CAREER: CAS: Spatially Resolved Mechanistic Studies of Interfacial Proton-Coupled Electron Transfer at MoTe2 Active Sites

In this CAREER project, funded by the Chemical Mechanism, Function, and Properties Program and the Chemical Catalysis Program of the Chemistry Division, Professor Megan Jackson of the Department of Chemistry at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill is bringing new molecular-level understanding to electrochemical energy conversion reactions. Moving towards greater reliance on sustainable energy sources requires electrocatalysts that can efficiently convert between electricity and fuel.

This work will develop fundamental mechanistic insights into the factors that make a material an efficient catalyst. The results of this work will be leveraged in the development of new electrocatalysts that can be used in devices like fuel cells and electrolyzers. This project will also support a Cyclic Voltammetry Boot Camp for researchers desiring to incorporate electrochemistry into their research as well as the development of accessible electrochemistry activities for children and adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

This project will use multimodal spatially resolved techniques to identify the kinetic and thermodynamic factors governing interfacial inner-sphere proton-coupled electron transfer (PCET) reactions at edge sites and basal plane sites in two phases of the transition metal dichalcogenide, MoTe2, as a model system. Specifically, Professor Jackson and the rest of the research team are: (1) Identifying property–activity relationships for interfacial, inner-sphere PCET reactions at edge and basal plane sites of 2H and 1T’ MoTe2; (2) Determining the mechanism of interfacial inner-sphere PCET steps at step edge and basal plane sites of 2H and 1T’ MoTe2; and (3) Systematically tuning MoTe2 electrodes, proton donors, and electrolyte properties to identify opportunities for synthetic control over the local thermodynamic and kinetic parameters that govern interfacial inner-sphere PCET reactions.

Long-term, they envision leveraging these insights to facilitate fast, selective reactions in a wide range of electrochemical energy storage and conversion reactions.

This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.