The project successfully developed and validated scalable synthesis methodologies for SACs. Catalyst production was demonstrated across several scales, progressing from laboratory batches containing tens of milligrams of catalyst, through gram-scale production (1–100 g), up to multi-hundred-gram and kilogram-scale batches. In total, approximately 4 kg of catalyst material were produced during the project. This scale progression enabled the verification of catalyst quality, reproducibility and manufacturing robustness across increasing production volumes and provided important insights into future industrial scale-up requirements, demonstrating the feasibility of moving beyond laboratory proof-of-concept towards pre-industrial production levels.
The developed catalysts were evaluated in several catalytic transformations relevant to the pharmaceutical and fine chemical industries, including hydrogenation, reductive amination, carbon–carbon bond formation and selective oxidation reactions used in the synthesis of active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) and pharmaceutical intermediates. Benchmarking studies against commercially available catalysts demonstrated that single-atom catalysts can achieve comparable or superior catalytic performance while using substantially lower amounts of precious metals. In several cases, catalyst productivity and metal utilization efficiency were significantly improved, highlighting the potential of the technology to reduce both manufacturing costs and environmental impact.
Alongside the technical work, the project carried out an extensive commercial validation programme. A comprehensive business plan was developed, covering market opportunities, manufacturing costs, intellectual property, regulatory considerations and commercialization strategies. Discussions with pharmaceutical and chemical industry stakeholders confirmed strong market interest in the technology. In particular, three pharmaceutical companies expressed interest in the potential use of the developed catalysts for future manufacturing applications and explored possible pathways for collaboration and technology adoption.
A major outcome of the project was the generation of new intellectual property. The scientific and technological advances achieved during CATSYNEX have resulted in two patent applications currently under development by Politecnico di Milano. These patents cover innovative methodologies for the synthesis and industrial implementation of single-atom catalysts and provide a strong basis for future commercialization activities.
