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Unipd research. Here is where the hydrogen is for the green turning point

25.03.2022

The Surface Science and Catalysis Group (SSCG) of the Department of Chemical Sciences of the University of Padua developed a new technique based on the tunnel effect microscope to visualize various electro-catalytic processes with atomic precision. The researchers applied this powerful analysis tool to electro-catalysts for the production of hydrogen, managing to map the sites capable of producing hydrogen, with a resolution never reached before, evaluate efficiency, and determine the type of molecular mechanism that leads to the formation of hydrogen.

Coordinated by Stefano Agnoli of the Department of Chemical Sciences of the University of Padua, the research paper entitled Atom-by-atom identification of catalytic active sites in operando conditions by quantitative noise detection was published in the Joule, the sister journal to Cellthat focuses on publishing works in the field of alternative energy. The paper illustrates the theoretical principles of this innovative technique and its application for different materials, demonstrating how it is possible to visualize the formation of hydrogen in real-time atom-by-atom.