Green Energy by Hydrogen Production from Water Splitting, Water Oxidation Catalysis and Acceptorless Dehydrogenative Coupling

Abstract

In this review, we want to explain how the burning of fossil fuels is pushing us towards green energy. Actually, for a long time, we have believed that everything is profitable, that resources are unlimited and there are no consequences. However, the reality is often disappointing. The use of non-renewable resources, the excessive waste production and the abandonment of the task of recycling has created a fragile thread that, once broken, may never restore itself. Metaphors aside, we are talking about our planet, the Earth, and its unique ability to host life, including ourselves. Our world has its balance; when the wind erodes a mountain, a beach appears, or when a fire devastates an area, eventually new life emerges from the ashes. However, humans have been distorting this balance for decades. Our evolving way of living has increased the number of resources that each person consumes, whether food, shelter, or energy; we have overworked everything to exhaustion. Scientists worldwide have already said actively and passively that we are facing one of the biggest problems ever: climate change. This is unsustainable and we must try to revert it, or, if we are too late, slow it down as much as possible. To make this happen, there are many possible methods. In this review, we investigate catalysts for using water as an energy source, or, instead of water, alcohols. On the other hand, the recycling of gases such as CO2 and N2O is also addressed, but we also observe non-catalytic means of generating energy through solar cell production.

Unveiling Oxygen Evolution Reaction on LiCoO2 Cathode: Insights for the Development of High‐Performance Aqueous Lithium‐ion Batteries

“…The reaction mechanism of OER considered in this work encompasses four elementary steps [Equations ( 2)-( 5)], [47,48] where the water molecule evolves to hydroxyl moieties, which decomposes to atomic oxygen. The dissociation of a second water molecule implies the formation of OOH species as a previous step of O 2 generation.…”

“…The reaction mechanism of OER considered in this work encompasses four elementary steps [Equations (2)–(5)], [47,48] where the water molecule evolves to hydroxyl moieties, which decomposes to atomic oxygen. The dissociation of a second water molecule implies the formation of OOH species as a previous step of O 2 generation. $$$\vcenter{\openup.5em\halign{$\displaystyle{#}$\cr {\rm H}{_{2}}{\rm O}\ ({\rm l})+^{\ast }\rightarrow ^{\ast }{\rm OH}+{\rm H}{^{+}}+{\rm e}{^{- }}\hfill\cr}}$$$ $$$\vcenter{\openup.5em\halign{$\displaystyle{#}$\cr ^{\ast }{\rm OH}\rightarrow ^{\ast }{\rm O}+{\rm H}{^{+}}+{\rm e}{^{- }}\hfill\cr}}$$$ $$$\vcenter{\openup.5em\halign{$\displaystyle{#}$\cr {\rm H}{_{2}}{\rm O}\ ({\rm l})+^{\ast }{\rm O}\rightarrow ^{\ast }{\rm OOH}+{\rm H}{^{+}}+{\rm e}{^{- }}\hfill\cr}}$$$ $$$\vcenter{\openup.5em\halign{$\displaystyle{#}$\cr ^{\ast }{\rm OOH}\rightarrow {\rm O}{_{2}}+^{\ast }+{\rm H}{^{+}}+{\rm e}{^{- }}\hfill\cr}}$$$ …”

%VBur index and steric maps: from predictive catalysis to machine learning

“…Such catalysts are key in addressing the pressing challenge of energy demands, 1,2 in particular, sustainable sources, as well as the removal of toxic gases. 3 However, throughout history, natural catalysts like enzymes have been employed unknowingly by humans to produce food and beverages. While nature has had billions of years to evolve highly efficient enzymes for essential reactions, 4 chemists have a shorter timeframe to develop efficient catalysts.…”

Ring Opening Polymerization of Six- and Eight-Membered Racemic Cyclic Esters for Biodegradable Materials

“…Due to the global population increase, the demand for goods and raw materials is growing exponentially [1]. Among the immediate consequences of this phenomenon are the depletion of available resources, the significant environmental impact resulting from increased greenhouse gas emissions [2,3], and subsequent global warming [4]. The development of increasingly eco-sustainable production processes that reconcile the needs of the population with environmental preservation is, therefore, becoming the focus of numerous research endeavors [5].…”