Catalysis for Energy

Catalysis for Energy

Colleges: VCEA, CAS, CAHNRS

Catalysts, which are critically important to more than 35% of the global GDP, are key to our economic, environmental, and public health. Catalytic systems enable modern transportation systems, safe foods, a clean environment, and life-saving vaccines and pharmaceuticals. Significant research foci include the rational design of catalyst materials that employ earth abundant materials, electrocatalysis, the catalytic conversion of waste materials to foundational chemicals, and the use of modern analytical and computational tools and experimental techniques to enable a fundamental understanding of the surface interactions that underlie catalysis. In partnership with the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), WSU is a national leader in developing, testing and using catalysts to advance society. Across its various colleges, WSU has strengths in catalysis, with emphasis in the use of earth abundant materials and in electrocatalysis. Our faculty are integral to the WSU-PNNL Joint Bioproducts Institute, with emphasis on the use of catalysis for the production of biofuels. There is additional cross fertilization in the activities of the Department of Energy funded Biological Electron Transfer and Catalysis (WSU) and Center for Molecular Electrocatalysis (PNNL) Energy Frontier Research Centers. These collaborative efforts also enable significant industrial support, including interactions with corporations such as PACCAR, Phillips-66, Boeing, ADM and many others. WSU researchers working in this field regularly win prestigious national and international awards, which are often awarded only to National Academy members.