Nano-Catalysis is becoming a strategic field of science since it represents a new way to meet the challenges of energy and sustainability. These challenges are becoming the main concerns of the global vision of the societal challenges and world economy. Catalysis research became one of the most powerful tools to take on these challenges.

Nanocatalysis can help design catalysts with excellent activity, greater selectivity, and high stability. Their properties can easily be tuned by tailoring the size, shape, and morphology of the particular nanomaterial. In the nano-catalysis (NanoCat) laboratory, we are designing and synthesizing various nano-materials (silica, metal oxides, metals, MOF etc) with specific shapes, sizes and morphologies and then evaluating their use as a nano-catalysts for the development of sustainable protocols for various challenging processes like photocatalysis, CO₂ capture and conversion to fine chemicals, environmental remediation as well as C-H activation, C-C coupling, oxidation, metathesis, hydrogenolysis, hydrogenation reactions.

A guiding hypothesis is that catalytic efficiency (activity, kinetics, selectivity and stability) can be controlled by tuning the morphology of nanomaterials/nanocatalysts. We aim to develop of novel nanomaterials as catalysts to tackle “climate change”.

• Defects in Nanosilica Catalytically Convert CO2 to Methane without Any Metal and Ligand. Amit K. Mishra, Rajesh Belgamwar, Rajkumar Jana, Ayan Datta, and Vivek Polshettiwar*, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A 2020, doi: 10.1073/pnas.1917237117
• Plasmonic Colloidosomes of Black Gold for Solar Energy Harvesting and Hotspots Directed Catalysis for CO2 to Fuel Conversion. "Cover Page” "Pick of the Week". M. Dhiman, A. Maity, A, Das, R. Belgamwar, B. Chalke, Y. Lee, Kyunjong Sim, Jwa-Min Nam and Vivek Polshettiwar*, Chemical Science, 2019, 10, 6694-6603.
• Facile Synthesis Protocol to Tune Size, Textural Properties & Fiber Density of Dendritic Fibrous Nanosilica (DFNS): Applications in Catalysis and CO2 Capture. Maity, R. Belgamwar, Vivek Polshettiwar*, Nature Protocol, 2019, 14, 2177-2204.
• Probing the Interfaces in Nanosilica‐Supported TiO2 Photocatalysts by Solid‐State NMR and In Situ FTIR.”Cover Page”. R. Singh, N. Bayal, A. Maity, D. J. Pradeep, J.Trébosc, P. K. Madhu, P. Lafon,* V. Polshettiwar*, ChemNanoMat, 2018, 4, 1231-1239.
• Unraveling the Formation Mechanism of Dendritic Fibrous Nanosilica. Ayan Maity, A. Das, D. Sen, S. Mazumder, Vivek Polshettiwar*, Langmuir, 2017, 33, 13774-13782.
• Organosilane Oxidation with a Half Million Turnover Number using Fibrous Nanosilica Supported Ultrasmall Nanoparticles and Pseudo- Single Atoms of Gold. Mahak Dhiman, Bhagyashree Chalke, and Vivek Polshettiwar*, J. Mat. Chem. A. 2017, 5, 1935-1940.
• Atomic Layer Deposited (ALD) TiO2 on Fibrous Nano-Silica (KCC-1) for Photocatalysis: Nanoparticle Formation and Size Quantization Effect. Rustam Singh, Rudheer Bapat, L. Quen, H. Feng,* and Vivek Polshettiwar*, ACS Catalysis 2016, 6, 2770−2784
• Design of CO2 Sorbents using Functionalized Fibrous Nanosilica (KCC-1): Insights into the Effect of the Silica Morphology (KCC-1 vs MCM- 41) . "Emerging Investigator Issue". Baljeet Singh and Vivek Polshettiwar*, J. Mat. Chem. A. 2016, 4, 7005-7019.
• SBA-15-Oxynitrides as a Solid-Base Catalyst: Effect of Nitridation Temperature on Catalytic Activity. "Nature India". Baljeet Singh, K. R. Mote, C. S. Gopinath, P. K. Madhu,* Vivek Polshettiwar*, Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2015, 54, 5985-5989.
• Insights Into the Catalytic Activity of Nitridated Fibrous Silica (KCC-1) Nanocatalysts from 15N and 29Si NMR Enhanced by Dynamic Nuclear Polarization. S. L. Thankamony, C. Lion, F. Pourpoint, B. Singh, A. J. Perez Linde, D. Carnevale, G. Bodenhausen, H. Vezin, Olivier Lafon,* Vivek Polshettiwar*, Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2015, 54, 2190-2193.