Energy Catalysis and Green Chemistry
The development of sustainable, carbon-neutral energy technologies is critical to addressing climate change and rising global energy demands. Inspired by metalloenzyme active sites that support cheap and earth-abundant metals within well-defined first- and second-coordination spheres for catalysis, we are synthesizing new first-row transition metal complexes for electrocatalytic and photocatalytic activation of water, oxygen, carbon dioxide, and related small molecules under green, aqueous conditions. The integration of these molecular catalysts into inorganic materials and biological scaffolds is also being pursued.

• King, A. E.; Surendranath, Y.; Piro, N. A.; Bigi, J. P.; Long, J. R.; Chang, C. J. "A Mechanistic Study of Proton Reduction Catalyzed by a Pentapyridine Cobalt Complex: Evidence for Involvement of an Anation-Based Pathway", Chem. Sci. 2013, in press. [pdf] [html]
  
  
  
  
  

• Sun, Y.; Sun, J.; Long, J. R.; Yang, P.; Chang, C. J. "Photocatalytic generation of hydrogen from water using a cobalt pentapyridine complex in combination with molecular and semiconductor nanowire photosensitizers", Chem. Sci. 2013, 4, 118-124. [pdf] [html]
  
  
  
  
  

• Thoi, V. S.; Karunadasa, H. I.; Surendranath, Y.; Long, J. R.; Chang, C. J.; "Electrochemical generation of hydrogen from acetic acid using a molecular molybdenum-oxo catalyst", Energy Environ. Sci. 2012, 5, 7762-7770. [pdf] [html]
  
  
  
  
  

• Karunadasa, H. I.; Montalvo, E.; Sun, Y.; Majda, M.; Long, J. R.; Chang, C. J. "A Molecular MoS₂ Edge Site Mimic for Catalytic Hydrogen Generation", Science 2012, 335, 698-702. [pdf] [html] [UC Berkeley press release] [LBNL press release] [Daily Cal article] [C&E News article]
  
  
  
  
  

• Sun, Y.; Bigi, J. P.; Piro, N. A.; Tang, M. L.; Long, J. R.; Chang, C. J. "Molecular Cobalt Pentapyridine Catalysts for Generating Hydrogen from Water", J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2011, 133, 9212-9215. [pdf] [html]
  
  
  
  
  

• Thoi, V. S. and Chang, C. J. "Nickel N-heterocyclic carbene-pyridine complexes that exhibit selectivity for electrocatalytic reduction of carbon dioxide over water", Chem. Commun. 2011, 47, 6578-6580. [pdf] [html]
  
  
  
  
  

• Karunadasa, H. I.; Chang, C. J.; Long, J. R. "A Molecular Molybdenum-Oxo Catalyst for Generating Hydrogen from Water", Nature 2010, 464, 1329-1333. [pdf]
  
  
  
  
  

• Bigi, J. P.; Hanna, T. E.; Harman, W. H.; Chang, A.; Chang, C. J. "Electrocatalytic Reduction of Protons to Hydrogen by a Water-Compatible Cobalt Polypyridyl Platform", Chem. Commun. 2010, 46, 958-960. [pdf]
  
  
  
  
  

• Piro, N. A., Lichterman, M. F., Harman, W. H., Chang, C. J. "A Structurally Characterized Nitrous Oxide Complex of Vanadium", J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2011, 133, 2108-2111. [pdf] [html]
  
  
  
  
  

• Harman, W. H., Harris, T. D., Freedman, D. E., Fong, H., Chang, A., Rinehart, J. D., Ozarowski, A., Sougrati, M. T., Grandjean, F., Long, G. J., Long, J. R., Chang, C. J. "Slow Magnetic Relaxation in a Family of Trigonal Pyramidal Iron(II) Pyrrolide Complexes", J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2010, 132, 18115-18126. [pdf] [html]
  
  
  
  
  

• Freedman, D. E.; Harman, W. H.; Harris, T. D.; Long, G. J.; Chang, C. J.; Long, J. R. "Slow Magnetic Relaxation in a High-Spin Iron(II) Complex", J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2010, 132, 1224-1225. [pdf]
  
  
  
  
  

• Harman, W. H.; Chang, C. J. "N₂O Activation and Oxidation Reactivity from a Non-Heme Iron Pyrrole Platform", J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2007, 129, 15128-15129. [pdf]