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Molecular catalysts anchored on electrode surfaces are commonly assumed to behave similarly to their homogeneous counterparts. Under some conditions, however, they can behave like metallic electrodes. Now, the underlying phenomena behind this fresh paradigm in heterogeneous electrocatalysis are uncovered.
Bioelectrochemical CO2 fixation often suffers from a mismatch between the electrochemical and biological components. Now, a spatial decoupling strategy, where CO2 electrolysis produces electrolyte-free acetic acid as the feed for engineered yeast fermentation, enables highly productive synthesis of glucose or fatty acids.
Nitrogenase reduces dinitrogen at one of its iron–sulfur cores to produce ammonia by a convoluted mechanism. Now, research highlights the importance of sulfur mobility on one of nitrogenase’s metallocofactors for nitrogen fixation.
Combining computational and experimental methods is a powerful approach, but these are not always directly comparable. This Perspective discusses the relationship between experimental measurements and theoretical calculations in electrocatalysis and aims to enhance the connections between the two.
Reliable testing of fuel cell and electrolyser catalysts is crucial for comparison between studies. This Perspective discusses the differences between rotating disk electrode (RDE) and membrane electrode assembly (MEA) testing of electrocatalysts, and identifies where RDE can be useful and when MEA is more appropriate to study activity and stability under realistic conditions.
Selective electroreduction of CO2-derived CO presents an opportunity to produce sustainable fuels and chemicals; however, its performance has been below practical levels. Now, an ordered Cu–Pd bimetallic catalyst has been developed for selective electroreduction of CO to acetate at an industrially relevant activity.
Low-temperature CO2 electrolysis is increasingly attractive for the production of sustainable electrofuels and electrochemicals as intensified research keeps pushing performance higher. Recent efforts on system engineering now offer solutions to downstream purification challenges, taking this technology one step closer to maturity.
Studying the kinetics of high-energy and high-power batteries is a formidable challenge. Now, it has been shown that redox-mediated (RM) catalysis in Li–O2 and Li–S batteries can be controlled by tuning parameters such as Li-ion concentration or electrolyte solvent, revealing threshold potentials in which rate constants increase several-fold.
Most applications of machine learning in catalysis use black-box models to predict physical properties, but extracting meaningful physical insights from them is challenging. This Perspective discusses machine learning approaches for heterogeneous catalysis and classifies them in terms of their interpretability.
Solid catalysts often exhibit a dynamic behaviour when exposed to reactive environments. Now, a study showcases how such behaviour can be exploited to maximize activity.
For microbial industrial lignin conversion, a key challenge is to overcome rate-limiting steps in the upper pathways of aromatic catabolism. This Review discusses the critical enzymatic reactions of aromatic O-demethylation, decarboxylation and hydroxylation for lignin valorization via biological funnelling.
