Speaker: Mahika Luthra
Title: Mechanistic Insight into the Electrochemical Reduction of CO2 using Homogenous Molecular Catalysts
Abstract: In this era of sustainable development, new methods are generated for the utilization, storage, and reduction of the greenhouse effect CO2 gas. In such a scenario, electrocatalysis provides a promising pathway for the reduction of carbon dioxide to fuels and C1-building blocks, using molecular catalysts. The talk will focus on a known Manganese bipyridyl complex which acts as a catalyst for CO2 reduction into value added products like HCOOH and CO. The product selectivities for such reactions are varied, depending on factors like ligand design, operating potentials, pKa and presence of amine functionality in the ligand. An interplay of these factors decides the major product, which will be presented with computational calculations involving static DFT as well as Ab-initio Molecular dynamics.