Organic water splitters get a boost

Nanoparticle photocatalyst can generate hydrogen fuel from water more efficiently than their standard inorganic semiconductor counterparts

14-Jun-2022 - Organic semiconductor-based photocatalysts conceived by a KAUST-led team could make hydrogen easier to generate from water using sunlight. Sunlight is the most abundant source of renewable energy, but its inability to produce consistent energy levels over time means it cannot meet energy needs on ...

Smog clears on car exhaust catalyst design

Systematic study resolves a debate on the best combination of metals to catalytically clean NOx from vehicle emissions

09-Jun-2022 - Smog-producing chemicals could be almost eliminated from the tailpipes of diesel cars and vans, using a new exhaust catalyst concept developed at KAUST. After systematically studying multiple catalyst compositions, the research team identified the ideal atomic recipe to catalytically remove NOx ...

Methane from Carbon Dioxide

Efficient catalyst for the light-driven methanation of CO2

19-Nov-2021 - Recycling carbon dioxide (CO2), especially through conversion to methane (CH4), is compelling while anthropogenic CO2 emissions are still rising. A useful process for this transformation is photothermal methanation, in which CO2 and hydrogen are catalytically converted into CH4 and water upon ...

Recycling CO2 to fuel a carbon-neutral future

The conversion of captured CO2 into fuels and other valuable hydrocarbons could enable a sustainable nonfossil-fuel-based economy

16-Nov-2021 - Multifunctional catalysts that transform captured carbon dioxide (CO2) into fuels and other valuable petrochemicals have been developed at KAUST and are set to enable a sustainable greener economy independent of conventional fossil fuels. The catalysts could help reverse the ever-increasing ...

Recruiting bacteria to build catalysts atom by atom

An enigmatic bacterium proves a useful ally for the synthesis of single-atom catalysts to split hydrogen from water

02-Jun-2021 - Exploiting the unusual metal-reducing ability of the iron-breathing bacterium Geobacter sulfurreducens, KAUST researchers have demonstrated a cheap and reliable way to synthesize highly active single-atom catalysts. The innovation, which could dramatically improve the efficiency and cost of ...

Understanding aromaticity in catalysis to unlock new opportunities

"Our discovery is not about identifying a new or better catalyst for a known reaction, but about opening a new field for unlimited new opportunities in the future"

05-May-2021 - Aromaticity, a concept usually used to explain the striking stability and unusual reactivity of certain carbon-based molecules, could inspire the design of new catalysts with novel uses, KAUST researchers have shown. Chemists first came upon the anomalous behavior of aromatic molecules in the ...

Lighting the path to recycling carbon dioxide

Combining solar-harvesting materials with carbon-dioxide–consuming microbes could be an efficient way to generate clean fuels

07-Oct-2020 - Semiconductive photocatalysts that efficiently absorb solar energy could help reduce the energy required to drive a bioelectrochemical process that converts CO2 emissions into valuable chemicals, KAUST researchers have shown. Recycling CO2 could simultaneously reduce carbon emissions into the ...

Catalyzing a green future

Highly modular metal-organic framework-based materials show great potential for photocatalytic hydrogen production

24-Jun-2020 - A metal organic framework (MOF)-based water splitting photocatalyst, developed at KAUST, has brought researchers a step closer to generating clean hydrogen fuel using sunlight. "Using solar energy to efficiently make green fuels is the ultimate goal for many catalysis researchers," says Jorge ...

Catalyst switching means four become one

11-Nov-2019 - By juggling four different chemical reactions in a single flask, researchers at KAUST have combined four polymers to form a single multicrystalline substance. Materials that seamlessly combine multiple polymers potentially merge the best aspects of each material. The versatile new approach for ...

Bionic catalysts to produce clean energy

04-Jul-2019 - Mixing microbes with carbon nanomaterials could help the transition to renewable energy. KAUST research shows microbes and nanomaterials can be used together to form a biohybrid material that performs well as an electrocatalyst. The material could be used in the solar-powered production of ...