Project description
Next-gen imaging for sustainable electrochemistry
Electrochemistry can allow for sustainable carbon dioxide conversion, but observing this reactivity at the nanoscale is challenging. Techniques such as single-molecule localisation microscopy (SMLM) are therefore vital for high-resolution imaging and advancing our understanding of these processes. Supported by the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions programme, the VERMEER project will expand SMLM for electrochemistry by studying carbon dioxide conversion on gold electrodes with different morphologies. Using redox-active, pH-sensitive and carbon monoxide-sensitive probes in a liquid flow cell, this research will visualise electrochemical processes and analyse how reactions compete across different nanoscale structures. By pinpointing the active sites of reactions, this research will inform the design of next-generation electrodes, improve electrochemical efficiency, advance electrochemistry and support the transition to a more sustainable energy and chemical industry.
Objective
Electrochemistry offers sustainable alternatives to industrial processes including the conversion of carbon dioxide. Realizing these transformations at scale requires designing electrodes that promote these reactions more efficiently. These designs have increasingly focused on tuning structure and morphology, as exemplified with the conversion of carbon dioxide on gold electrodes. On these materials, nanoscale structures such as nanoparticles and nanoneedles are reported to enhance electrochemistry dramatically. Still, reactivity at these sites is often impossible to observe directly. This ambiguity obscures how certain electrodes and morphologies promote reactions and prevents the rational design of more efficient catalysts. Techniques that resolve structure and function at the smallest scale are therefore required to advance electrochemistry and sustainable energy. Among these approaches is single-molecule localization microscopy (SMLM).
SMLM resolves the nanoscale world through the excitation and emission of visible light from bespoke molecular probes. These techniques have revealed biological and chemical phenomena with nanometre resolution. This proposal will extend SMLM to electrochemistry and interrogate carbon dioxide conversion on gold electrodes of various morphologies. These studies will incorporate redox-active, pH-sensitive, and carbon monoxide-sensitive probes in a liquid flow cell to visualize electrochemistry and reveal how competing reactions localize across different nanoscale structures. This methodology leverages SMLM to visualize active sites on gold electrodes and can be extended to various electrochemical reactions and catalysts. Furthermore, by pinpointing where chemistry occurs, these studies will guide the design of next-generation electrodes and more efficient electrochemical reactions. Together, these efforts will advance the ambitions of electrochemistry and help move energy and chemical industries toward a more sustainable future.
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
- natural sciences chemical sciences electrochemistry
- engineering and technology environmental engineering energy and fuels renewable energy
- natural sciences physical sciences optics microscopy
- natural sciences chemical sciences catalysis
- engineering and technology nanotechnology nano-materials
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Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Programme(s)
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
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HORIZON.1.2 - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA)
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Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Funding Scheme
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
HORIZON-TMA-MSCA-PF-EF - HORIZON TMA MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships
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Call for proposal
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Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
(opens in new window) HORIZON-MSCA-2025-PF
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Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.
2311 EZ Leiden
Netherlands
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