Physicists of the Southern Federal University (SFU) have won a new international grant to research new-generation nanocatalysts, RusNanoNet reports.

With the grant, the science and education center “Nano-Sized Structure of Substance” of SFU and Laboratory of Catalysis and Ecochemistry of the Paul Scherrer Institute in Switzerland will study basic patterns and connections between nano-sized atomic and electronic structure of new-generation oxide nanocatalysts and their catalytic features. The project is scheduled to last two years.

Each party will contribute 7.5 million rubles ($250,000) to the research. Russian contribution will be made through grant of the federal program “Research and Development in Priority Fields of Science and Technological Complex in Russia”.

Student laboratory “Nanodesign” of the Physics Department of the SFU also participates in the project. The lab specializes on multi-scale modeling of physical and chemical processes in nanotechnologies using supercomputing technologies, as well as development of remote access to unique scientific equipment.

Under this cooperation, the parties will also modernize new interdisciplinary Master’s program “Nano-Sized Structure of Substance”. This will result in emergence of postgraduate specialists in the sector of experimental methods of material nano-diagnostics and mathematical modeling using supercomputing technologies.