Project acronym CLUNATRA
Project Discovering new Catalysts in the Cluster-Nanoparticle Transition Regime
Researcher (PI) Ib CHORKENDORFF
Host Institution (HI) DANMARKS TEKNISKE UNIVERSITET
Call Details Advanced Grant (AdG), PE4, ERC-2016-ADG
Summary The purpose of this proposal is to establish new fundamental insight of the reactivity and thereby the catalytic activity of oxides, nitrides, phosphides and sulfides (O-, N-, P-, S- ides) in the Cluster-Nanoparticle transition regime. We will use this insight to develop new catalysts through an interactive loop involving DFT simulations, synthesis, characterization and activity testing. The overarching objective is to make new catalysts that are efficient for production of solar fuels and chemicals to facilitate the implementation of sustainable energy, e.g. electrochemical hydrogen production and reduction of CO2 and N2 through both electrochemical and thermally activated processes.
Recent research has identified why there is a lack of significant progress in developing new more active catalysts. Chemical scaling-relations exist among the intermediates, making it difficult to find a reaction pathway, which provides a flat potential energy landscape - a necessity for making the reaction proceed without large losses. My hypothesis is that going away from the conventional size regime, > 2 nm, one may break such chemical scaling-relations. Non-scalable behavior means that adding an atom results in a completely different reactivity. This drastic change could be even further enhanced if the added atom is a different element than the recipient particle, providing new freedom to control the reaction pathway. The methodology will be based on setting up a specifically optimized instrument for synthesizing such mass-selected clusters/nanoparticles. Thus far, researchers have barely explored this size regime. Only a limited amount of studies has been devoted to inorganic entities of oxides and sulfides; nitrides and phosphides are completely unexplored. We will employ atomic level simulations, synthesis, characterization, and subsequently test for specific reactions. This interdisciplinary loop will result in new breakthroughs in the area of catalyst material discovery.
Summary
The purpose of this proposal is to establish new fundamental insight of the reactivity and thereby the catalytic activity of oxides, nitrides, phosphides and sulfides (O-, N-, P-, S- ides) in the Cluster-Nanoparticle transition regime. We will use this insight to develop new catalysts through an interactive loop involving DFT simulations, synthesis, characterization and activity testing. The overarching objective is to make new catalysts that are efficient for production of solar fuels and chemicals to facilitate the implementation of sustainable energy, e.g. electrochemical hydrogen production and reduction of CO2 and N2 through both electrochemical and thermally activated processes.
Recent research has identified why there is a lack of significant progress in developing new more active catalysts. Chemical scaling-relations exist among the intermediates, making it difficult to find a reaction pathway, which provides a flat potential energy landscape - a necessity for making the reaction proceed without large losses. My hypothesis is that going away from the conventional size regime, > 2 nm, one may break such chemical scaling-relations. Non-scalable behavior means that adding an atom results in a completely different reactivity. This drastic change could be even further enhanced if the added atom is a different element than the recipient particle, providing new freedom to control the reaction pathway. The methodology will be based on setting up a specifically optimized instrument for synthesizing such mass-selected clusters/nanoparticles. Thus far, researchers have barely explored this size regime. Only a limited amount of studies has been devoted to inorganic entities of oxides and sulfides; nitrides and phosphides are completely unexplored. We will employ atomic level simulations, synthesis, characterization, and subsequently test for specific reactions. This interdisciplinary loop will result in new breakthroughs in the area of catalyst material discovery.
Max ERC Funding
2 500 000 €
Duration
Start date: 2017-09-01, End date: 2022-08-31
Project acronym FRICTIONS
Project Financial Frictions
Researcher (PI) Lasse Heje Pedersen
Host Institution (HI) COPENHAGEN BUSINESS SCHOOL
Call Details Starting Grant (StG), SH1, ERC-2012-StG_20111124
Summary "Financial economics is at a crossroads: Academics are struggling to redefine the theory of finance and practitioners and regulators to restructure the financial industry. The current financial crisis will have significant impact on how we regulate financial markets and how we manage risk in companies and financial institutions. It will continue to inspire an intense discussion and research agenda over the next decade in academics, in industry, and among financial regulators and a central focus will be the role of frictions in financial markets. Nowhere are these issues more pertinent than in Europe right now.
To take up the challenge presented by this crossroad of financial economics, my research project seeks to contribute to the knowledge of financial frictions and what to do about them. FRICTIONS will explore how financial frictions affect asset prices and the economy, and the implications of frictions for financial risk management, the optimal regulation, and the conduct of monetary policy.
Whereas economists have traditionally focused on the assumption of perfect markets, a growing body of evidence is leading to a widespread recognition that markets are plagued by significant financial frictions. FRICTIONS will model key financial frictions such as leverage constraints, margin requirements, transaction costs, liquidity risk, and short sale constraints. The objective is to develop theories of the origins of these frictions, study how these frictions change over time and across markets, and, importantly, how they affect the required return on assets and the economy.
The project will test these theories using data from global equity, bond, and derivative markets. In particular, the project will measure these frictions empirically and study the empirical effect of frictions on asset returns and economic dynamics. The end result is an empirically-validated model of economic behavior subject to financial frictions that yields qualitative and quantitative insights."
Summary
"Financial economics is at a crossroads: Academics are struggling to redefine the theory of finance and practitioners and regulators to restructure the financial industry. The current financial crisis will have significant impact on how we regulate financial markets and how we manage risk in companies and financial institutions. It will continue to inspire an intense discussion and research agenda over the next decade in academics, in industry, and among financial regulators and a central focus will be the role of frictions in financial markets. Nowhere are these issues more pertinent than in Europe right now.
To take up the challenge presented by this crossroad of financial economics, my research project seeks to contribute to the knowledge of financial frictions and what to do about them. FRICTIONS will explore how financial frictions affect asset prices and the economy, and the implications of frictions for financial risk management, the optimal regulation, and the conduct of monetary policy.
Whereas economists have traditionally focused on the assumption of perfect markets, a growing body of evidence is leading to a widespread recognition that markets are plagued by significant financial frictions. FRICTIONS will model key financial frictions such as leverage constraints, margin requirements, transaction costs, liquidity risk, and short sale constraints. The objective is to develop theories of the origins of these frictions, study how these frictions change over time and across markets, and, importantly, how they affect the required return on assets and the economy.
The project will test these theories using data from global equity, bond, and derivative markets. In particular, the project will measure these frictions empirically and study the empirical effect of frictions on asset returns and economic dynamics. The end result is an empirically-validated model of economic behavior subject to financial frictions that yields qualitative and quantitative insights."
Max ERC Funding
1 307 160 €
Duration
Start date: 2013-01-01, End date: 2017-12-31
Project acronym GLOBALPROD
Project The Global and Local Organization of Production
Researcher (PI) Andreas MOXNES
Host Institution (HI) UNIVERSITETET I OSLO
Call Details Starting Grant (StG), SH1, ERC-2016-STG
Summary A defining feature of the global economy is the gradual fragmentation of production across firms and
borders, a phenomenon that has been termed outsourcing or global value chains.
State-of-the-art empirical economic analysis on value chains has mostly been limited to the study of
aggregate data because there is limited data on actual firm-to-firm linkages in the global economy. Even less
is currently known about which products are typically outsourced, and which workers are affected.
This project will change that. I will bring together four unique firm-to-firm datasets on local and global value
chains that will push the research frontier forward in two main directions:
- Previous research has shown that economic integration encourages growth. Due to data limitations,
however, we know little about the origins of growth, and to what extent the emergence of value chains can
explain the growth response. New theory is needed, where firm-to-firm connections are endogenously
formed in response to economic integration. I will confront theory with data and directly test whether
integration facilitates new buyer-supplier relationships and growth.
- Previous research has found that economic integration has large negative effects on wages for low-skill
workers. But again, due to data limitations, it is unclear to what extent value chains are responsible for this.
Simply put, the impact of outsourcing on wages will depend on which workers are displaced by outsourcing.
Until now, researchers have not been able to observe which workers, along with their occupations and
skills, that are employed in both the supplying and outsourcing firm. For the first time, this information will
be available, allowing for a rich analysis of labor market effects for different skill groups.
GLOBALPROD will inform policymakers about how wages for different types of skills change in response
to globalization, but also how economic integration can promote efficiency and competitiveness.
Summary
A defining feature of the global economy is the gradual fragmentation of production across firms and
borders, a phenomenon that has been termed outsourcing or global value chains.
State-of-the-art empirical economic analysis on value chains has mostly been limited to the study of
aggregate data because there is limited data on actual firm-to-firm linkages in the global economy. Even less
is currently known about which products are typically outsourced, and which workers are affected.
This project will change that. I will bring together four unique firm-to-firm datasets on local and global value
chains that will push the research frontier forward in two main directions:
- Previous research has shown that economic integration encourages growth. Due to data limitations,
however, we know little about the origins of growth, and to what extent the emergence of value chains can
explain the growth response. New theory is needed, where firm-to-firm connections are endogenously
formed in response to economic integration. I will confront theory with data and directly test whether
integration facilitates new buyer-supplier relationships and growth.
- Previous research has found that economic integration has large negative effects on wages for low-skill
workers. But again, due to data limitations, it is unclear to what extent value chains are responsible for this.
Simply put, the impact of outsourcing on wages will depend on which workers are displaced by outsourcing.
Until now, researchers have not been able to observe which workers, along with their occupations and
skills, that are employed in both the supplying and outsourcing firm. For the first time, this information will
be available, allowing for a rich analysis of labor market effects for different skill groups.
GLOBALPROD will inform policymakers about how wages for different types of skills change in response
to globalization, but also how economic integration can promote efficiency and competitiveness.
Max ERC Funding
1 476 948 €
Duration
Start date: 2017-01-01, End date: 2021-12-31
Project acronym MACROINEQUALITY
Project The Macroeconomics of Inequality, Development and the Welfare State
Researcher (PI) Kjetil Storesletten
Host Institution (HI) UNIVERSITETET I OSLO
Call Details Advanced Grant (AdG), SH1, ERC-2012-ADG_20120411
Summary This project will develop macro models with heterogeneity across people and firms to understand the consequences of two profound macro trends: the economic transformation of China and the rising cross-sectional inequality in many countries. The ultimate aim is to help these models become everyday tools in macro, development/labor economics, and actual policy making.
Inequality and human capital accumulation is an important theme. I will develop tractable models of the equity-efficiency tradeoffs under risk and imperfect financial markets. Due to novel general equilibrium effects, progressive taxation is particularly distortive for education choices. This calls for complementary policies. I also explore the nexus between inequality and aggregate risk, the interaction between inequality and the dynamics of political conflict, and the puzzling success of the Scandinavian welfare model.
The project will provide sharper tools for policy analysis. A key aim is to integrate models of mistakes into structural macro models. While such models generally assume rationality, welfare programs are often geared to precisely address negative consequences of human errors. Assuming information is costly, I will quantify bounds on rationality to match observed behavior. The framework has a wide range of potential uses. I will use it to reevaluate government programs.
A large part of the project focuses on China. The rapid economic transformation of emerging economies has raised many new questions for economic theory and policy. I will marshal the use of models with heterogeneity to address these issues. A key goal is to develop a quantitative structural model that can become the benchmark model of fiscal policy analysis and long-run forecasts in China. As an application, I will study cost and gains of various redistribution programs. The project also aims at examining the sources of growth and inflation in China and, ultimately, understanding the culprit of the Chinese growth miracle.
Summary
This project will develop macro models with heterogeneity across people and firms to understand the consequences of two profound macro trends: the economic transformation of China and the rising cross-sectional inequality in many countries. The ultimate aim is to help these models become everyday tools in macro, development/labor economics, and actual policy making.
Inequality and human capital accumulation is an important theme. I will develop tractable models of the equity-efficiency tradeoffs under risk and imperfect financial markets. Due to novel general equilibrium effects, progressive taxation is particularly distortive for education choices. This calls for complementary policies. I also explore the nexus between inequality and aggregate risk, the interaction between inequality and the dynamics of political conflict, and the puzzling success of the Scandinavian welfare model.
The project will provide sharper tools for policy analysis. A key aim is to integrate models of mistakes into structural macro models. While such models generally assume rationality, welfare programs are often geared to precisely address negative consequences of human errors. Assuming information is costly, I will quantify bounds on rationality to match observed behavior. The framework has a wide range of potential uses. I will use it to reevaluate government programs.
A large part of the project focuses on China. The rapid economic transformation of emerging economies has raised many new questions for economic theory and policy. I will marshal the use of models with heterogeneity to address these issues. A key goal is to develop a quantitative structural model that can become the benchmark model of fiscal policy analysis and long-run forecasts in China. As an application, I will study cost and gains of various redistribution programs. The project also aims at examining the sources of growth and inflation in China and, ultimately, understanding the culprit of the Chinese growth miracle.
Max ERC Funding
2 154 647 €
Duration
Start date: 2013-06-01, End date: 2018-05-31
Project acronym VIN
Project Video-rate Scanning Probe Microscopy Imaging of Nanostructures on Surfaces
Researcher (PI) Flemming Besenbacher
Host Institution (HI) AARHUS UNIVERSITET
Call Details Advanced Grant (AdG), PE4, ERC-2008-AdG
Summary The goal of this ERC proposal VIN is to develop the next generation of scanning probe microscopes (SPMs) The microscopes will set new standards in the field through their ability to acquire images at video-rate frequency, while retaining high (atomic) resolution capability. This new instrumental platform will be implemented both under ultra-high vacuum conditions, in a high-pressure gas cell, and under liquid-phase conditions. It will be utilized to create and explore novel research avenues for the study of physical, chemical, and biological surface processes at the single-atom/molecule level with the highest possible spatial and temporal resolution. In particular I will study dynamic phenomena in surface nanostructures, focusing on three mutually synergetic and interdisciplinary priority areas: i) Catalytic reactivity of nanostructures, ii) Self-organisation of organic molecules at surfaces, iii) Biomolecular structures, processes and interactions under physiological conditions. The adsorption, diffusion and interaction of molecules are the basic steps involved in reactions at surfaces. All of them are dynamic processes, where high temporal resolution can provide new groundbreaking insight into e.g. the mechanisms underlying catalysis. Video-rate SPMs will also facilitate investigations of the kinetic aspects of molecular self- organisation at surfaces such as diffusion, intra-molecular conformational dynamics, nucleation and growth of structures. The effort will build upon the world-leading expertise in design, construction and use of SPMs in my research group at the Interdisciplinary Nanoscience Center (iNANO) and the Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Aarhus, Denmark. To achieve the ambitious research goals, I will bring together an interdisciplinary team of highly talented younger scientists.
Summary
The goal of this ERC proposal VIN is to develop the next generation of scanning probe microscopes (SPMs) The microscopes will set new standards in the field through their ability to acquire images at video-rate frequency, while retaining high (atomic) resolution capability. This new instrumental platform will be implemented both under ultra-high vacuum conditions, in a high-pressure gas cell, and under liquid-phase conditions. It will be utilized to create and explore novel research avenues for the study of physical, chemical, and biological surface processes at the single-atom/molecule level with the highest possible spatial and temporal resolution. In particular I will study dynamic phenomena in surface nanostructures, focusing on three mutually synergetic and interdisciplinary priority areas: i) Catalytic reactivity of nanostructures, ii) Self-organisation of organic molecules at surfaces, iii) Biomolecular structures, processes and interactions under physiological conditions. The adsorption, diffusion and interaction of molecules are the basic steps involved in reactions at surfaces. All of them are dynamic processes, where high temporal resolution can provide new groundbreaking insight into e.g. the mechanisms underlying catalysis. Video-rate SPMs will also facilitate investigations of the kinetic aspects of molecular self- organisation at surfaces such as diffusion, intra-molecular conformational dynamics, nucleation and growth of structures. The effort will build upon the world-leading expertise in design, construction and use of SPMs in my research group at the Interdisciplinary Nanoscience Center (iNANO) and the Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Aarhus, Denmark. To achieve the ambitious research goals, I will bring together an interdisciplinary team of highly talented younger scientists.
Max ERC Funding
1 324 983 €
Duration
Start date: 2008-12-01, End date: 2013-11-30
