IIC Catalysis News
How Nitrogenase Makes Ammonia
Nitrogenase can convert nitrogen to ammonia at room temperature and atmospheric pressure. Industry, on the other hand, relies on the Haber-Bosch process, a century-old technique using high temperature and pressure. Now, research reveals how nature converts nitrogen to ammonia. For every molecule of nitrogen transformed to ammonia, the enzyme nitrogenase makes at least one molecule of hydrogen, which is one of the most puzzling mysteries of nitrogenase. The researchers found that this phenomenon actually helps nitrogenase tackle nitrogen's strong bonds. Read More
Less Energy for Industrial Processes
Production of chemicals used in many industrial processes is currently carried out under the high temperatures and pressures required to break strong chemical bonds. While effective, it is energy intensive. Chemical catalysts can accomplish the same tasks using less energy. Working toward that goal, scientists recently achieved a key step in catalytic hydrogenation at room temperature and lower hydrogen pressure. Read More
Hydrogen Cleavage by a New Route
Scientists at the PNNL-led Center for Molecular Electrocatalysis (CME) are working to understand the fundamental reactivity of hydrogen that could contribute to making hydrogen a more widely used fuel source. Read More
Fast, Reversible Bio-Inspired Catalysts
To store solar energy in chemical bonds until the energy is needed, reversible catalysts—chemical agents that rapidly form and break chemical bonds in either direction—are needed. Now, using a bio-inspired design that mimics nature's catalysts-enzymes, PNNL researchers have designed a rarely seen reversible synthetic catalyst. Read More
Johnson Takes Home Poster Award
Samantha I. Johnson, a postdoctoral researcher working in PNNL’s Catalysis Science Group, recently won an award for her poster, "Using Computational Methods to Design Ammonia Oxidation Catalysts for Use in Fuel Systems," at the Clean Energy Education and Empowerment (C3E) Initiative's December 2018 symposium. Read More