ChE Seminar: Shu Hu, Yale, “Where light meets heat: Photo-thermal catalysis at dynamic interfaces”

ChE Seminar: Shu Hu, Yale, “Where light meets heat: Photo-thermal catalysis at dynamic interfaces”

Sponsored by the Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering  Shu HuYale University “Where light meetsheat: Photo-thermal catalysis at dynamic interfaces” Thursday, March 5, 2026, 11:30 a.m.201 LGRT, UMass Amherst(Refreshments at 11:15 a.m.) Abstract:Traditionalcatalysis relies heavily on thermal energy alone, which often exhibits limitedselectivity atincreased temperatures. Photochemistry and photocatalysis often strugglewith activity and stability, but offer exciting opportunities for selectivitycontrol.  While some photocatalysts showed efficient and/or selective chemicalconversion, due to their excessively high bandgaps and hole-oxidation drivingforce, the desirable photocatalysts, promising for wide-ranging small-moleculeredox chemistry, shall consist of one light-absorbing catalyst of tunablebandgaps, with one coating overlayer if needed for stable interfacial chemistry. Wewill discuss exciting opportunities in both energy conversion and selectivecatalysis by coupling photo- and thermo-catalysis at semiconductor surfaces.First, we will discuss a decade of work on coatings, which has drasticallyimproved semiconductor stability from a few minutes to one year of outdooroperation while effectively separating photo-generated electrons and holes atthe nanoscale. By probing and understanding dynamic semiconductor/liquid interfaces,we co-designed photocatalysts and reactors in a reactive flow to demonstraterecord efficiencies in water splitting and CO2 utilization. Thesemotivate new inquiries into selective photo-thermal catalysis in vapor phases andorganic solvents at elevated temperatures. Examples of photo-thermal CO2hydrogenation, especially those exothermic reactions that shift the equilibriumbackward, will be discussed.              Bio:Shu Hu received his Ph.D. (2012) fromStanford University, advised by Materials Scientist Paul McIntyre andElectrochemist Chris Chidsey. Then, he did postdoctoral work at Caltech withProfessor Nathan S. Lewis and Harry Atwater. He became the faculty member atYale in 2016.  At Yale, Prof. Hu’s lab re-discovered a host of interfacialoxides and nitrides making possible the recent critical and successfuldemonstrations of semiconductor-based solar fuel devices. Hu leads an activegroup exploring the foundational science, which intersects energy conversionand brain-inspired computing.  For these contributions, he received some recognizable Awards& Honors: including DOE Early Career Award (2021), Global Chinese ChemicalEngineer Award (2022), the ACS Energy & Fuel Emerging Researcher Award(2024),  and several lectureships,including the Walter-Schottky Lecture.​ References:R. Yanagi, T. Zhao, M. Cheng, B. Liu, H. Su, C. He, J.Heinlein, S. Mukhopadhyay, H. Tan, D. Solanki, and S. Hu, “PhotocatalyticCO2 Reduction with Dissolved Carbonates and Near-Zero CO2(aq) by EmployingLong-Range Proton Transport”, Journal of the American ChemicalSociety, 145, 28, 15381-15392 (2023). DOI: 10.1021/jacs.3c03281Ji, Q. Dong, C. Zhang, J. Miscall, W. Zhang, A. H. Brozena,J. Chen, N. Liu, T. Li, C. A. Nascimento, B. Dantas, B. Zhang, F. Mumtaz, Z.Liu, S. Liu, Y. Du, Z. Wang, Z. Pang, D. Liu, J. Huang, F. V. Lima, X. Pan, Y.Ju, K. Fu,* S. Hu,* G. Beckham, L. Hu,* “Selectiveand Scalable Electrified Polyethylene Pyrolysis by Pore-Modulation”, NatureChemical Engineering, 2, 424 (2025). doi: 10.1038/s44286-025-00248-0

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