Rob Weatherup and new ERC grant for special operando project

"The long-term support from this ERC grant will allow us to uncover how catalysts really function, and guide the design of next-generation sustainable technologies".

Professor Robert Weatherup

Many congratulations to Professor Robert Weatherup, on securing a €2.4M European Research Council (ERC) Consolidator Grant for his OPERATE* project.

The generosity of the ERC is enabling Professor Weatherup and his research team to investigate solutions to decarbonising the production of chemicals and fuels, and thereby reduce their environmental impact.

The OPERATE project will tackle the challenge of improving sustainable electrochemical reactions that turn water and carbon dioxide into useful products.  A difficulty with the current process is that the electrochemical reactions take place at complex 'triple-phase' boundaries (where solids, liquids and gases meet), and this makes observing how they work extremely difficult.

The OPERATE project will develop new ways to study the reactions in real time, using advanced X-ray techniques and precisely engineered nano-particle catalysts.

By revealing how catalysts change during operation, the OPERATE project will guide the design of improved systems for producing sustainable fuels and chemicals, which will have a significantly positive effect in progressing society's transition to net-zero.  As Professor Weatherup says:

"What excites me the most is the opportunity to pioneer new approaches for automating catalyst discovery 

and to advance operando techniques that reveal how catalysts behave under truly realistic device conditions".

*Operando Probing of Electrochemical Reactions At Triple-phase-boundaries.