Custom Services
Johnson Matthey Catalysis & Chiral Technologies provides comprehensive technical services supporting pharmaceutical and fine chemical development from early-stage research through commercial manufacturing. Our expert teams combine deep catalysis knowledge with practical process development experience to address your most challenging synthesis problems.
Custom Catalyst Development
When standard catalog products do not meet your specific requirements, our custom development services create optimized catalytic solutions tailored to your exact needs.
Development Approach
Our catalyst development process begins with comprehensive understanding of your synthesis challenge, target molecule structure, and process constraints. Technical discussions identify key performance requirements including activity, selectivity, functional group compatibility, and scale-up considerations.
Catalyst design leverages our extensive experience across heterogeneous catalysis, homogeneous catalysis, chiral technologies, and biocatalysis. We employ computational modeling, high-throughput screening, and rational design approaches to efficiently explore catalyst space and identify promising candidates.
Laboratory validation testing evaluates candidate catalysts under realistic conditions using your actual substrates. Performance metrics including yield, selectivity, turnover number, and operational stability guide iterative optimization. We provide comprehensive data packages documenting performance across relevant parameter ranges.
Scale-up development bridges laboratory discoveries to commercial implementation. Pilot plant demonstrations at kilogram scale validate process robustness and identify potential issues before full-scale manufacturing. Process safety assessments ensure operations meet pharmaceutical industry standards.
Heterogeneous Catalyst Development
Supported precious metal catalyst development optimizes metal loading, particle size distribution, and support properties for specific applications. We can modify catalyst characteristics including:
- Metal type and loading (palladium, platinum, rhodium, ruthenium, gold, silver)
- Support materials (carbon, alumina, silica, titania, mixed oxides)
- Promoters and modifiers enhancing selectivity or stability
- Particle size controlling activity and mass transfer
- Surface treatments modifying hydrophobicity or metal-support interactions
Specialized formulations address challenging requirements including poison resistance, high-temperature stability, or operation in unusual solvents. Characterization employing advanced analytical techniques validates achievement of target specifications.
Homogeneous Catalyst Development
Metal complex catalyst development creates optimized systems for precision transformations. Our capabilities span:
- Custom ligand synthesis including chiral phosphines, NHC ligands, and other donor systems
- Metal complex preparation with rhodium, ruthenium, palladium, iridium, copper, and other metals
- Optimization of catalyst structure for specific substrate classes
- Development of recovery and recycling protocols
Ligand library approaches enable rapid screening of structural variations to identify optimal combinations. Computational chemistry guides ligand design by predicting metal-ligand and catalyst-substrate interactions.
Biocatalyst Development
Enzyme-based catalyst development provides green chemistry solutions through:
- Screening our proprietary enzyme libraries against customer substrates
- Directed evolution to improve activity, selectivity, or stability
- Rational design based on structural and mechanistic understanding
- Development of immobilization methods for continuous processing
- Cofactor recycling system optimization
Collaboration with specialized biotechnology partners extends our capabilities to include novel enzyme discovery and advanced protein engineering techniques.
Process Optimization Services
Translating synthetic methodologies from discovery to development and manufacturing requires systematic optimization addressing multiple objectives simultaneously.
Reaction Optimization
Our process chemists employ design of experiments and statistical methods to efficiently optimize multi-parameter systems. Services include:
- Catalyst and reagent screening to identify optimal selections
- Condition optimization (temperature, pressure, concentration, time)
- Solvent screening and solvent system design
- Additive effects investigation
- Kinetic studies characterizing reaction profiles
- Scale-down models enabling efficient optimization with minimal material
We develop robust processes operating within wide parameter ranges, ensuring reliable manufacturing performance despite normal operational variations.
Selectivity Enhancement
Improving selectivity reduces byproduct formation, simplifying purification and improving economics. Our approaches include:
- Mechanistic studies identifying selectivity-determining factors
- Catalyst modifications enhancing desired pathways
- Condition adjustments favoring target products
- Protecting group strategies when required
- Alternative synthetic routes evaluation
Process Safety Assessment
Safety evaluation identifies and characterizes potential hazards associated with synthetic processes. Our services include:
- Differential scanning calorimetry for thermal stability assessment
- Reaction calorimetry measuring heat generation profiles
- Gas evolution testing for pressure hazards
- Thermal runaway scenario evaluation
- Hazard mitigation recommendations
Impurity Fate and Purging
Understanding impurity profiles and their behavior through synthetic sequences ensures pharmaceutical product quality. We provide:
- Impurity identification and structural characterization
- Fate and purging studies tracking impurities through process steps
- Process modifications to reject or control impurities
- Specifications development ensuring consistent quality
Green Chemistry Assessment
Environmental impact evaluation quantifies process sustainability. Metrics include:
- E-factor (waste to product ratio) calculation
- Atom economy analysis
- Process mass intensity determination
- Solvent and reagent environmental impact assessment
- Alternative methodology evaluation for improved sustainability
Analytical Services
Comprehensive analytical capabilities support catalyst characterization, reaction monitoring, and product quality verification.
Catalyst Characterization
Advanced techniques reveal catalyst structure and properties:
- Inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) for metal content
- Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) for particle size and morphology
- X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) for surface composition and oxidation states
- Gas adsorption analysis for surface area and pore structure
- X-ray diffraction (XRD) for crystalline phase identification
- Temperature programmed techniques (TPR, TPO, TPD) for metal-support interactions
Reaction Monitoring
Real-time analysis tracks reaction progress enabling kinetic studies and optimization:
- In situ spectroscopy (IR, Raman, NMR) for mechanistic insights
- Online HPLC or GC for composition monitoring
- Reaction calorimetry for thermal profiling
- Automated sampling and analysis systems
Product Analysis
Quality control methods verify product identity, purity, and specifications:
- HPLC and GC assays for quantitative analysis
- Chiral separation methods for enantiomeric excess determination
- Mass spectrometry for molecular weight confirmation and impurity identification
- NMR spectroscopy for structural verification
- Residual metal analysis ensuring pharmaceutical compliance
Method Development and Validation
Custom analytical method development creates procedures specific to your molecules and requirements. Validation following ICH guidelines establishes reliability and regulatory acceptability.
Scale-Up Support
Successful technology transfer from laboratory to manufacturing requires addressing engineering challenges while maintaining chemical performance.
Process Design
Chemical engineers develop flowsheets and equipment specifications for commercial implementation. Services include:
- Mass and energy balance calculations
- Equipment sizing and selection recommendations
- Process flow diagrams and P&ID development
- Utility requirements determination
- Waste stream characterization and treatment design
Pilot Plant Demonstrations
Our pilot plant facilities enable kilogram to hundred-kilogram scale demonstrations validating commercial feasibility. Capabilities include:
- Batch reactors (glass-lined, stainless steel, Hastelloy) from 50L to 500L
- Continuous flow reactors for flow chemistry applications
- High-pressure hydrogenation equipment to 100 bar
- Cryogenic capabilities to -80°C
- Controlled atmosphere systems for oxygen-sensitive reactions
Pilot campaigns generate critical data for commercial design while producing material for downstream development or clinical studies.
Technology Transfer
Smooth handoff to manufacturing sites requires comprehensive documentation and training. We provide:
- Detailed process descriptions and operating procedures
- Batch records and manufacturing instructions
- Training for manufacturing personnel
- On-site support during initial commercial batches
- Troubleshooting assistance during technology adoption
Regulatory Support
Pharmaceutical manufacturing requires extensive documentation supporting regulatory filings.
Documentation
We prepare comprehensive packages including:
- Process descriptions and reaction schemes
- Catalyst specifications and characterization data
- Analytical method descriptions and validation reports
- Impurity profiles and fate assessments
- Safety data and toxicology information
Drug Master Files
Type II Drug Master Files provide detailed catalyst information to FDA while protecting proprietary details. We maintain DMFs for major products and can prepare custom DMFs for specialized catalysts.
Regulatory Consulting
Our regulatory affairs specialists assist with:
- CMC section development for regulatory submissions
- Responses to regulatory authority questions
- Specification setting and justification
- Change control and comparability protocols
Intellectual Property
We respect customer intellectual property while providing necessary services.
Confidentiality
Comprehensive confidentiality agreements protect your proprietary information. Our facilities and systems maintain strict separation of different customer projects.
IP Position
We can operate under customer-owned IP, jointly develop IP with defined ownership, or provide services generating IP owned by us with customer licenses. Flexible arrangements accommodate different business models.
Freedom to Operate
Our patent specialists can conduct freedom-to-operate assessments identifying relevant patents and evaluating infringement risks. We help navigate IP landscapes in the crowded pharmaceutical field.
Training and Education
Building customer capabilities through knowledge transfer ensures long-term success.
Technical Training
Customized programs cover:
- Catalyst fundamentals and selection guidelines
- Reaction optimization methodologies
- Safe handling of catalytic materials
- Analytical techniques for catalysis applications
- Scale-up principles and practices
Training can be delivered at our facilities, customer sites, or through virtual platforms. Hands-on laboratory sessions provide practical experience.
Workshops and Seminars
We host periodic events covering current topics in catalysis and pharmaceutical synthesis. These forums facilitate knowledge exchange and networking within the chemistry community.
Getting Started
Engaging our services begins with technical discussion understanding your needs and objectives.
Initial Consultation: Complimentary consultation with our technical experts explores your challenge and discusses potential approaches. Preliminary feasibility assessment identifies promising directions.
Proposal: Based on initial discussions, we prepare detailed technical and commercial proposals outlining scope, timeline, deliverables, and investment. Proposals include estimated timelines and success criteria.
Project Execution: Upon acceptance, dedicated project teams execute work following established protocols. Regular updates maintain communication and allow mid-course adjustments if needed.
Results Delivery: Comprehensive final reports document all work, results, and recommendations. We support implementation of developed solutions at your facilities.
Contact Our Services Team
Discuss your specific requirements with our technical experts:
Email: services@jmcct.com
Phone: +1-800-CATALYST
Web: Complete our contact form
Our team looks forward to partnering with you on your catalysis challenges.