CeO nanorods are functional mimics of natural haloperoxidases. They catalyze the oxidative bromination of phenol red to bromophenol blue and of natural signaling molecules involved in bacterial quorum sensing. Laboratory and field tests with paint formulations containing 2 wt% of CeO nanorods show a reduction in biofouling comparable to Cu O, the most typical biocidal pigment.

A major obstacle in the development of industrial catalysts is the scalability of both catalyst performance and synthesis. While utilizing pilot-scale test reactors allows for a direct transfer from the development stage to the application, it comes at the cost of flexibility. The amount of catalyst required in a pilot-scale test reactor often surpasses the yields of novel synthesis procedures, requiring extensive scale-up efforts. Here, pilot-scale reactors are combined with small lab-scale reactors, using the example of oxidation of o-xylene to phthalic anhydride.