Kaiwalya Sabnis

Graduate Research Assistant

Co-advised by Professors Fabio Ribeiro and W. Nicholas Delgass


Professional Networks



Background

Education

Institute of Chemical Technology, Mumbai, Bachelor of Chemical Engineering (2010)
Purdue University, Ph.D. Chemical Engineering (2010 – Present)

Academic Awards and Honors

  • Outstanding Poster Presentation Award, Graduate Research Symposium – School of Chemical Engineering, Purdue University, 2012.
  • Invited Keynote Lecture, 2012 AIChE annual meeting Pittsburgh, PA, 2012.
  • Best Presentation Award, Catalytic Hydrogen Generation Session, AIChE annual meeting ,Pittsburg, PA, 2012.
  • 2014 Estus H. and Vasthti L. Magoon Award for Excellence in Teaching, College of engineering, Purdue University

Presentations

  • K.D. Sabnis, M. Shekhar, W.D. Williams, W.S.Lee,, J.T. Miller, W.N. Delgass, F.H. Ribeiro, 246th ACS National Meeting, Catalysis of Water-Gas Shift: Effect of Oxide Support, Indianapolis, IN, September, 2013.
  • K.D. Sabnis, Y. Cui, F.G Sollberger, M. Shekhar, W.S.Lee M. Cem Akatay, J.T. Miller, W.N. Delgass, F.H. Ribeiro, 23rd North American Meeting, Water-Gas Shift Catalysis over Transition Metals Supported on Molybdenum Carbide, Louisville, KY, June 2013.
  • K.D. Sabnis, M. Shekhar, W.D. Williams, W.S.Lee,, J.T. Miller, W.N. Delgass, F.H. Ribeiro, Michigan Catalysis Society Symposium, Catalysis of Water-Gas Shift over Supported Au Nanoparticles, Dearborn, MI, May 2013
  • K.D. Sabnis, Y. Cui, F.G Sollberger, M. Shekhar, W.S.Lee M. Cem Akatay,, J.T. Miller, W.N. Delgass, F.H. Ribeiro, AIChE Annual Meeting, Water-Gas Shift Catalysis over Transition Metals Supported on Molybdenum Carbide, Pittsburgh, PA, October 2012.
  • K.D. Sabnis, M. Shekhar, W.S.Lee, J.T. Miller, W.N. Delgass, F.H. Ribeiro, Spring Symposium of the Catalysis Club of Chicago, Water-Gas Shift Catalysis over Transition Metals Supported on Molybdenum Carbide, Naperville, IL, May 2012.

Summary of Research Work

The Water-Gas Shift (WGS) reaction (CO + H2O -> CO2 + H2) has significant impact on energy issues as it plays a pivotal role in hydrogen generation. Unsupported Molybdenum Carbide (Mo2C) offers WGS rate per gram of catalyst that is comparable to the industrial Cu/ZnO/Al2O3 catalyst. My doctoral work focuses on the kinetic and spectroscopic analyses of the catalysts synthesized by the deposition of various transition metals over Mo2C. Controlled catalyst synthesis, kinetic analysis and in situ catalyst characterization are used as tools to establish the structure-activity relationship for WGS reaction. In summary, this work has led to identification of chemical descriptor, along with determination of active sites, for WGS over Metal/Mo2C catalytic systems.