Project Grant 2400168

This $431,454 Project Grant award from the National Science Foundation's (NSF) Division of Chemistry was provided to The Johns Hopkins University and the University of Massachusetts, Lowell to study the design of catalytic materials for electrochemical synthesis of organonitrogen compounds. The overarching goal is to develop a fundamental understanding of electrochemical carbon-nitrogen coupling using metal-organic frameworks called boron imidazolate frameworks (BIFs) as the catalyst platform. The key objectives are to identify structure-function relationships between BIF electronics and catalytic activity, observe reaction intermediates via in-situ spectroscopy, and leverage physics-informed machine learning to guide the development of new BIF catalysts. Additionally, the award will fund the expansion of a "Meet the Chemist" video series to engage undergraduate students in STEM research, as well as the creation of a novel theory course on applied machine learning for computational catalysis. This 3-year project, commencing on September 1, 2024, aims to enhance the utility of electrochemical synthesis for industrially-relevant compounds and support the decarbonization of the chemical manufacturing industry.