The MatCat Lab designs advanced materials for catalytic applications. Key themes and tools in the group include materials synthesis, ground and excited state structure elucidation, and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy.
Motivation: Catalysts are masterful directors of the electron supply chain in chemical reactions, facilitating the synthesis of complex molecules and processes that underlie crucial advancements in medicine, agriculture, and energy, among others. Our work is motivated by the pressing need for catalysts that can execute increasingly complex reaction pathways within narrowing process windows defined by sustainable chemistry agendas. We approach this challenge through a fundamental materials lens centered on molecular-level catalyst design.
We are currently working on CO2 capture and reduction materials, but we are broadly interested in the domains of pollution abatement, closed carbon cycle chemistries, greener chemical processes, and light-mediated reactions (photocatalysis). We closely collaborate with computational groups to guide rational materials design efforts with the overarching goal of developing practical, scalable materials technologies that underpin a sustainable future.
Tailored reaction environments through defect patterning
We are currently developing methods to design defect environments around functional groups in silica matrices with quantitative and spatial precision. These materials are promising for integrated CO2 capture and reduction due to the unique ability to tune reaction environment polarity and proximity to hot electrons on a molecular scale.
Structure and electronic interface design via molecular recognition
We are designing a new type of structure-directing agent for supramolecular hydrogen-bonded networks to unlock distinct molecular architectures and tunable electronic interfaces in this promising class of conductive catalyst supports. These are being investigated for a variety of different electro- and photoredox reactions, including CO2 reduction and selective micro/nanoplastic oxidation.