Activités scientifiques

PCM Seminar - Dr Federico Franco (University of Trieste, Italy)Mardi 17 mars 2026, 11h00 - Amphi IPREM

Dr Federico Franco
University of Trieste, Department of Chemical and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Italy

"Hybrid electrocatalysts for CO2 electroreduction."

Sustainable electrocatalysis powered by renewable energy represents a key step toward a progressive electrification of the chemical industry, contributing to the mitigation of greenhouse gas emissions and reducing dependence on fossil resources.[1]-[3] In this framework, the electrochemical CO₂ reduction reaction (CO₂RR) has emerged as a particularly appealing strategy, enabling the valorization of CO₂, a low-cost and abundant carbon feedstock, into a broad range of commodity chemicals and fuels.[4]-[5] Despite significant advances, the development of efficient aqueous CO₂ electrolyzers is still limited by challenges related to catalyst selectivity, intrinsic activity, and long-term stability. In our recent work, we have explored molecular strategies to tailor the local microenvironment of heterogeneous electrocatalysts for CO₂RR, aiming to modulate interfacial phenomena at the electrode–electrolyte boundary, including reactant transport, local proton availability, and the stabilization of key reaction intermediates. These approaches rely on the integration of inorganic catalytic platforms with molecular components, leading to hybrid electrodes with enhanced catalytic performances. In this talk these approaches will be discussed, highlighting how controlled modulation of the active-site microenvironment represents a powerful tool to improve the efficiency and selectivity of CO₂ electroreduction systems.

Selected References:
[1] A. Yoon, L. Bai, F. Yang, F. Franco, C. Zhan, M. Rüscher, J. Timoshenko, C. Pratsch, S. Werner, H. S. Jeon, M. Cecilio de Oliveira Monteiro, S. W. Chee, B. Roldan Cuenya, Nat. Materials 2025, 24, 762–769
[2] L. Bai, F. Franco, J. Timoshenko, C. Rettenmaier, F. Scholten, H. Sang Jeon, A. Yoon, M. Rüscher, A. Herzog, F. T. Haase, S. Kühl, S. Wee Chee, A. Bergmann, B. Roldan Cuenya, J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2024, 146, 9665−9678
[3] F. Mancuso, P. Fornasiero, M. Prato, M. Melchionna, F. Franco, G. Filippini, Nanoscale 2024, 16, 5926-5940
[4] F. Franco; C. Rettenmaier; H. Jeon; B. Roldan Cuenya; Chem. Soc. Rev. 2020, 49 (19), 6884-6946.
[5] M. Vettori, F. Franco, S. Fernández, G. Pey, V. Martin Diaconescu, J. M. Luis, J. Lloret-Fillol, Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2026, e8293935

 

 Dr. Federico Franco has broad research experience in the fields of electrochemistry and electrocatalysis, spanning from homogeneous molecular systems to hybrid and nanostructured materials. His research covers the study of sustainable energy conversion processes, including CO2 electroreduction, water splitting, ammonia electrosynthesis and organic transformations. 

After receiving a PhD at the University of Turin in 2016 (Prof. Roberto Gobetto group), he worked as a postdoc at the ICIQ of Tarragona (Prof. Lloret-Fillol group, 2016-2019) and at the Fritz-Haber Institute of the Max Planck Society of Berlin (Prof. Roldan Cuenya group, 2019-2021). In the period 2021-2023, he worked at the ICIQ in the Prof. Palomares group as a Juan de la Cierva Incorporación researcher. In 2023, he started his independent career as assistant professor at the University of Trieste, focusing on the development of molecular and nanostructured systems for photo-electrocatalytic conversion of small molecules.