To make better chemistry, we first need to get the most complete picture we can have. That means looking beyond final products and asking deeper questions: How does a reaction start? What intermediates appear? How fast does it proceed—and why?
Our partner the Federal Institute for Materials Research and Testing in Berlin (BAM), Germany, looks at reactions really, really closely. The team investigates how atomic and molecular processes occur in ball mills, extruders, and other mechanochemical setups. By observing reactions at this level, BAM unveils the mechanisms and kinetics behind the mechanochemical reactions studied in WP2 and WP3. This places BAM within WP4, where the team works hand in hand with our partner the Center for Colloid and Surface Science (CSGI), in Italy.
The BAM team brings nearly two decades of experience in mechanochemistry to IMPACTIVE. This expertise includes in situ investigations of processes —an indispensable approach for understanding what is actually happening during a reaction—using techniques that are also essential for BAM’s current work within our project. We are talking about time-resolved X-ray diffraction and time-resolved Raman spectroscopy.
Both methods are the main techniques they employ to provide information on structural and molecular changes as reactions progress. In addition, BAM can monitor temperature, also important for in-situ measurements. But this is not all. Our partner has access to a broader portfolio of techniques, such as X-ray absorption spectroscopy, which can be applied to systems involving metals —although this is not required for our project.
What this partner achieves thanks to these techniques are reaction profiles. These profiles show how fast the reactants convert into products and what products are formed over time. The analyses also allow our partner to monitor other aspects, such as the generation of intermediate species. As such, BAM’s measurements represent a crucial part of the experimental data that are later used in the kinetic model analysis developed by CSGI.
Sometimes the focus and interest of the BAM team is not on the characterisation itself, but elsewhere. An example of this approach is this publication on Physical Chemistry Chemical Physics, where BAM investigated a co-crystal system. The aim was not to introduce a new system, as it had already been explored by both BAM and other researchers in the past. Instead, the objective was to establish a clear and transferable protocol that would also be valuable for other studies. The system therefore acts as a test case. BAM tested it and CSGC evaluated it, allowing other IMPACTIVE partners to understand what level of prior information is required to work effectively.
BAM’s work is closely linked to WP2 and WP3, but it also connects to activities related to scale-up and sustainability assessment within the project. Our partner provides a basic understanding on what’s going on within the reactions. This is crucial information for working on the scaling up and for evaluating the costs and environmental impact of the reactions.
We cannot end this article without mentioning the 11th INCOME Conference, held last year in Berlin, Germany. Why? Because in addition to its scientific contributions, BAM also organised this event. The meeting brought together experts in mechanochemistry and mechanical alloying, including many IMPACTIVE members. It was an opportunity for us to present our results and to meet in person. The event also marked the official launch of the IMPACTIVE Educational Platform, a digital meeting point for the mechanochemical community developed by our project.