Development of catalysts for energy production and conversion that do not require precious metals.

This includes:
Catalysts for fuel cells that use hydrogen or methanol as fuel
Catalysts for solar photochemical production of hydrogen and other fuels from water and/or carbon dioxide
Processes and catalysts for conversion of carbonaceous waste streams to electricity, fuels, and commodity chemicals

Biomimetic, organometallic, and inorganic chemistry are some of the most important tools used for catalyst
development. A current example of catalyst development via biomimetic studies is the emergence of non-noble
catalysts for electrochemical production and oxidation of hydrogen that use iron, nickel, or cobalt complexes
whose mechanism, structure, and electronic properties were derived from studies of the enzyme hydrogenase.