About

Friederike Jentoft is a Professor in the Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering Department at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. Her research focuses on catalysis, specifically understanding how catalytic reactions proceed and how the performance of catalysts is linked to their composition and structure. Her laboratory specializes in catalyst preparation, structural and surface characterization, kinetics analysis, and spectroscopic monitoring of the adsorption and reaction of molecules on surfaces. Her work aims to design novel, more effective catalysts for key reactions involved in the conversion of fossil feedstocks or biomass to fuels or chemicals, including aldol reactions, methanol-to-olefins conversion, aromatics to paraffins, and polyols to olefins. Jentoft's efforts include developing new supported transition metal oxo catalysts, exploring classes of materials such as mixed transition metal carbides, and utilizing well-defined materials like zeolites for mechanistic studies. She employs various analytical methods, including infrared spectroscopy, UV–vis spectroscopy, chromatography, mass spectrometry, and thermogravimetry, to investigate catalyst structures, reaction mechanisms, and deactivation processes. Her background includes habilitation from Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin and a doctorate from Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München. She has received numerous awards and distinctions, such as the American Chemical Society Excellence in Peer Reviewing and the Fellow of the American Institute of Chemical Engineers, and holds memberships in several professional societies.

Research topics

• Organic chemistry
• Chemistry
• Photochemistry
• Inorganic chemistry
• Medicinal chemistry
• Physical chemistry
• Crystallography
• Combinatorial chemistry

Selected publications

• Intrinsic activation barriers for carbocation cyclization in zeolite and zeotype catalysts with MFI and MOR frameworks

  Journal of Catalysis · 2026-04-06

  articleSenior author
  PublisherDOI

• Insights into effects of zeolite framework topology on the cross aldol reaction of benzaldehyde with 3-pentanone

  Journal of Catalysis · 2025-01-13 · 2 citations

  articleSenior authorCorresponding
  PublisherDOI

• Synthesis of Phase-Pure W _<b>2</b> C and WC by Separation of Reduction and Carburization and Their Differing Performance as Hydrogenation Catalysts

  The Journal of Physical Chemistry C · 2025-11-17 · 2 citations

  articleOpen accessCorresponding

  Tungsten carbide is considered a promising, low-cost alternative to noble metal catalysts due to its electronic properties being similar to those of platinum. However, the role of the different tungsten carbide modifications (W2C, WC) in catalysis is rather unclear so far. Conventionally, tungsten carbide synthesis for catalytic applications is performed via a highly complex gas–solid reaction with the simultaneous reduction and carburization of tungsten(VI)oxide. This work explores a less-investigated two-step synthesis, decoupling reduction, and carburization to obtain and investigate both phase-pure tungsten semicarbide and tungsten monocarbide. Time-resolved analyses of the solid-state reactions concerning reduction and carburization were performed by in situ XRD. This alternative approach allowed the synthesis of phase-pure W2C and WC bulk materials with comparable morphological properties. The performance of the resulting catalysts was tested in the hydrogenation of butyraldehyde to 1-butanol. The higher hydrogenation activity of W2C over WC is in accordance with previous theoretical investigations.

  PublisherDOI

• An adaptable model to predict the induction time of the Phillips catalyst

  Journal of Catalysis · 2025-07-03

  articleSenior authorCorresponding
  PublisherDOI

• Ethanol Dehydration over Silica-Supported H₃PW₁₂O₄₀ and the Role of Water

  ACS Catalysis · 2025-05-19 · 4 citations

  articleOpen access

  Catalytic dehydration of (bioderived) ethanol to ethylene or diethyl ether (DEE) offers an atom-efficient route to commodity chemicals and renewable aviation fuels. Here, the impact of silica support morphology and dispersion of H3PW12O40 (HPW) on the vapor-phase dehydration of ethanol to ethylene and DEE was investigated. Ethanol conversion at 175 °C and ambient pressure was inversely proportional to HPW dispersion over a fumed silica and mesoporous SBA-15 support, with specific activity directly proportional to the crystalline water content, highlighting the importance of catalysis within the pseudo-liquid phase. A common turnover frequency of ∼2500 h–1 was determined for HPW/SBA-15, with all acid sites participating. Catalyst deactivation at 175 °C could be suppressed by co-feeding 10 wt % water, likely by mitigating the loss of crystalline (acidic) water; higher reaction temperatures induce decomposition of the heteropolyanion to WO3 and could also be partially suppressed by co-fed water. In the presence of co-fed water, the optimum 50 wt % HPW/SBA-15 catalyst could be used for three consecutive reactions at 175 °C with minimal loss of activity or selectivity without any reactivation protocol. Ethanol dehydration was selective to DEE (∼80%) for reaction <225 °C, with higher temperatures inducing a switchover to ethylene (87% ≥ 300 °C) in accordance with thermodynamic predictions. Maximum steady-state DEE productivity was 600 mmol·gcat–1·h–1 at 175 °C, and maximum steady-state ethylene productivity was 1800 mmol·gcat–1·h–1 at 225 °C. In situ DRIFTS identified the protonated ethanol dimer (C2H5OH)2H+ as the reactive intermediate to DEE formation, with higher temperatures favoring the formation of protonated ethanol (C2H5OH)H+ and ethoxy intermediates to ethylene.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Intrinsic activation energies for ring contraction of allylic cations in zeolites

  Journal of Catalysis · 2025-11-16 · 1 citations

  articleSenior authorCorresponding
  PublisherDOI

• Spectroscopic summation of surface species as a measure of zeolite hydride transfer activity

  Journal of Catalysis · 2024-12-21

  articleSenior authorCorresponding
  PublisherDOI

• Correction: Optical bands of dodecanuclear compounds H₄PVMo₁₁O₄₀·<i>y</i>H₂O with Keggin structure. Semiclassical vibronic model

  Physical Chemistry Chemical Physics · 2024-01-01

  articleOpen access

  Correction for ‘Optical bands of dodecanuclear compounds H 4 PVMo 11 O 40 · y H 2 O with Keggin structure. Semiclassical vibronic model’ by S. Klokishner et al. , Phys. Chem. Chem. Phys. , 2004, 6 , 2066–2082, https://doi.org/10.1039/B312753B.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Transition metal-catalyzed deoxydehydration: missing pieces of the puzzle

  Catalysis Science & Technology · 2022 · 29 citations

  1st authorCorresponding
  • Chemistry
  • Combinatorial chemistry
  • Organic chemistry

  Deoxydehydration (DODH) is a transformation that converts a vicinal diol into an olefin with the help of a sacrificial reductant.

  PublisherDOI

• Elucidating Cooperative Interactions between Grafted Amines and Tin or Titanium Sites on Silica

  ACS Catalysis · 2022-07-28 · 6 citations

  articleCorresponding

  The efficient promotion of cooperative catalytic interactions on solid surfaces can be of great benefit for a range of important reactions. Herein, we demonstrate that the cooperative interactions of isolated tin (Sn) and titanium (Ti) sites on silica with grafted primary amines (NH2) can be tuned by changing the immediate chemical environment of the metal sites (M). We show that, by tethering various size organic ligands (RO) to the M sites, we can govern the interactions between the sites as measured by the presence of NH3+. We show that the concentration of NH3+ is directly correlated with the activity of the model Henry reaction. We further find that the selectivity to the olefinic product increased from 59% for the cooperative interactions of grafted NH2 and surface silanols to 84–92% for the cooperative interactions between grafted NH2 and the isolated Sn or Ti sites. An analysis by DFT shows that these cooperative interactions are enabled by the presence of a trace amount (two molecules per M site) of water near the metal sites and a resulting hydrolysis, which depends on the hydrophobicity of the RO group and the nature of the metal. Hence, the current work provides advanced molecular-level insights into the underlying principles of cooperative interactions on a solid surface and guidance for governing such interactions by tuning the chemical environment.

  PublisherDOI

Recent grants

• Catalytic Deoxydehydration of Biomass-Derived Polyols to Olefins

  NSF · $425k · 2012–2016

• NSF-BSF: Mechanism-Guided Design of Deoxydehydration Catalysts

  NSF · $363k · 2022–2026

• NSF-BSF: Steering Selectivity in Aldol Reactions by Control of Relative Effective Reaction Rates in Porous Catalysts

  NSF · $385k · 2018–2023

• Catalytic Deoxydehydration of Biomass-Derived Polyols to Olefins

  NSF · $186k · 2015–2018

• MRI: Acquisition of Thermal Analysis and Calorimetry Equipment for Multiple Applications Emphasizing Research on Sustainable Fuels

  NSF · $441k · 2009–2011

Frequent coauthors

• Robert Schlögl

  Fritz Haber Institute of the Max Planck Society

  78 shared

• Jutta Kröhnert

  Fritz Haber Institute of the Max Planck Society

  58 shared

• Rolf E. Jentoft

  University of Massachusetts Amherst

  34 shared

• И. Р. Субботина

  31 shared

• V.B. Kazansky

  N.D. Zelinsky Institute of Organic Chemistry

  29 shared

• Detre Teschner

  Fritz Haber Institute of the Max Planck Society

  22 shared

• Barbara S. Klose

  22 shared

• Axel Knop‐Gericke

  Fritz Haber Institute of the Max Planck Society

  22 shared

Awards & honors

• 2022 Excellence in Peer Reviewing, American Chemical Society…
• 2021 Fellow, American Institute of Chemical Engineers
• 2021 Lady Davis Fellowship for Visiting Professors, Faculty…
• 2021 Outstanding Senior Faculty Award, College of Engineerin…
• 2018 Excellence in Catalysis Award, Catalysis Society of Met…