Achieving sustainable ammonia production remains a considerable challenge. In this issue of Chem Catalysis, Ma et al. demonstrate that pairing electrochemical nitrate reduction with ethylene glycol oxidation enables the simultaneous production of ammonia and glycolic acid, showcasing the promising technical and economic potential of this coupled waste-valorization strategy.

In the May issue of Joule, Manthiram and co-workers report a sodium-naphthalene-titanium electrochemical cascade of nitrogen reduction for ammonia electrosynthesis at a rate of 475 nmol cm−1 s−1 and a Faradaic efficiency of 24%. This work provides a promising paradigm for developing efficient and low-cost metal-mediated ammonia reactors beyond lithium.

Single-atom catalysts (SACs) have demonstrated remarkable potential in heterogeneous catalytic reactions. However, elucidating and precisely predicting the structure-activity relationships of SACs remain critical yet challenging for the rational design of high-performance catalysts. Reporting recently in Nature, Shi et al. uncover a linear relationship between the acetylene semi-hydrogenation activity

In a recent issue of Nature Catalysis, Zhou et al. introduce an innovative cobaltosilicate zeolite with solely tetrahedral cobalt sites (CoS-1) for propane dehydrogenation. By eliminating unstable cobalt species through acid wash, CoS-1 mitigates coke formation and framework degradation. The catalyst outperforms benchmark Pt–Sn catalysts over multiple dehydrogenation-regeneration cycles.

In the April 24 issue of Nature, Khivantsev et al. report an unexpected transformation of ceria nanoparticles into a nearly one-atomic-layer-thin architecture via a high-temperature reducing treatment. The resultant high-density 2D CexOy clusters exhibit markedly enhanced activity in catalyzing several industrially important redox reactions, providing a new dimension for tailoring ceria-containing

In the April 30 issue of the Journal of the American Chemical Society, Shen and co-workers report on an FeCoNiAlSi high-entropy alloy (HEA) for the Haber-Bosch process. Through density functional theory and kinetic Monte Carlo simulations, the HEA is predicted to have greater activity than iron at milder reaction conditions.

[Display omitted] Jenny G. Vitillo combines quantum chemical methods (density functional theory [DFT], time-dependent DFT, and multireference wave function methods) and spectroscopy to uncover reaction mechanisms in energy- and environment-related processes. After earning a PhD in materials science and technology from the University of Torino in 2005, she deepened her expertise through research at

In this issue of Chem Catalysis, Xie and colleagues investigate degradation mechanisms in polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs) and their evolution over prolonged operation. Using advanced characterization techniques, the authors analyze modifications in catalyst morphology and ionomer properties.

In the Journal of American Chemical Society, Wang and co-workers report a one-pot C–N bond-formation strategy through NH2OH-mediated electrochemical reductive amination of carbonyls and nitrite. This elegant pathway, combining high yield and Faradaic efficiency in neutral media, opens new opportunities for designing electrocatalytic amine synthesis.

Reporting in the Journal of the American Chemical Society, Lu Li, Chao-Jun Li, and colleagues have designed a Ga-ZnO1–x nanosheet photocatalyst with rich frustrated Lewis pair (FLP) sites. They present a green methanol-to-ethanol conversion protocol and establish a safe strategy for generating methyl carbene under mild conditions.

A recent study published in the Journal of the American Chemical Society by Wenbin Lin and colleagues introduces a groundbreaking viologen-linked porphyrin covalent organic framework (Vio-COF) that leverages linker-to-linker charge transfer (LLCT) to achieve exceptional near-infrared (NIR) light absorption with an absorption edge extending to 998 nm.

In a recent issue of Nature Catalysis, Liu and co-workers introduce metal-vacancy engineering to enhance hole mobility in transition-metal oxides, significantly improving photoelectrochemical water-splitting performance. This concept is crucial to addressing the disparity between hole and electron mobility and holds strong potential for broader application in catalysis and the development of functional

In this issue of Chem Catalysis, Rueping and co-workers report an elegant electrochemical nickel-catalyzed cross-electrophile coupling protocol between chlorogermanes and allylic carbonates, offering a powerful tool for the efficient synthesis of allylgermanes.

In a recent Science article, Shi et al. introduce a novel ripening-induced embedding method for anchoring iridium nanoparticles within a ceria support, dramatically enhancing catalyst stability and performance for proton-exchange membrane (PEM) water electrolysis. Their catalyst achieved exceptional efficiency at an ultra-low iridium loading (0.3 mg/cm2) by maintaining a cell voltage of 1.72 V at 3

In a recent issue of Nature Materials, Zhe Li et al. propose a two-step synthesis for enhancing copper’s catalytic performance in the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) by introducing distorted nanotwins. Their study—covering growth, high-level characterization, simulation, and performance—demonstrates how structural modifications improve hydrogen adsorption and boost HER activity.

Reporting in Nature Chemical Engineering, Chen and co-workers have developed an innovative tandem catalytic strategy for transforming biogas into valuable carbon nanofibers. By decoupling the overall conversion into two stages, dry reforming at 600°C and carbon nanofiber (CNF) synthesis at 450°C, they address the limitations of traditional single-stage processes that operate at temperatures over 800°C

Photocatalytic methods for producing hydrogen peroxide as both a solar fuel and a key chemical feedstock are of growing interest. In this issue of Chem Catalysis, Pan, Hu, Chu, and co-workers draw closer to scalable particulate photocatalysis by engineering a 1 m2 solar-driven flow reactor for the conversion of water and air to hydrogen peroxide.

Enhancing the selectivity of C=O hydrogenation without affecting the conjugated C=C bond poses a challenge in heterogeneous catalysis. In a recent work published in Chem, Zhou et al. prepared and characterized atomically dispersed Pt over Fe arranged in unique Pt-Fe-Pt trimer configurations, which showed highly selective hydrogenation of the C=O group in crotonaldehyde without compromising the reaction

In a recent issue of Nature Catalysis, Kim, Choi, and co-workers proposed that alkali metal (AM+) cations act as co-catalysts in the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR). ORR activities in different AM+ concentrations overlap on the AM+-concentration-corrected electrode scale, leading to a potentially generalizable cation-coupled electron-transfer mechanism.