Electrochemical tuning of vertically aligned MoS2 nanofilms and its application in improving hydrogen evolution reaction

The ability to intercalate guest species into the van der Waals gap of 2D layered materials affords the opportunity to engineer the electronic structures for a variety of applications. Here we demonstrate the continuous tuning of layer vertically aligned MoS2 nanofilms through electrochemical intercalation of Li(+) ions. By scanning the Li intercalation potential from high to low, we have gained control of multiple important material properties in a continuous manner, including tuning the oxidation state of Mo, the transition of semiconducting 2H to metallic 1T phase, and expanding the van der Waals gap until exfoliation. Using such nanofilms after different degree of Li intercalation, we show the significant improvement of the hydrogen evolution reaction activity. A strong correlation between such tunable material properties and hydrogen evolution reaction activity is established. This work provides an intriguing and effective approach on tuning electronic structures for optimizing the catalytic activity.

Field Effect Enhanced Hydrogen Evolution Reaction of MoS2 Nanosheets

Hydrogen evolution reaction performance of MoS₂ can be enhanced through electric-field-facilitated electron transport. The best catalytic performance of a MoS₂ nanosheet can achieve an overpotential of 38 mV (100 mA cm^-2 ) at gate voltage of 5 V, the strategy of utilizing the electric field can be used in other semiconductor materials to improve their electrochemical catalysis for future relevant research.

Duet Fe3C and FeNx Sites for H2O2 Generation and Activation toward Enhanced Electro-Fenton Performance in Wastewater Treatment

Heterogeneous electro-Fenton (HEF) reaction has been considered as a promising process for real effluent treatments. However, the design of effective catalysts for simultaneous H₂O₂ generation and activation to achieve bifunctional catalysis for O₂ toward •OH production remains a challenge. Herein, a core-shell structural Fe-based catalyst (FeNC@C), with Fe₃C and FeN nanoparticles encapsulated by porous graphitic layers, was synthesized and employed in a HEF system. The FeNC@C catalyst presented a significant performance in degradation of various chlorophenols at various conditions with an extremely low level of leached iron. Electron spin resonance and radical scavenging revealed that •OH was the key reactive species and Fe^IV would play a role at neutral conditions. Experimental and density function theory calculation revealed the dominated role of Fe₃C in H₂O₂ generation and the positive effect of FeN_x sites on H₂O₂ activation to form •OH. Meanwhile, FeNC@C was proved to be less pH dependence, high stability, and well-recycled materials for practical application in wastewater purification.

Control over Electrochemical Water Oxidation Catalysis by Preorganization of Molecular Ruthenium Catalysts in Self-Assembled Nanospheres

Oxygen formation through water oxidation catalysis is a key reaction in the context of fuel generation from renewable energies. The number of homogeneous catalysts that catalyze water oxidation at high rate with low overpotential is limited. Ruthenium complexes can be particularly active, especially if they facilitate a dinuclear pathway for oxygen bond formation step. A supramolecular encapsulation strategy is reported that involves preorganization of dilute solutions (10-5  m) of ruthenium complexes to yield high local catalyst concentrations (up to 0.54 m). The preorganization strategy enhances the water oxidation rate by two-orders of magnitude to 125 s-1 , as it facilitates the diffusion-controlled rate-limiting dinuclear coupling step. Moreover, it modulates reaction rates, enabling comprehensive elucidation of electrocatalytic reaction mechanisms.

Construction of Polarized Carbon-Nickel Catalytic Surfaces for Potent, Durable, and Economic Hydrogen Evolution Reactions

Electrocatalytic hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) in alkaline solution is hindered by its sluggish kinetics toward water dissociation. Nickel-based catalysts, as low-cost and effective candidates, show great potentials to replace platinum (Pt)-based materials in the alkaline media. The main challenge regarding this type of catalysts is their relatively poor durability. In this work, we conceive and construct a charge-polarized carbon layer derived from carbon quantum dots (CQDs) on Ni₃N nanostructure (Ni₃N@CQDs) surfaces, which simultaneously exhibit durable and enhanced catalytic activity. The Ni₃N@CQDs shows an overpotential of 69 mV at a current density of 10 mA cm^-2 in a 1 M KOH aqueous solution, lower than that of Pt electrode (116 mV) at the same conditions. Density functional theory (DFT) simulations reveal that Ni₃N and interfacial oxygen polarize charge distributions between originally equal C-C bonds in CQDs. The partially negatively charged C sites become effective catalytic centers for the key water dissociation step via the formation of new C-H bond (Volmer step) and thus boost the HER activity. Furthermore, the coated carbon is also found to protect interior Ni₃N from oxidization/hydroxylation and therefore guarantees its durability. This work provides a practical design of robust and durable HER electrocatalysts based on nonprecious metals.

Electrocatalytic activity of molybdenum disulfide nanosheets enhanced by self-doped polyaniline for highly sensitive and synergistic determination of adenine and guanine

Recently, easy, green, and low-cost liquild exfoliation of bulk materials to obtain thin-layered nanostructure significantly emerged. In this work, thin-layered molybdenum disulfide (MoS2) nanosheets were fabricated through intercalation of self-doped polyaniline (SPAN) to layer space of bulk MoS2 by ultrasonic exfoliating method to effectively prevent reaggregation of MoS2 nanosheets. The obtained hybrid showed specific surface area, a large number of electroactive species, and open accessible space, accompanied by rich negative charged and special conjugated structure, which was applied to adopt positively charged guanine and adenine, based on their strong π-π* interactions and electrostatic adsorption. Also, the SPAN-MoS2 interface exhibited the synergistic effect and good electrocatalytic activity compared with the sole SPAN or MoS2 modified electrode.

Construction of Lattice Strain in Bimetallic Nanostructures and Its Effectiveness in Electrochemical Applications

Bimetallic nanocrystals (NCs), associated with various surface functions such as ligand effect, ensemble effect, and strain effect, exhibit superior electrocatalytic properties. The stress-induced surface strain effect can alter binding strength between the surface active sites and reactants as well as their intermediates, and the electrochemical performance of bimetallic NCs can be significantly facilitated by the lattice-strain modification via their morphologies, sizes, shell-thickness, surface defectiveness as well as compositions. In this review, an overview of fundamental principles, characterization techniques, and quantitative determination of the surface lattice strain is provided. Various strategies and synthesis efforts on creating lattice-strain-engineered bimetallic NCs, including the de-alloying process, atomic layer-by-layer deposition, thermal treatment evolution, one-pot synthesis, and other efforts are also discussed. It is further outlined how the lattice strain effect promotes electrochemical catalysis through the selected case studies. The reactions on oxygen reduction reaction, small molecular oxidation, water splitting reaction, and electrochemical carbon dioxide reduction reactions are focused. In particular, studies of lattice strain arisen from core-shell nanostructure and defectiveness are highlighted. Lastly, the potential challenges are summarized and the prospects of lattice-strain-based engineering on bimetallic nanocatalysts with suggestion and guidance of the future electrocatalyst design are envisioned.

A Core-Shell-Structured Silver Nanowire/Nitrogen-Doped Carbon Catalyst for Enhanced and Multifunctional Electrofixation of CO2

Numerous catalysts have been successfully introduced for CO₂ fixation in aqueous or organic systems. However, a single catalyst showing activity in both solvent types is still rare, to the best of our knowledge. We developed a core-shell-structured AgNW/NC700 composite using a Ag nanowire (NW) core encapsulated by a N-doped carbon (NC) shell at 700 °C. Through control experiments and density functional theory calculations, it was confirmed that Ag nanowires acted as the active sites for CO₂ fixation and the uniformly coating of N-doped carbon created a CO₂ -rich environment around the Ag nanowires, which could significantly improve the catalytic activity of Ag nanowires for electrochemical CO₂ fixation. Under mild conditions, up to 96 % faradaic efficiency of CO, 95 % yield of Ibuprofen and 92 % yield of propylene carbonate could be obtained in the electrochemical CO₂ direct reduction, carboxylation and cycloaddition, respectively, using the same AgNWs/NC700 catalyst. These results might provide an alternative strategy for efficient electrochemical fixation of CO₂ .

Tensile-Strained RuO2 Loaded on Antimony-Tin Oxide by Fast Quenching for Proton-Exchange Membrane Water Electrolyzer

Future energy demands for green hydrogen have fueled intensive research on proton-exchange membrane water electrolyzers (PEMWE). However, the sluggish oxygen evolution reaction (OER) and highly corrosive environment on the anode side narrow the catalysts to be expensive Ir-based materials. It is very challenging to develop cheap and effective OER catalysts. Herein, Co-hexamethylenetetramine metal-organic framework (Co-HMT) as the precursor and a fast-quenching method is employed to synthesize RuO2 nanorods loaded on antimony-tin oxide (ATO). Physical characterizations and theoretical calculations indicate that the ATO can increase the electrochemical surface areas of the catalysts, while the tensile strains incorporated by quenching can alter the electronic state of RuO2 . The optimized catalyst exhibits a small overpotential of 198 mV at 10 mA cm-2 for OER, and keeps almost unchanged after 150 h chronopotentiometry. When applied in a real PEMWE assembly, only 1.51 V is needed for the catalyst to reach a current density of 1 A cm-2 .

Photochemical and Electrochemical Strategies for Hydrodefluorination of Fluorinated Organic Compounds

Hydrodefluorination (HDF) is a very important fundamental transformation for conversion of the C-F bond into the C-H bond in organic synthesis. In the past decade, much progress has been achieved with HDF through the utility of low-valent metals, transition-metal complexes and main-group Lewis acids. Recently, novel methods have been introduced for this purpose through photo- and electrochemical pathways, which are of great significance, due to their considerable environmental and economical advantages. This Review highlights the HDF of fluorinated organic compounds (FOCs) through photo- and electrochemical strategies, along with mechanistic insights.

Surface Electronegativity as an Activity Descriptor to Screen Oxygen Evolution Reaction Catalysts of Li-O2 Battery

The development of active electrocatalysts for enhancing Li₂O₂ decomposition kinetics plays an important role in reducing the overpotential of Li-O₂ batteries. However, a catalytic descriptor is not established due to the difficult characterization of the charge transfer between Li₂O₂ and the catalyst. Here, we employ first-principles thermodynamic calculations to study the electrocatalytic mechanism of 4d transition metals. We found that charge acceptation and donation capacities of catalysts, defined as surface electron affinity (V_SEA) and surface ionic potential (V_SIP), take cooperative responsibilities for the activation of Li-O₂ bonds and the reduction of desorption barriers of Li⁺ and O₂, respectively. Therefore, we define surface electronegativity V_SE (V_SE = (V_SEA + V_SIP)/2), which exhibits a volcano curve with a reduced charge overpotential, as the catalytic descriptor. We identified those catalysts with surface electronegativities of 1.7-2.2 V to have highly catalytic activities in the reduction of the charge overpotential, which are well verified by previous experimental data. The present study opens a wide avenue in the development of high-activity catalysts for interfacial electrocatalysts by an effective descriptor.

Thermal Reshaping of Gold Microplates: Three Possible Routes and Their Transformation Mechanisms

The thermal stability of Au micro/nanomaterials (AuMNLs) has always been a hot topic because their physicochemical properties, like surface plasmon resonance and catalytic activity, are closely related to their morphology or exposed crystal planes which are heat-sensitive. In this study, we made careful and systematic investigation of thermal deformation and reshaping of individual Au microplates (AuMPs) using atomic force microscopy. We found that AuMPs could transform into walled AuMPs (WAuMPs) and concave AuMPs (CAuMPs) at just 300 °C, which are thermodynamically and kinetically favorable products, respectively. A small fraction of AuMPs, named invariable AuMPs (IAuMPs), remained intact. However, both CAuMPs and IAuMPs can be converted to WAuMPs if the temperature is further increased. We also showed that melting of AuMPs begins from vertices and the boundaries between the top and side plane, rather than only side crystal planes as envisaged before. Finally, we performed a series of electrochemical studies showing that WAuMPs exhibited substantially higher electrocatalytic conversion of methanol at lower formal potential compared to intact AuMPs. This work shows that thermal reshaping of Au is far more complicated as was expected before. It also demonstrates how thermal reshaping can be used to improve electrocatalytic performance of Au and potentially other MNLs.

Bimetal CoNi Active Sites on Mesoporous Carbon Nanosheets to Kinetically Boost Lithium-Sulfur Batteries

In order to solve the problem that soluble polysulfide intermediates diffuse between cathode and anode during charging and discharging, which leads to rapid attenuation of battery cycle life, the separator modification materials come into people's sight. Herein, a mesoporous carbon-supported cobalt-nickel bimetal composite (CoNi@MPC) is synthesized and directly coated on the original separator to serve as a secondary collector for lithium-sulfur batteries. CoNi@MPC exhibits multiple Co-Ni active sites, able to catalyze the reactions of soluble polysulfides, specifically accelerating the generation and decomposition of insoluble Li₂ S in lithiation and delithiation process testified by the electrochemical results and density functional theory calculation. Relying on the bifunctionality of CoNi@MPC composite, the shuttle effect of lithium polysulfides can be effectively alleviated. Moreover, porous carbon as the conductive scaffold favors the improvement of electronic conductivity. Benefiting from the above advantages, the cell with CoNi@MPC separator indicates significantly enhanced electrochemical performances with excellent cycling life over 500 cycles and superior rate capabilities.

Conformal Shell Amorphization of Nanoporous Ag-Bi for Efficient Formate Generation

Simultaneous attainments of high conductivity and superior catalysis are major challenges for amorphous electrocatalysts in carbon dioxide electroreduction at high overpotential. In this study, one protocol is first demonstrated to drive the shell amorphization of nanoporous Ag-Bi (a-NPSB) catalyst with the spatially interconnected ligament during the initial stage of CO₂ER. This newborn a-NPSB bestows the outstanding catalysis, evidenced by a Faradaic efficiency of 88.4% for formate production at -1.15 V vs RHE, specific current density of 21.2 mA cm^-2, and mass specific current density of 321 mA mg^-1. The unique catalysis is considered as the collective contribution of the conductive ligament internally and amorphous Bi₂O₃ shell with about 3.2 nm thickness externally. Simultaneous obtaining of the conductivity of inner metals and catalytic activity of the amorphous shell will pave a new avenue for designing a robust electrode during electrochemical reaction.

High Entropy Sulfide Nanoparticles as Lithium Polysulfide Redox Catalysts

The polysulfide shuttle contributes to capacity loss in lithium-sulfur batteries, which limits their practical utilization. Materials that catalyze the complex redox reactions responsible for the polysulfide shuttle are emerging, but foundational knowledge that enables catalyst development remains limited with only a small number of catalysts identified. Here, we employ a rigorous electrochemical approach to show quantitatively that the lithium polysulfide redox reaction is catalyzed by nanoparticles of a high entropy sulfide material, Zn0.30Co0.31Cu0.19In0.13Ga0.06S. When 2% by weight of the high entropy sulfide is added to the lithium sulfur cathode composite, the capacity and Coulombic efficiency of the resulting battery are improved at both moderate (0.2 C) and high (1 C) charge/discharge rates. Surface analysis of the high entropy sulfide nanoparticles using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy provides important insights into how the material evolves during the cycling process. The Zn0.30Co0.31Cu0.19In0.13Ga0.06S nanoparticle catalyst outperformed the constituent metal sulfides, pointing to the role that the high-entropy "cocktail effect" can play in the development of advanced electrocatalytic materials for improved lithium sulfur battery performance.

In situsynthesis of Fe-doped CrOOH nanosheets for efficient electrocatalytic water oxidation

The oxygen evolution reaction (OER) is a process in electrochemical water splitting with sluggish kinetics that needs efficient non-noble-metal electrocatalysts. There have been few studies of CrOOH electrocatalysts for water oxidation due to their low performance. Herein,in situsynthesized Fe-doped CrOOH nanosheets on Ni foam (Fe-CrOOH/NF) were designed as electrocatalysts and performance in the OER was obviously improved. The effect of the amount of Fe doping was also investigated. Experiments revealed that the best performance of Fe-CrOOH/NF requires low overpotentials of 259 mV to reach 20 mA cm^-2together with a turnover frequency of 0.245 s^-1in 1.0 M KOH, which may suggest a new direction for the development of Fe-doped OER electrocatalysts.

Dense-Packed RuO2 Nanorods with In Situ Generated Metal Vacancies Loaded on SnO2 Nanocubes for Proton Exchange Membrane Water Electrolyzer with Ultra-Low Noble Metal Loading

Proton exchange membrane water electrolyzer (PEMWE) is a green hydrogen production technology that can be coupled with intermittent power sources such as wind and photoelectric power. To achieve cost-effective operations, low noble metal loading on the anode catalyst layer is desired. In this study, a catalyst with RuO2 nanorods coated outside SnO2 nanocubes is designed, which forms continuous networks and provides high conductivity. This allows for the reduction of Ru contents in catalysts. Furthermore, the structure evolutions on the RuO2 surface are carefully investigated. The etched RuO2 surfaces are seen as the consequence of Co leaching, and theoretical calculations demonstrate that it is more effective in driving oxygen evolution. For electrochemical tests, the catalysts with 23 wt% Ru exhibit an overpotential of 178 mV at 10 mA cm-2 , which is much higher than most state-of-art oxygen evolution catalysts. In a practical PEMWE, the noble metal Ru loading on the anode side is only 0.3 mg cm-2 . The cell achieves 1.61 V at 1 A cm-2 and proper stability at 500 mA cm-2 , demonstrating the effectiveness of the designed catalyst.

Orthogonal Experimental Analysis and Mechanism Study on Electrochemical Catalytic Treatment of Carbon Fiber-Reinforced Plastics Assisted by Phosphotungstic Acid

Preserving the integrity of carbon fibers when recycling carbon-fiber-reinforced plastics (CFRPs) has been unfeasible due to the harsh reaction conditions required to remove epoxy resin matrixes, which adversely affect the properties of carbon fibers. We establish a practicable and environmentally friendly reclamation strategy for carbon fibers. Carbon fibers are recycled from waste CFRPs by an electrochemical catalytic reaction with the assistance of phosphotungstic acid (PA), which promotes the depolymerization of diglycidyl ether of bisphenol A/ethylenediamine (DGEBA/EDA) epoxy resin. The removal rate, mechanical strength, and microstructure of the recycled carbon fibers are analyzed to explore the mechanism of the electrochemical treatment. The influence of three factors—current density, PA concentration, and reaction time—are studied via an orthogonal method. Range analysis and variance analysis are conducted to investigate the significance of the factors. The optimal conditions are determined accordingly. The underlying CFRP degradation mechanism is also investigated.

Flexible Graphene Paper Modified Using Pt&Pd Alloy Nanoparticles Decorated Nanoporous Gold Support for the Electrochemical Sensing of Small Molecular Biomarkers

The exploration into nanomaterial-based nonenzymatic biosensors with superb performance in terms of good sensitivity and anti-interference ability in disease marker monitoring has always attained undoubted priority in sensing systems. In this work, we report the design and synthesis of a highly active nanocatalyst, i.e., palladium and platinum nanoparticles (Pt&Pd-NPs) decorated ultrathin nanoporous gold (NPG) film, which is modified on a homemade graphene paper (GP) to develop a high-performance freestanding and flexible nanohybrid electrode. Owing to the structural characteristics the robust GP electrode substrate, and high electrochemically catalytic activities and durability of the permeable NPG support and ultrafine and high-density Pt&Pd-NPs on it, the resultant Pt&Pd-NPs-NPG/GP electrode exhibits excellent sensing performance of low detection limitation, high sensitivity and anti-interference capability, good reproducibility and long-term stability for the detection of small molecular biomarkers hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) and glucose (Glu), and has been applied to the monitoring of H2O2 in different types of live cells and Glu in body fluids such as urine and fingertip blood, which is of great significance for the clinical diagnosis and prognosis in point-of-care testing.

Utilization of Fe-Ethylenediamine-N,N'-Disuccinic Acid Complex for Electrochemical Co-Catalytic Activation of Peroxymonosulfate under Neutral Initial pH Conditions

The ethylenediamine-N,N'-disuccinic acid (EDDS) was utilized to form Fe-EDDS complex to activate peroxymonosulfate (PMS) in the electrochemical (EC) co-catalytic system for effective oxidation of naphthenic acids (NAs) under neutral pH conditions. 1-adamantanecarboxylic acid (ACA) was used as a model compound to represent NAs, which are persistent pollutants that are abundantly present in oil and gas field wastewater. The ACA degradation rate was significantly enhanced in the EC/PMS/Fe(III)-EDDS system (96.6%) compared to that of the EC/PMS/Fe(III) system (65.4%). The addition of EDDS led to the formation of a stable complex of Fe-EDDS under neutral pH conditions, which effectively promoted the redox cycle of Fe(III)-EDDS/Fe(II)-EDDS to activate PMS to generate oxidative species for ACA degradation. The results of quenching and chemical probe experiments, as well as electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) analysis, identified significant contributions of •OH, 1O2, and SO4•- in the removal of ACA. The ACA degradation pathways were revealed based on the results of high resolution mass spectrometry analysis and calculation of the Fukui index. The presence of anions, such as NO3-, Cl-, and HCO3-, as well as humic acids, induced nonsignificant influence on the ACA degradation, indicating the robustness of the current system for applications in authentic scenarios. Overall results indicated the EC/PMS/Fe(III)-EDDS system is a promising strategy for the practical treatment of NAs in oil and gas field wastewater.

Potential-Driven Dynamic Spring-Effect of Pd─Cu Dual-Atoms Empowered Stability and Activity for Electrocatalytic Reduction

Atomic-level catalysts are extensively applied in heterogeneous catalysis fields. However, it is a general but ineluctable issue that active metal atoms may migrate, aggregate, deactivate, or leach during reaction processes, suppressing their catalytic performances. Designing superior intrinsic-structural stability of atomic-level catalysts with high activity and revealing their dynamic structure evolution is vital for their wide applications in complex reactions or harsh conditions. Herein, high-stable Pd─Cu dual-atom catalysts with PdN3─CuN3 coordination structure are engineered via strong chelation of Cu2+-ions with electron pairs from palladium-source, achieving the highest turnover frequency under the lowest overpotential for Cr(VI) electrocatalytic reduction detection in strong-acid electrolytes. In situ X-ray absorption fine structure spectra reveal dynamic "spring-effect" of Cu─Pd and Cu─N bonds that are reversibly stretched with potential changes and can be recovered at 0.6 V for regeneration. The modulated electron-orbit coupling effect of Pd─Cu pairs prevents Cu-atoms from aggregating as metallic nanoparticles. Pd─Cu dual-atoms interact with two O atoms of H2CrO4, forming stable bridge configurations and transferring electrons to promote Cr─O bond dissociation, which prominently decreases reaction energy barriers. This work provides a feasible route to boost the stability and robustness of metal single-atoms that are easily affected by reaction conditions for sustainable catalytic applications.

Hydrogenation-Facilitated Spontaneous N-O Cleavage Mechanism for Effectively Boosting Nitrate Reduction Reaction on Fe2B2 MBene

The electrochemical reduction of toxic nitrate wastewater to green fuel ammonia under mild conditions has become a goal that researchers have relentlessly pursued. Existing designed electrocatalysts can effectively promote the nitrate reduction reaction (NO3RR), but the study of the catalytic mechanism is not extensive enough, resulting in no breakthroughs in performance. In this study, a novel mechanism of hydrogenation-facilitated spontaneous N-O cleavage was explored based on density functional theory calculations. Furthermore, the Ead-*OH (adsorption energy of the adsorbed *OH) was used as a key descriptor for predicting the occurrence of spontaneous N-O bond cleavage. We found that Ead-*OH < -0.20 eV results into spontaneous N-O bond cleavage. However, excessively strong adsorption of OH* hinders the formation of water. To address this challenge, we designed the eligible Fe2B2 MBene, which shows excellent catalytic activity with an ultra-low limiting potential for NO3RR of -0.22  V under this novel reaction mechanism. Additionally, electron-deficient Fe active sites could inhibit competing hydrogen evolution reactions (HERs), which provides high selectivity. This work may offer valuable insights for the rational design of advanced electrocatalysts with enhanced performance.

Effect of Halide Anions on the Electroreduction of CO2 to C2 H4 : A Density Functional Theory Study

The halide anions present in the electrolyte improve the Faradaic efficiencies (FEs) of the multi-hydrocarbon (C₂₊ ) products for the electrochemical reduction of CO₂ over copper (Cu) catalysts. However, the mechanism behind the increased yield of C₂₊ products with the addition of halide anions remains indistinct. In this study, we analysed the mechanism by investigating the electronic structures and computing the relative free energies of intermediates formed from CO₂ to C₂ H₄ on the Cu (100) facet based on density functional theory (DFT) calculations. The results show that formyl *CHO from the hydrogenation reaction of the adsorbed *CO acts as the key intermediate, and the C-C coupling reaction occurs preferentially between *CHO and *CO with the formation of a *CHO-CO intermediate. We then propose a free-energy pathway of C₂ H₄ formation. We find that the presence of halide anions significantly decreases the free energy of the *CHOCH intermediate, and enhances desorption of C₂ H₄ in the order of I^- >Cl^- >Br^- >F^- . Lastly, the obtained results are rationalized through Bader charge analysis.

Perspectives for Using CO2 as a Feedstock for Biomanufacturing of Fuels and Chemicals

Microbial cell factories offer an eco-friendly alternative for transforming raw materials into commercially valuable products because of their reduced carbon impact compared to conventional industrial procedures. These systems often depend on lignocellulosic feedstocks, mainly pentose and hexose sugars. One major hurdle when utilizing these sugars, especially glucose, is balancing carbon allocation to satisfy energy, cofactor, and other essential component needs for cellular proliferation while maintaining a robust yield. Nearly half or more of this carbon is inevitably lost as CO2 during the biosynthesis of regular metabolic necessities. This loss lowers the production yield and compromises the benefit of reducing greenhouse gas emissions-a fundamental advantage of biomanufacturing. This review paper posits the perspectives of using CO2 from the atmosphere, industrial wastes, or the exhausted gases generated in microbial fermentation as a feedstock for biomanufacturing. Achieving the carbon-neutral or -negative goals is addressed under two main strategies. The one-step strategy uses novel metabolic pathway design and engineering approaches to directly fix the CO2 toward the synthesis of the desired products. Due to the limitation of the yield and efficiency in one-step fixation, the two-step strategy aims to integrate firstly the electrochemical conversion of the exhausted CO2 into C1/C2 products such as formate, methanol, acetate, and ethanol, and a second fermentation process to utilize the CO2-derived C1/C2 chemicals or co-utilize C5/C6 sugars and C1/C2 chemicals for product formation. The potential and challenges of using CO2 as a feedstock for future biomanufacturing of fuels and chemicals are also discussed.