Advanced Nanotechnology Center (aNANO) was founded in 1999 by ABB Switzerland Ltd., under the name of ABB Plasma Greenhouse Gas Chemistry Laboratory. After ABB sold out her power generation business, we started to operate this laboratory by our own efforts in 2004 and changed the laboratory name in 2009.

The objective of aNANO is to research and develop novel methods for the preparation of various nano or nanostructured materials, to be used for the catalyst, energy and fuels and others.  The catalysts or nano-materials investigated include metals, zeolites, metal oxides, carbon nanotubes, graphene, porous organic materials, peptides and DNA based materials.

aNANO has developed a special cold plasma technology for the preparation of the catalyst and nano materials. Under the influence of cold plasmas, the nucleation and growth of crystals will be very different, compared to the conventional crystal growth based on equilibrium thermodynamics. The catalysts or nano materials created by the plasmas show higher dispersion (smaller size), different shapes, enhanced interaction between the metal and the support and improved catalytic properties (like better low temperature activity, enhanced stability, improved coke resistant, etc.).