Photoelectrochemical Reduction of Carbon Dioxide Using Earth-Abundant Materials

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This award is funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-5).The Division of Chemistry supports Paul Bracher of the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) as an American Competitiveness in Chemistry Fellow. Dr. Bracher will investigate the use of naturally occurring semiconductor minerals (e.g. ZnS, MnS) as catalysts for the photoelectrochemical reduction of carbon dioxide. Bracher will work in collaboration with Prof. Harry B. Gray and other scientists in the "Powering the Planet" Center for Chemical Innovation at Caltech. In addition, he will collaborate with industrial scientists at Nano-Terra (of Cambridge, MA). In his plan for broadening participation, Dr. Bracher will work with youngsters with physical disabilities to encourage them to pursue their interests in science. In addition, Dr. Bracher will maintain a website (and blog) to bring solar chemistry topics to a broader audience. Research like that of Dr. Bracher is aimed at developing new kinds of chemistry that take advantage of a plentiful resource -- carbon dioxide -- to make valuable chemicals. Another aim of research like this is to investigate the mechanisms of photosynthesis on the early earth. The efforts at broadening participation being pursued by Dr. Bracher are aimed at increasing the participation of young people from underrepresented groups in the sciences.