Tailoring the Local Electrocatalytic Environment through Molecular Design
Abstract
Understanding and precisely controlling the local environment of electrocatalysts is essential for tuning reaction kinetics, selectivity, and mechanistic pathways. In this talk, I will present recent work from my group on the electrocatalytic reduction of carbon dioxide (CO₂), spanning both molecular homogeneous systems and interfacial platforms. On the molecular front, I will discuss how the solution speciation of metalloporphyrins—a widely studied class of catalysts—plays an important and underappreciated role in performance optimization and reliable benchmarking. I will also highlight our efforts to synthetically tailor the second coordination sphere (SCS) of iron porphyrins. Systematic studies of SCS-functionalized analogues have uncovered predictable trends in thermochemical parameters and elucidated structure–function relationships that govern catalytic rates, product selectivity, and mechanistic pathways. Transitioning to heterogeneous electrocatalysis, I will showcase our ongoing work on functionalizing metal electrodes with self-assembled monolayers (SAMs). This strategy enables molecular-level control over the local reaction environment at the electrode–electrolyte interface. We employ electrochemical, spectroscopic, and acoustic techniques to probe SAM formation and dynamic behavior under applied potentials, providing insights into these complex interfacial systems. Together, these studies help broaden knowledge about how the local reaction environment can be designed and manipulated to unlock new pathways for transforming small molecules.
Bio
Eva Nichols is an Assistant Professor in the UBC Department of Chemistry. Dr. Nichols earned her B.S. in Chemistry from Caltech and her Ph.D. from UC Berkeley and subsequently was an NIH Postdoctoral Fellow at Yale University. Dr. Nichols is a Tier II Canada Research Chair in Molecular and Interfacial Electrocatalysts and has been recognized as a Scialog Scholar in Negative Emissions Science and a CIFAR Azrieli Global Scholar. Research in the Nichols group brings together molecular synthesis, electrochemistry, and operando spectroscopy to develop molecular and materials-based electrocatalysts for the conversion of carbon oxides to more valuable products.