Postdoctoral Fellowship: MPS-Ascend: The Effects of Electronic Stucture and Coordination Enviornment on the Electrochemical Reduction of Carbon Dioxide in Single-Atom Catalysts

马修·瑞恩·埃斯皮诺萨（Mathew Ryan Espinosa）被授予美国国家科学基金会数学和物理科学提升博士后研究奖学金（NSF MPS-Ascend），以开展一项与扩大STEM中代表性不足群体参与相关的研究和活动计划。Ezpinosa博士的研究项目名为“MPS-Ascend：电子结构和配位环境对单原子催化剂中二氧化碳电化学还原的影响”，由一位赞助科学家指导。该奖学金的主办机构是加州帕萨迪纳市的加州理工学院，赞助科学家是Theodor Agapie博士。本研究旨在探讨影响非均相单原子催化剂在电化学CO2还原中选择性和活性的基本因素。本提案将利用电子共轭多金属菲罗啉大环催化剂，了解单原子催化剂的扩展电子结构对CO2还原为液体产物和燃料的催化活性和选择性的影响。该项目将合成新颖的均相单金属和多金属体系，其中电子结构和二级配位环境将系统地变化，并与催化活性和选择性进行比较。这项工作的成功实施可能允许开发单原子催化剂，其中包括导电表面上的电子共轭金属中心，用于将二氧化碳还原为可再生商品化学品和燃料。利用电化学还原将捕获的人为二氧化碳转化为可再生的碳中性燃料和化学原料，从而取代目前不可持续的石化来源。该计划打算通过指导和为下一代科学家提供机会，以及参与科学推广活动、科学传播和社区服务来激励和告知当地社区，从而扩大代表性不足的群体对科学的参与。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

Mathew Ryan Espinosa is awarded an NSF Mathematical and Physical Sciences Ascending Postdoctoral Research Fellowship (NSF MPS-Ascend) to conduct a program of research and activities related to broaden participation by groups underrepresented in STEM. This fellowship to Dr. Ezpinosa supports the research project entitled “MPS-Ascend: The Effects of Electronic Structure and Coordination Environment on the Electrochemical Reduction of Carbon Dioxide in Single-Atom Catalysts” under the mentorship of a sponsoring scientist. The host institution for the fellowship is California Institute of Technology at Pasadena, CA, and the sponsoring scientist is Dr. Theodor Agapie.This proposal intends to investigate the fundamental factors influencing the selectivity and activity of heterogeneous single-atom catalysts in electrochemical CO2 reduction. The proposal will utilize electronically conjugated multi-metallic phenanthroline macrocyclic catalysts to understand the influence of the extended electronic structure of single-atom catalysts on the catalytic activity and selectivity of CO2 reduction to liquid products and fuels. The project will synthesize novel homogeneous mono- and multi-metallic systems where electronic structure and secondary coordination environment will be systematically varied and compared to the catalytic activity and selectivity. Successful implementation of this work may allow for developing single-atom catalysts involving electronically conjugated metal centers on a conducting surface for CO2 reduction to renewable commodity chemicals and fuels. The conversion of captured anthropogenic CO2 using electrochemical reduction would enable the production of renewable, carbon-neutral fuels and chemical feedstocks, displacing current unsustainable petrochemical sources. The PI intends to increase broadening participation of underrepresented groups in science by mentoring and providing opportunities to the next generation of scientists and participating in scientific outreach activities, scientific communications, and community service to inspire and inform local communities.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.