Dialing up the power on electricity-driven chemical reactions doesn’t guarantee that they’ll be more efficient, suggests a new study, a finding that gets researchers closer to creating the ideal conditions for sustainable chemical manufacturing.
Dialing up the power on electricity-driven chemical reactions doesn’t guarantee that they’ll be more efficient, suggests a new study, a finding that gets researchers closer to creating the ideal conditions for sustainable chemical manufacturing.
Scientists identified this limitation by converting carbon monoxide into methanol — a vital fuel source and industrial ingredient — showing that how well the reaction works depends not only on applied voltage, but also on how quickly a catalyst binds to carbon monoxide molecules.
By revealing how certain steps control the reaction’s speed, these findings could help scientists design better methods and processes for producing cleaner fuels and chemicals, said Zhihao Cui, lead author of the study and a postdoctoral student in chemistry at The Ohio State University.
Read More: Ohio State University
