Rational organization of multiple catalysts for advanced chemical transformations

I&EC 11

Sherine O. Obare, sherine.obare@wmich.edu, Christopher G. E. Ciptadjaya, chris.ciptadjaya@wmich.edu, and Jayni M. Angeli, jayni.m.angeli@wmich.edu. Department of Chemistry, Western Michigan University, 3425 Wood Hall, 1903 W. Michigan Avenue, Kalamazoo, MI 49008
Nature uses enzymes or a combination of enzymes for specific biochemical transformations, for example multi-electron transfer reactions. Multi-electron catalysts are needed for environmental remediation, water splitting, small molecule activation, and solar energy conversion. Therefore, it is attractive to mimic strategies utilized by nature to develop new materials that carry out important chemical transformations. Surface functionalization of semiconductor nanoparticles with appropriate catalytic nanoparticles and/or molecular catalysts provides a versatile tool for the development of multi-electron catalysts. These systems are capable of driving energetically demanding transformations and their investigation has allowed for the underlying mechanistic principles to be understood. Elucidation of such mechanisms on the nanoscale is essential to both the frontier of fundamental science and to several applications. The presentation will showcase the design, synthesis, characterization and organization of the catalysts. Ultraviolet-visible absorption spectroscopy, fluorescence spectroscopy, electrochemistry and spectroelectrochemistry provide insights into the catalytic transformations and the choreography of electron transfer.