Abstract: Electrocatalysis is expected to play an essential role in the transition towards a sustainable future based on renewable energy and green synthesis processes. Electrochemical energy conversion devices coupled to renewable sources enable the production of renewable fuels and chemicals as well as clean electricity. Moreover, electrocatalytic methods are very appealing to achieve a sustainable valorisation of simple chemical building blocks. Switching from traditional fossil-fuel dependent methods to electrosynthesis processes may be key to transition towards a green chemical industry.
Tailoring the electrochemical interface at the atomic or molecular level allows us to understand the structure-reactivity relations and tune the electrocatalytic activity and selectivity. This talk will focus on our research on tailored electrocatalysts for reactions of interest in energy conversion devices such as fuel cells and water electrolysers [1-3] as well as electrosynthesis of renewable fuels and chemicals [4-6].
[1] M. Escudero-Escribano et al., Science 2016, 352, 73.
[2] M. Escudero-Escribano, K.D. Jensen, A.W. Jensen, Curr. Opin. Electrochem. 2018, 8, 135.
[3] K.D. Jensen et al., Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2018, 57, 2800.
[4] P. Sebastián-Pascual, S. Mezzavilla, I.E.L. Stephens, M. Escudero-Escribano, ChemCatChem 2019, 11, 3626.
[5] B.J.V. Davies, M. Arenz, J. Rossmeisl, M. Escudero-Escribano, J. Phys. Chem. C 2019, 123, 12762.
[6] B.J.V. Davies et al., ACS Catal. 2019, 9, 859.
Bio: María Escudero-Escribano obtained her PhD in Chemistry from the Autonomous University of Madrid in 2011. She carried out postdoctoral research at the Technical University of Denmark and Stanford University. Since March 2017, she is Assistant Professor at the Department of Chemistry at the University of Copenhagen. She leads the NanoElectrocatalysis group; they investigate tailored electrochemical interfaces for renewable energy conversion and electrosynthesis of sustainable fuels and chemicals.
María has 34 publications in peer-reviewed journals, including Science, Nature Chemistry, Nature Materials, JACS and Angewandte Chemie. María has received numerous awards, including the European Young Chemist Award 2016 (Gold Medal) from EuChemS, the CIDETEC Young Researcher Award 2016 from the Electrochemistry Group of the Spanish Royal Society of Chemistry (RSEQ), the Electrochemical Society Energy Technology Division Young Investigator Award 2018, the Princess of Girona Scientific Research Award 2018, the Clara Immerwahr Award 2019, the RSEQ Young Researcher Award 2019 and is currently shortlisted for the Nature Research Awards for Inspiring Science 2019.