CAS: Understanding the Contributions from Both Thermal and Non-Thermal Factors in Plasmonic Catalysis

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With this award, the Chemical Catalysis Program of the Division of Chemistry is funding Dr. Jie Liu of Duke University to develop a comprehensive fundamental understanding of plasmonic photocatalysis. Renewable energy such as sunlight for chemical manufacturing will impact the future of the chemical industry significantly. When nanoparticles interact with light an electronic phenomenon known as a surface plasmon is created. These surface plasmons can significantly affect the way the surfaces chemically react. Plasmonic catalysis, a recent direction in catalysis, captures light energy from the sun and uses it to accelerate important chemical reactions. However, the mechanism of plasmonic catalysis is complicated because light also heats the nanoparticle surface. Separating the thermal (simple heating) and surface plasmon contributions to the observed chemical reactions is important to fundamental understanding. Only with such understanding will researchers be able to design systems to use sunlight at maximum efficiency. Dr. Liu and his team are developing experimental methods to distinguish these thermal and electronic effects. The results from the proposed research is providing deeper understanding of the mechanism behind plasmonic catalysis. In addition, Dr. Liu is focusing on converting CO2 to value-added chemicals such as methane and methanol using plasmonic catalysis. This approach could serve to close the carbon cycle, ideally resulting net zero carbon emission from the use and reductive capture of such one carbon fuels. In this project, Dr. Liu is fostering the engagement of female researchers as well as researchers from underrepresented minority groups. Dr. Liu is actively participating in the North Carolina American Chemical Society (ACS) Project SEED Program by hosting high school students from underrepresented groups during summers and the school yearencouraging them to become future research scientists.Dr. Jie Liu of Duke University is developing a comprehensive fundamental understanding of plasmonic photocatalysis through an integrated macroscopic kinetic study of the CO2 reduction reaction with targeted spectroscopic investigations of the reaction dynamics on the surface of nanostructured rhodium, guided and interpreted by theoretical analyses. Once understood, the potential for plasmonic rate enhancement and selectivity control in photocatalytic reactions may be ascertained for a large variety of plasmonic materials. In addition, understanding the contributions from photo-thermal as well as non-thermal effect (e.g. hot electrons mediated catalytic process) is not only clarifying the mechanism but also enabling researchers to consider designing processes for more efficient use of energy from sunlight. Dr. Liu participates in the North Carolina American Chemical Society (ACS) Project SEED Program by hosting high school students from underrepresented groups during summers and the school year. Students in the program work with graduate students and Dr. Liu to design and perform scientific experiments. This program is supporting high school students to explore their interest in STEM fields thereby encouraging them to become future researchers in these fields.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.