A wastewater to chemical fuel conversion device is provided that includes a housing having a first chamber and a second chamber, where the first chamber includes a bio-photoanode, where the second chamber includes a photocathode, where a backside of the bio-photoanode abuts a first side of a planatized fluorine doped tin oxide (FTO) glass, where a backside of the photocathode abuts a second side of the FTO glass, where a proton exchange membrane separates the first chamber from the second chamber, where the first chamber includes a wastewater input and a reclaimed water output, where the second chamber includes a solar light input and a H.sub.2 gas output, where the solar light input is disposed for solar light illumination of the first chamber and the second chamber.

A wastewater to chemical fuel conversion device is provided that includes a housing having a first chamber and a second chamber, where the first chamber includes a bio-photoanode, where the second chamber includes a photocathode, where a backside of the bio-photoanode abuts a first side of a planatized fluorine doped tin oxide (FTO) glass, where a backside of the photocathode abuts a second side of the FTO glass, where a proton exchange membrane separates the first chamber from the second chamber, where the first chamber includes a wastewater input and a reclaimed water output, where the second chamber includes a solar light input and a H.sub.2 gas output, where the solar light input is disposed for solar light illumination of the first chamber and the second chamber.

This application relates to new process that utilizes electrodes that incorporate acids that facilitate upgrading of methane and other low molecular weight alkanes to higher order hydrocarbon molecules, such as paraffins, olefins, and aromatics, at temperatures less than 250° C. A primary focus of the invention includes methane conversion to ethylene. The first step of the process includes acid containing electrodes that facilitate the activation of the alkane in the anode layer of the electrochemical reactor. Subsequent steps include the separation of protons from produced longer chain hydrocarbons followed by subsequent electrochemical reduction of the protons to yield hydrogen at the cathode or protons combined with oxygen at the cathode to yield water. The reaction steps in the anode upgrade methane to higher order hydrocarbon products.

This invention is directed to a method of oxygenating hydrocarbons with molecular oxygen, O.sub.2, as oxidant under electrochemical reducing conditions, using polyoxometalate compounds containing copper such as Q.sub.10[Cu.sub.4(H.sub.2O).sub.2(B-α-PW.sub.9O.sub.34).sub.2] or Q.sub.13{[Cu(H.sub.2O)].sub.3[(A-α-PW.sub.9O.sub.34).sub.2(NO.sub.3).sup.−]} or solvates thereof as catalysts, wherein Q are each independently selected from alkali metal cations, alkaline earth metal cations, transition metal cations, NH.sub.4.sup.+, H.sup.+ or any combination thereof.

This invention is directed to a method of oxygenating hydrocarbons with molecular oxygen, O.sub.2, as oxidant under electrochemical reducing conditions, using polyoxometalate compounds containing copper such as Q.sub.10[Cu.sub.4(H.sub.2O).sub.2(B-α-PW.sub.9O.sub.34).sub.2] or Q.sub.13{[Cu(H.sub.2O)].sub.3[(A-α-PW.sub.9O.sub.34).sub.2(NO.sub.3).sup.−]} or solvates thereof as catalysts, wherein Q are each independently selected from alkali metal cations, alkaline earth metal cations, transition metal cations, NH.sub.4.sup.+, H.sup.+ or any combination thereof.

Electrochemical cells for the oxidation of 5-hydroxymethylfurfural are provided. Also provided are methods of using the cells to carry out the oxidation reactions. The electrochemical cells and methods use catalytic copper-based anodes to carry out the electrochemical oxidation reactions.

Electrochemical cells for the oxidation of 5-hydroxymethylfurfural are provided. Also provided are methods of using the cells to carry out the oxidation reactions. The electrochemical cells and methods use catalytic copper-based anodes to carry out the electrochemical oxidation reactions.

A method for controllably making catalysts with at least one metallic surface state, that includes: a) identifying all the topological insulators in the ICSD, b) calculating the Real Space Invariants of the valence bands for all these topological insulators in order to c) identify in all these topological insulators the Wyckoff Positions where the irreducible Wannier Charge Centers (WCCs) are localized, and then d) selecting as potentially catalytic active compound a topological insulator in which the position of WCCs is not occupied by any atom; e) synthesizing a crystal of the selected potentially catalytic active compound either so that it is grown in a predefined crystallographic direction (characterized by its Miller indices (h,k,l)) which exposes the metallic surface state; or cutting the crystal in a predefined crystallographic direction (characterized by its Miller indices (h,k,l)), so that the metallic surface state is exposed when

[00001]$\left(\left(\{\begin{array}{c}\left(h,k,l\right).Math.\left(x-X_j,y-Y_j,z-Z_j\right)=0,\\ \left(h,k,l\right).Math.\left(x-x_i,y-y_i,z-z_i\right)\ne 0,\\ h,k,lϵZ\end{array}\right)\right)$

A catalyst composition including nickel foam and a plurality of carbon-doped nickel oxide nanorods disposed on the nickel foam.

Disclosed herein is an electrolyte comprising OH.sup.− and a hydrogen evolution electrocatalyst, an oxygen evolution electrocatalyst, a bifunctional hydrogen/oxygen evolution electrocatalyst, or any combination thereof for use in in situ deposition or utilization.