrays of functional nanostructures on the sub-100nm scale. These nanoelectronic device arrays exhibiting quantum size effect provide enhanced miniaturization, speed, and power reduction, and are highly promising for numerous applications such as sensors, processors, memories and displays.

NSF, DOD, NASA, State of Ohio (OCDO, DAGSI), and US chemical industry (BOC, Süd-Chemie).

• 1. M.A. Carreon and V.V. Guliants, "Macroporous Vanadium-Phosphorus-Oxide Phases Displaying Three-Dimensional Arrays of Spherical Voids". Chemistry of Materials, in print.

• 2. J.N. Al-Saeedi and V.V. Guliants, "High-Throughput Experimentation in Bulk Mixed Metal Oxides: V-Sb-Mo-Nb-O System for Partial Oxidation of Propane". Applied Catalysis, in print.

• 3. M.A. Carreon and V.V. Guliants, "Mesostructured Vanadium-Phosphorus-Oxide Phases for Partial Oxidation of Lower Alkanes". Mesoporous and Macroporous Materials, in print.

• 4. M.A. Carreon and V.V. Guliants, "Synthesis and Characterization of the Thermally Stable Mesoporous Vanadium-Phosporus-Oxide Phases". Studies in Surface Science and Catalysis, in print.

• 5. M.A. Carreon and V.V. Guliants, "Novel Macroporous Vanadium-Phosporus-Oxide with Three Dimensional Arrays of Spherical Voids". Studies in Surface Science and Catalysis.

• 6. V.V. Guliants, S. A. Holmes, "Probing polyfunctional nature of vanadyl pyrophosphate catalysts: oxidation of 16 C4 molecules". Journal of Molecular Catalysis A: Chemical, 175, 227-239, 2001.

• 7. M.A. Carreon, V.V. Guliants, "Hierarchical design of mixed metal oxides: novel macroporous VPO phases". Chemical Communications, 16, 1438-1439, 2001.

• 8. V.V. Guliants, Editor. Current Developments in Combinatorial Heterogeneous Catalysis. In: Catalysis Today, 67, 2001, 100 pp.

• 9. S.A. Holmes, J. Al-Saeedi, V.V. Guliants, P. Boolchand, and D. Georgiev, "Solid State Chemistry of Bulk Mixed Metal Oxide Catalysts for the Selective Oxidation of Propane to Acrylic Acid". Catalysis Today, 67, 403-409, 2001.

• 10. V. V. Guliants, S. A. Holmes, J. B. Benziger, P. Heaney, D. Yates, and I. E. Wachs, "In Situ Studies of Atomic, Nano- and Macroscale Order During VOHPO4.0.5H2O Transformation to (VO)2P2O7". Journal of Molecular Catalysis A, 172, 265-276, 2001.

• 11. E.A. Guliants, W.A. Anderson, L.P. Guo, V.V. Guliants, "Transmission Electron Microscopy Study of Ni Silicides Formed During Metal-Induced Silicon Growth". Thin Solid Films, 385, 74-80, 2001.

• 12. E. Kopaygorodsky, W.B. Krantz, and V.V. Guliants, "Scaling Analysis – A Valuable Tool in Engineering and Practice", 2001 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition, June 24-27, 2001, Albuquerque, NM; published in the 2001 ASEE Annual Conference Proceedings.

• 13. V.V. Guliants, J.B. Benziger, S. Sundaresan, and I.E. Wachs, "Molecular Structure-Reactivity Relationships in n-Butane Oxidation over Bulk VPO and Supported Vanadia Catalysts: Lessons for Molecular Engineering of New Selective Oxidation Catalysts for Alkane Oxidation". Studies in Surface Science and Catalysis, 130, 1721-1727, 2000.

• 14. V.V. Guliants, J.B. Benziger, S. Sundaresan, I.E. Wachs, and A.M. Hurt, "Effect of Promoters for n-Butane Oxidation to Maleic Anhydride over Vanadium-Phosphorus-Oxide Catalysts: Comparison with Supported Vanadia Catalysts". Catalysis Letters, 62, 87-91, 1999.

• 15. V.V. Guliants, Review Article, "Molecular Structure-Property Relationships in Oxidation of C₄ Hydrocarbons on Supported Metal Oxide Catalysts". Catalysis Today, 51, 255-268, 1999.V.V. Guliants, J.T. Mullhaupt, J.M. Newsam, A.M. Gorman, C.M. Freeman, "Predicting Locations of Non-Framework Species in Zeolites". Catalysis Today, 50, 661-668, 1999.