iCSI - industrial Catalysis Science and Innovation for a competitive and sustainable process industry

iCSI was a 2015-23 Centre for research-based innovation (Norwegian ”SFI”) on Catalysis Science and Innovation related to Norwegian land-based chemical industry, whose industrial processes supply key products that impact our food supply and standard of living, that is, catalysts, chemicals, fertilizer, plastics, fuels, and more, to a global market. The iCSI research on catalysis has impacted the global industrial competitiveness of Norwegian export industry, as well as enabled reductions in the environmental footprint of future chemical processing and energy conversion. iCSI teamed the industrial partners YARA, K.A. Rasmussen AS, Dynea, INEOS Inovyn and Topsoe, with the research partners University of Oslo (UiO), SINTEF and Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU). The research partners comprise the main academic groups within catalysis in Norway, while the industrial partners all have technology lead in processes where the core business relies largely on catalysis and represent significant industrial operations in Norway and internationally. The iCSI basic vision was to establish competence and technology that promotes world class energy and raw material efficiency for the industrial partners. iCSI also aimed to further evolve a strong knowledge base for the Norwegian chemical industry, to benefit society in terms of securing jobs, reducing the energy consumption and abating harmful emissions to the environment beyond the lifetime of the project. State-of-the-art methodology in synthesis, characterization, and kinetic investigations has been applied to identify factors critical to the performance of complex catalysts operating under industrially relevant conditions. Based on such insight, predictive tools for materials, chemistry and process optimization could be developed. The iCSI total budget was MNOK 198 (2015-2023) and NTNU was the project host institution. Significant researcher training in the form of 15 PhD and 6 postdoctoral fellowships was included. iCSI developed an extensive international research network and a profile of promoting excellence and leadership of women in research and innovation. The most important results and milestones for iCSI during 2015-23 may be summarized as: - Strong strategic commitment from the industrial partners, who express satisfaction and emphasize the centre's scientific and technical expertise, access to updated and advanced laboratory facilities, as well as the project's long-term scope. - Results generated in iCSI were used to develop models and procedures that promote the efficiency of industrial processes, thereby contributing to reduced energy consumption, better utilization of raw materials and fewer unwanted emissions. The industry expresses that the participation has enabled them to make better decisions and improve competitiveness. - A total of 96 scientific journal publications as of April 2024, among these three in Angewandte Chemie and two in the Journal of the American Chemical Society (JACS), considered among the most prestigious scientific journals in the field of chemistry. At least 5 additional papers are in progress. - 45 of the publications are co-authored with the industrial partners. - 59 of the publications have co-authorship with international collaboration partners. - 11 popular science type presentations; oral, written or via video. - The iCSI professors and senior researchers supervised 42 master students at NTNU and UiO, working directly related to research in the centre, one international exchange student between these. - iCSI organized annual research seminars for the research and industry partners. The seminar series ended with a four-day meeting in Trondheim 5-8 June 2023 with participation from 70 Norwegian and invited international catalysis researchers. - The annual seminars included presentations by, and advisory meetings with, the three members of the Scientific Advisory Committee. - Except for a pandemic break, iCSI has been annually represented in the most important international conferences with scientific presentations and posters. - In 2019, Professor Unni Olsbye at UiO received the prize for outstanding natural gas conversion, the most prestigious international recognition in this field. - PhD student Dimitrios Pappas received the award for best European PhD in catalysis in 2021. - The senior researchers in iCSI have altogether given around 60 invited plenary, keynote, and guest lectures in events outside Norway during the centre's lifetime. - And last, but not least: A majority of the PhD and MSc students trained in iCSI have proceeded with careers in industry, working on technology development and sustainability, while a few have chosen to remain in academia or research institutes.

The report Evaluation of Natural Sciences in Norway 2022-2024, commissioned by the Research Council of Norway, was recently published. In this report, the iCSI research groups were characterized as very strong and the iCSI Centre was selected as one out of three impact cases within chemistry in Norway: • “… the impact cases submitted to the evaluation illustrates the breadth of the research as well as its often significant impact. The cases include development and transfer of more sustainable technologies to industry, rapid uptake of results from fundamental research (………), and helping tackle decarbonisation of the energy system.” • “Case: SFI iCSI: During 2015-16, the centre started research to deepen understanding of catalysis in the production of PVC, nitric acid and formaldehyde – bulk chemicals for which there are large markets and many industrial uses, and of which members of the industrial consortium are major producers. iCSI developed new methods and protocols which were used by the industrial partners to increase yields, reduce energy consumption, develop new process technologies and reduce the risk of environmental pollution." 100 peer reviewed scientific publications, more than 200 presentations at seminars and conferences, and 11 popular disseminations in various channels have come out of iCSI. The outcomes further vary with the industry partners’ market, size and location of own research activities and other factors. Their statements below may be summarized as the most important: • The long-term scope of the SFI grant scheme. • Synergistic cooperation and access to world-class expertise • Very interesting collaboration with talented people and institutions • Fundamental knowledge that provides opportunity for improvement of “mature processes”. • Improved theoretical insight into the kinetics and chemistry of important reaction systems. • Recruitment of competent candidates at PhD and MSc level • Networking and visibility on the global “catalysis map”. • For a smaller company with limited R&D resources: these kinds of collaboration projects are of major importance in helping us stay up-to-date and curious about new possibilities. The most important proof of the industry partners satisfaction with their involvement in iCSI is their commitment to a new SFI grant application. The 16 PhD and 42 Master candidates trained in iCSI now work in the chemical industry or at universities and research institutions, where they use their education to significantly reduce the climatic and environmental impacts of chemical processes. They are part of a much bigger cohort of graduates and postgraduates from the iCSI research groups who have taken similar skills with them to industry.

iCSI is a Centre for research based innovation (SFI) on Catalysis Science and Innovation related to industrial processes key to Norwegian land-based industry, global industrial competitiveness, and future chemical processing and energy conversion with minimum environmental footprint. These processes supply key sectors of the global market (catalysts, chemicals, fertilizer, plastics, fuels, etc.); the very products that impact our food supply and standard of living the most. iCSI teams the industrial partners Yara, K.A. Rasmussen, Dynea, INOVYN and Haldor Topsøe, with the research partners University of Oslo, SINTEF and Norwegian University of Science and Technology. The industrial partners all have leading technology in areas where the core business relies largely on catalysis, and represent significant industrial operations in Norway as well as internationally. The research partners comprise the main academic groups within industrial catalysis in Norway. The iCSI basic vision is to establish competence and technology that promotes world class energy and raw material efficiency for the industrial partners. iCSI will also be a strong future knowledge base for the Norwegian chemical industry, and benefit society in terms of securing jobs, reducing the energy consumption and abating harmful emissions to the environment. State-of-the-art methodology in synthesis, characterization, and kinetic investigations will be applied to identify factors critical to the performance of complex catalysts operating under industrially relevant conditions. Based on such insight, predictive tools for materials, chemistry and process optimization can be developed. The iCSI total budget is MNOK 192 (2015-2023) and NTNU is host institution. Significant researcher training in the form of ~12PhD and ~6postdoctoral fellowships is included. iCSI has an extensive international research interface and a profile of promoting excellence and leadership of women in research and innovation.