Catalyst technologies by DMC GLOBAL play a crucial role in the manufacture of several fine and specialty chemical products.

Applications include flavors and fragrances, herbicides and pesticides, resins, pigments and dyestuffs, pharmaceuticals, and plastic and rubber additives.

DMC GLOBAL is an industry leader in providing cutting-edge catalytic technologies to the pharmaceutical and fine chemical markets, where speed to market, cost-effectiveness and product uniqueness are imperative.

Examples of base and precious metal catalysts include:

Heterogeneous precious- and base-metals catalysts

Blocking group removal catalysts

Metals scavenging agents

Refining and full loop service

Why DMC GLOBAL?

As an industry leader in catalytic technology for fine chemical products, DMC GLOBAL is well-versed in the market’s needs and works tirelessly to meet them. Our assets and resources span the globe, making us uniquely qualified to support chemical companies anywhere in the world.

Technologies

DMC GLOBAL’s comprehensive portfolio of catalysts for fine chemical applications allows our customers to be successful. This is accomplished by our constant passion for innovation, enabling enhanced economics, and increased productivity. In industry, we are a partner for the future with our extensive expertise of both catalysts and processes.

1. Blocking Group Removal Catalysts

DMC GLOBAL offers a series of precious metal-based products called Blocking Group Removal (BGR) catalysts. BGR catalysts have been shown to outperform catalysts in the selective removal of common blocking groups used in organic synthesis and removal of protecting groups used in peptides synthesis (FMOC, t-BOC).

The most widely used hydrogenation reaction in the pharmaceutical and fine chemical industry is removal of protecting groups.

Features of DMC GLOBAL’s catalyst include:

Intrinsically higher activity when compared to traditional catalysts while maintaining good selectivity

Proven effective in a much broader range of solvents while maintaining high activity and process productivity

2. High Leaching Resistant (HLR) Catalysts

The DMC GLOBAL High Leaching Resistant (HLR) catalyst technology allows the production of platinum or rhodium based catalysts which show significant higher metal leaching resistance. While the activity typically is similar to standard platinum and rhodium catalysts, the lower metal loss in the hydrogenation process delivers significant cost-saving

DMC GLOBAL HLR catalysts have similar activity and selectivity behavior as standard Rh and Pt on carbon catalysts. They can be applied in reactions which are commonly working with rhodium and platinum catalysts while delivering significant cost-savings due to less precious metal being lost in the process.

3. Heterogeneous Precious and Base Metal Catalysts

DMC GLOBAL offers a variety of precious metals (Pd, Pt, Rh, Ru, Ir, Au and Ag) dispersed on a wide range of supports such as carbon, alumina, silica or titania. These are available as powders, extrudes, tablets or spheres. Base metals (mainly Ni and Cu), supported and passivated as easy-to-handle powder catalysts and skeletal metal materials, round out the portfolio.

State of the art precious metal deposition technologies allow us to optimize the performance of catalytic materials and to fine-tune formulations to the specific needs or our customers’ chemistry and equipment.

4. Refining & Full Loop Service

DMC GLOBAL is the custodian of all precious metals contained in customer refining receipts and as such assumes the responsibility to maintain and operate

Controlled, segregated unit operations which minimize dispersion and loss of precious metals during the preparation and sampling of all receipts

Methods and procedures to generate a homogeneous concentrate from which a sample(s) representative of the entire bulk shipment can be drawn

Accurate and precise analytical methods and procedures to determine the precious metal content of the representative sample(s)

Systems for the accurate and timely calculation and credit of metal settlement content in a seamless environment

Operation, technical and commercial organizations responsive to the problems, concerns and requirements of the customer

Complete and efficient capabilities under one roof to refine a wide range of precious metal spent materials within our ISO certified facilities

5. Metals Scavenging Agents (MSA)

DMC GLOBAL offers an innovative and uniquely effective range of metal scavenging agents (MSA). The inorganic supports used in our scavengers are based on carbon and have been carefully selected to meet pharmaceutical quality standards. In contrast to other scavenging technologies, MSAs are very effective even when the nature of the metal species that needs to be removed is not well-defined (ionic, non-ionic or mixtures of both).

Used up to temperatures of at least 170°C

Applied in both organic and aqueous solvents

High uptake capacity with no swelling issues

6. NanoSelect™ Technology

The DMC GLOBAL NanoSelect™ technology platform is an innovative production technology for heterogeneous catalysts. The NanoSelect technology delivers extremely high metal accessibility and enables control over the metal crystallite shape and size. Catalysts produced using this technology require typically 25 to 50% lower amount of precious metal, significantly lowering the cost of use. In addition, unique selectivity benefits can be obtained through using catalysts produced using NanoSelect technology.

NanoSelect catalysts are characterized by unimodal metal particles on the nanometer scale. Reducing the size of metal particles to nanometers:

Greatly increases the metal surface area available per gram of metal used

Boosts the catalytic activity

Demonstrates different catalytic behavior

For example, the NanoSelect catalysts Pt-100 and Pt-200 were specifically developed to perform selective nitro group reduction. This is achieved with at least 25% less Pt compared to the vanadium-promoted Pt catalyst systems while delivering similar selectivity towards selective amine production. Two other NanoSelect catalysts, i.e. Pt-110 and Pt-210, also provide high activity and selectivity in nitro group reductions and in addition prevent accumulation of hydroxylamine intermediates. In the field of Pd-based catalysts, the NanoSelect technology was used to develop LF-100 and LF-200 catalysts as eco-friendly, lead-free replacements of Lindlar catalysts. In addition to the fact that lead is not required anymore, also the Pd content is reduced by almost 90% while maintaining equal activity.