The project pathway to impact focused on three major needs: (1) reducing dependence on critical raw materials by replacing metal catalysts, (2) enabling efficient CO2 utilisation to produce value-added chemicals and fuels, and (3) supporting hydrogen-based energy solutions through safe storage and transfer materials. By developing scalable synthesis methods and demonstrating real catalytic applications, the project contributes to Europe’s goals on climate action, clean energy, and sustainable industry.
The project successfully developed reproducible methods to produce two-dimensional boron nanosheets and related materials at gram scale using a reliable thermal synthesis approach. Advanced characterisation confirmed their structure and stability. The materials were then modified through controlled doping and by adding small amounts of transition metals to tune their catalytic properties.
The developed catalysts were tested in the reverse water-gas shift reaction, which converts CO2 into carbon monoxide; a key building block for synthetic fuels and chemicals. The boron-based materials demonstrated high activity, excellent selectivity, and long-term stability under industrially relevant conditions, maintaining performance for hundreds of hours without degradation. Both metal-free and metal-assisted versions were studied, showing that the materials can function either as active catalysts or as highly stable supports for metals.
In addition, the project discovered that hydrogenated boron nanosheets can store hydrogen and release it when needed, enabling chemical reactions without external hydrogen gas. These materials successfully converted biomass-derived compounds into valuable chemicals under mild conditions, demonstrating a new metal-free route for hydrogen transfer reactions. Hybrid boron materials were also synthesised and evaluated, providing benchmark data for future optimisation. Overall, the project delivered scalable synthesis methods, multiple catalyst designs, and proof-of-concept demonstrations for CO2 utilisation and hydrogen technologies.
