After deciding to first tackle the barrier of transition metal catalysis, Xu Yun and others quickly changed into a set of standard lab attire.

Students who passed high school chemistry should know.

According to the periodic law of elements, people often search for catalysts in the region of transition metals.

For example, the catalyst for synthesizing ammonia is an iron catalyst.

Vanadium pentoxide is the catalyst for synthesizing sulfuric acid and nitric acid.

Ranny nickel is often used for the addition of olefins and hydrogen gas, among other things.

Why do these transition elements and compounds frequently play the role of "matchmaker"?

Let's first use layman's terms to explain a concept here:

Feedback π-bond.

When a coordination bond is formed between a transition metal atom (central atom) and a ligand.

The coordination atom provides an electron pair and fills the empty orbital provided by the central atom, forming a σ-bond in the form of a coordination bond.

Sometimes, some electrons from the central atom might also fill the empty orbitals of the ligand molecule.

This is what a feedback π-bond is.

And in this process.

The antibonding orbitals π2py* and π2pz* of the ligand molecule are empty.

When it acts as a ligand.

It can either provide electron pairs for coordination out or offer empty antibonding π-orbitals to coordinate electrons in.

As long as the central atom and the ligand both have electron pairs and empty orbitals, the prerequisite conditions for reciprocity are met.

Coupled with the symmetry between the two being suitable, a feedback π-bond forms.

Up to this point.

Smart students should understand.

Exactly!

If a ligand molecule forms a feedback π-bond with a certain transition metal atom, its originally empty antibonding π-orbitals then fill up with electrons.

The bond order and the number of electrons in antibonding orbitals are inversely correlated.

The more electrons filled in the antibonding orbitals, the smaller the bond order, and the less stable the bond.

The originally very stable N≡N bond is weakened by the feedback bond, indicating its chemical activity is significantly enhanced.

In other words.

It becomes much easier for the ligand molecule to react further.

This is the principle of transition element catalysis.

Very simple and easy to understand.

The transition metal Xu Yun and the others used in the lab is ruthenium, a metal that is very stable and highly resistant to corrosion.

This material has another very special characteristic:

Its content in the Earth's crust is only one-billionth, making it one of the rarest metals.

Yet it is quite inexpensive, being the cheapest among the platinum group metals.

However, despite being cheap.

Due to its hexagonal crystal cell structure, it can only be used on the laboratory side in the production process of Imidacloprid and cannot be successfully applied in industrial production.

"So in the given candidate plan, we've appended three metals: lanthanum, scandium, and gallium, for Nutrien to match."

Inside the laboratory.

Xu Yun is introducing related information to Yu Yuanyong:

"Eventually, Nutrien's response was gallium metal, which is the transition metal catalyst with the highest overall efficiency, and the operational results after receipt fully met expectations."

"Naturally, it's also because of this that their equipment quotation was much higher than expected."

Across from him, Yu Yuanyong knowingly nodded.

Among the three metals, the price of scandium is the highest.

As per the current price, one ton of 99.9% grade scandium is 32,000 yuan.

Next is lanthanum.

One ton costs 27,750.02 yuan.

Gallium is the cheapest.

One ton is only 2,805 yuan, ten times less than the other two metals.

Meanwhile.

Gallium is also the best choice in terms of catalytic effect.

However, contrary to price and effect, the difficulty of mass production on industrial production lines increases sequentially among the three metals.

Equipment requirements naturally follow suit.

Thinking of this.

Yu Yuanyong picked up a report from the table beside him, flipped to a certain page, and introduced it to everyone:

"Dr. Xu, to be honest, we are currently stuck on the molecular sieve stage of the catalyst."

"Our team has tried many methods but unfortunately failed in the end."

"Not to mention gallium, we haven't even broken through with scandium."

"Because regardless of the metal, the framework heteroatoms with coordination in the molecular sieve must be highly isolated."

"For instance, the neighbors in Ti—O—Si are mainly Si—O—Si, and on the other hand, Ti mainly exists in a tetra-coordinated way. We must perform atomic defect site reactions inside the container, but thermodynamically this is unfavorable."

At this moment, Lin Zhenhua suddenly interrupted him and asked:

"Yu, how did Nutrien complete this step? Can we borrow some of their ideas?"

Yu Yuanyong shook his head, pointing to the computer on the other side:

"Nutrien employed a chemical grafting patent, and the entire process is interconnected with points that cannot be altered."

"Complete duplication aside from the difficulty of the process is undone by patent protection — they can list FOERDA-T632 under the 'Wassenaar Agreement,' but Dr. Xu and his team cannot infringe on patents, or they'd be handing the knife to others."

Hearing this, Lin Zhenhua opened his mouth as if he wanted to say something.

But ultimately remained silent.

Just as Yu Yuanyong said.

Huadun Biotech is not a small private workshop; every step taken by Xu Yun and the others will be scrutinized with a magnifying glass, finding vulnerabilities.

Once the production capacity of 'One Locust Extinct' is enhanced.

It is certain that someone will prompt Nutrien to initiate a patent review, demanding verification of patent infringement situations.

Is there any skulduggery?

Certainly, it's unjust.

Prohibition of imitating equipment on one end while bannering non-reproduction on the other is the epitome of double standards.