Prof. Núria López

Computational

Group Leader:

Núria López

Group Administrative Coordinator:

Núria Vendrell

Postdoctoral Researcher:

Rodrigo García-Muelas (until April) / Federico Dattila (until February) / Ranga Rohit Seemakurthi / Zan Lian / Vanshree Parey / Hind Benzidi / Albert Sabadell Rendón (mid December)

PhD Students:

Albert Sabadell Rendón (until mid-December) / Sergio P. García Carrillo (until August) / Jordi Morales Vidal / Julian Geiger / Andrea Ruiz / Pavle Nikačević / Maria Minotaki / Santiago Morandi / Enric Ibáñez / Muhammad Saad Naeem / Pol Sanz / Oliver Loveday

Summer fellow

Zarko Ivkovic

Visiting students

Francesca Lorenzutti / Maryam Toufani / Yuting Li / Tim Renninholzt

Summary

The group of Prof. López studies phenomena (thermo, electro, and photo-catalytic) with theoretical models that integrate Density Functional Theory with microkinetic models and other continuous equations. The group is an expert in complex reaction networks that take place in a large plethora of catalytic materials. The group has a particular interest in introducing statistical techniques (machine learning) in its field of research and they are advocates of open data through the ioChem-BD database.

Publications

Reply to: On the role of metal cations in CO2 electrocatalytic reduction
Dattila, F.; Monteiro, M. C. O.; Koper, M. T. M.; López, N.
Nat. Catal. 2022, 979–981

Chiral Seeded Growth of Gold Nanorods Into 4-Fold Twisted Nanoparticles with Plasmonic Optical Activity
Ni, B.; Mychinko, M.; Gómez-Graña, S.; Morales-Vidal, J.; Obelleiro-Liz, M.; Heyvaert, W.; Vila-Liarte, D.; Zhuo, X.; Albrecht, W.; Zheng, G.; González-Rubio, G.; Taboada, J. M.; Obelleiro, F.; López, N.; Pérez-Juste, J.; Pastoriza-Santos, I.; Cölfen, H.; Bals, S.; Liz-Marzán, L. M.
Adv. Mater. 2022, 34 (44)

Water electrolysis
Shih, A.J.; Monteiro, M. C. O.; Dattila,F.; Pavesi, D.; Philips, M.; da Silva, A. H. M.; Vos, R.E.; Ojha, K.; Park, s.; van der Heijden, O.; Marcandalli, G.; Goyal, A.; Villalba, M.; Chen, X.; Gunasooriya, G. T. K. K.; McCrum, I.; Mom, R.; López, N.; Koper, M. T. M.
Nat Rev Methods Primers 2022

MORE PUBLICATIONS

Catalytic Synergies in Bimetallic Ru-Pt Single–Atom Catalysts via Speciation Control
Giulimondi, V.; Ruiz–Ferrando, A.; Clark, A. H.; Kaiser, S. K.; Krumeich, F.; Martín, A. J.; López, N.; Pérez–Ramírez, J.
Adv. Funct. Mater. 2022, 2206513

The role of crystal facets and disorder on photoelectrosynthesis
Pastor, E.; Montañés, L.; Gutiérrez-Blanco, A.; Hegner, F. S.; Mesa, C. A.; López, N.; Giménez, S.
Nanoscale 2022

Data-driven models for ground and excited states for Single Atoms on Ceria
Geiger, J.; Sabadell-Rendón, A.; Daelman, N.; López, N.
Computational Materials 2022, 8, 171

Coupling Metal and Support Redox Terms in Single-Atom Catalysts
Geiger, J.; López, N.
Phys. Chem. C 2022

CO2 Conversion on N-Doped Carbon Catalysts via Thermo- and Electrocatalysis: Role of C–NOx Moieties
Hursán, D.; Ábel, M.; Baán, K.; Fako, E.; Samu, G. F.; Chuong Nguyën, H.; López, N.; Atanassov, P.; Kónya Z.; Sápi, A.; Janáky, C.
ACS Catal. 2022, 12, 10127–10140

Long-chain hydrocarbons by CO2 electroreduction using polarized nickel catalysts
Zhou, Y.; Martín, A. J.; Dattila, F.; Xi, S.; López, N.; Pérez-Ramírez, J.; Siang Yeo, B.
Nat. Catal. 2022

Elucidation of Metal Local Environments in Single-Atom Catalysts Based on Carbon Nitrides
Büchele, S.; Yakimov, A.; Collins, S. M.; Ruiz-Ferrando, A.; Chen, Z.; Willinger, E.; Kepaptsoglou, D. M.; Ramasse, W. M.; Müller, C. R.; Safonova, O. V.; López, N.; Copéret, C.; Pérez-Ramírez, J.; Mitchell, S.
Small 2022, 2202080

Mixed excitonic nature in water-oxidized BiVO 4 surfaces with defects
Steinitz-Eliyahu, R.; Hernangómez-Pérez, D.; Hegner, F. S.; Nikačević, P.; López, N.; Refaely-Abramson, S.
Phys. Rev. Mater. 2022, 065402

Lowering the Water Oxidation Overpotential by Spin-Crossover in Cobalt Hexacyanoferrate
Hegner, F. S.; Galán-Mascarós, J. R.; López, N.
Phys. Chem. Lett. 2022, 13, 4104–4110

Performance descriptors of nanostructured metal catalysts for acetylene hydrochlorination
Kaiser, S. K.; Fako, E.; Surin, I.; Krumeich, F.; Kondratenko, V. A.; Kondratenko, E. V.; Clark, A. H.; López, N.; Pérez-Ramírez, J.
Nat. Nanotechnol. 2022

Modeling Operando Electrochemical CO2 Reduction
Dattila, F.; Rohit Seemakurthi, R.; Zhou, Y.; López, N.
Chem. Rev. 2022

Flame Spray Pyrolysis as a Synthesis Platform to Assess Metal Promotion in In2O3-Catalyzed CO2 Hydrogenation
Pinheiro Araújo, T.; Morales-Vidal, J.; Zou, T.; García-Muelas, R.; Willi, P. O.; Engel, K. M.; Safonova, O. V.; Akl, D. F.; Krumeich, F.; Grass, R. N.; Mondelli, C.; López, N.; Pérez-Ramírez, J.
Adv. Energy Mater. 2022, 12 (14), 2103707

Automated Image Analysis for Single-Atom Detection in Catalytic Materials by Transmission Electron Microscopy
Mitchell, S.; Parés, F.; Faust Akl, D.; Collins, S. M.; Kepaptsoglou, D. M.; Ramasse, Q. M.; Garcia-Gasulla, D.; Pérez-Ramírez, J.; López, N.
Am. Chem. Soc. 2022

Highly Stable and Reactive Platinum Single Atoms on Oxygen Plasma-Functionalized CeO2 Surfaces: Nanostructuring and Peroxo Effects
Shaikhutdinov, S.; Wan, W.; Geiger, J.; Berdunov, N.; Lopez Luna, M.; Wee Chee, S.; Daelman, N.; López, N.; Roldan Cuenya, B.
Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2022

Determining Structure-Activity Relationships in Oxide Derived CuSn Catalysts During CO2 Electroreduction Using X-Ray Spectroscopy
Pardo Pérez, L. C.; Arndt, A.; Stojkovikj, S.; Ahmet, I. Y.; Arens, J. T.; Dattila, F.; Wendt, R.; Guilherme Buzanich, A.; Radtke, M.; Davies, V.; Höflich, K.; Köhnen, E.; Tockhorn, P.; Golnak, R.; Xiao, J.; Schuck, G.; Wollgarten, M.; López, N.; Mayer, M. T.
Adv. Energy Mater. 2022, 12, 2103328

Electrically Tunable Reactivity of Substrate-Supported Cobalt Oxide Nanocrystals
Sánchez-Grande, A.; Chuong Nguyën,H.; Lauwaet, K.; Rodríguez-Fernández, J.; Carrasco, E:; Cirera, B.; Sun, Z.; Urgel, J. I.; Miranda, R.; Lauritsen, J. V.; Gallego, J. M.; López, N.; Écija, D.
Small 2022, 18 (12), 2106407

Generalizing Performance Equations in Heterogeneous Catalysis from Hybrid Data and Statistical Learning
Pablo-García, S.; Sabadell-Rendón, A.; Saadun, A. J.; Morandi, S.; Pérez-Ramírez, J.; López, N.
ACS Catal. 2022, 12, 1581–1594

Mechanistic routes toward C3 products in copper-catalysed CO2 electroreduction
Pablo-García, S.; Veenstra, F. L. P.; Rui Lin Ting, L.; García-Muelas, R.; Dattila, F.; Martín, A. J.; Siang Yeo, B.; Pérez-Ramírez, J.; López, N.
COVER Catal. Sci. Technol. 2022, 12, 409-417

Projects

Statistical learning for converging strategies in thermal and electrochemical conversion of small molecules
National Centres of Competence in Research (NCCR), Swiss National Science Foundation
NCCR Catalysis

Smart characterization of heterogeneous catalysts: EXAFS for Single Atom Catalyst
National Centres of Competence in Research (NCCR), Swiss National Science Foundation
NCCR Catalysis 

FlowPhotoChem
Heterogenous Photo(electro)catalysis in Flow using Concentrated Light: modular integrated designs for the production of useful chemicals
Collaborative Projects | Ref: 862453 Web page

SOLAR2CHEM
Training the next generation of scientists in solar chemicals for a sustainable Europe by hybrid molecule/semiconductor devices
MSCA ITN | Ref: 861151 Web page

SIMATEC
Simulations of materials with applications in Energy and Catalysis
MCINN I Ref: RTI2018-101394-B-100

SMELT
“Simulaciones de la dinámica de materiales en procesos foto-electro-catalíticos”
MCINN PID2021-122516OB-I00 SMELT

OHPERA
Optimised Halide Perovskite nanocrystalline based Electrolyser for clean, robust, efficient and decentralised production of H2
Ref. 01071010-OHPERA

SGR (AGAUR) 2021 SGR 01155 
Theoretical Heterogeneous Catalysis Group (T-HeCat)

Theses Supervised

Sergio Pablo García Carrillo
July 11, 2022
Universitat Rovira i Virgili
Development and Mechanistic Study of Well-defined Catalysts for the CO2 and H2O Reduction Reactions 

Albert Sabadell Rendón
December 12, 2022
Universitat Rovira i Virgili
Interpretable models to explain Heterogeneous Catalysis

 

Features

Sustainable Methanol team wins RSC’s 2022 John Jeyes Award
https://www.iciq.org/sustainable-methanol-team-wins-rscs-2022-john-jeyes-award/

How to avoid mercury in PVC production
https://www.iciq.org/how-to-avoid-mercury-in-pvc-production/

ACS recommends ioChem-BD
https://www.iciq.org/acs-recommends-iochem-bd/