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Publication Alert: Gyawali, Bristow explore light-driven carbon-carbon coupling

Researchers at WVU Physics and Astronomy, partnering with USF chemists, have found a way to perform essential carbon-carbon coupling reactions using only visible light.
Carbon-carbon coupling reactions are essential to converting hydrocarbons from one form to another. This study exploits visible light to overcome the usual requirements of high heat or pressure. The researchers used palladium-coated cuprous oxide nanocatalysts to demonstrate a reaction enhancement.

Visible-Light-Driven Photocatalytic Carbon–Carbon Coupling Reaction under Atmospheric Temperature and Pressure Conditions Using Hybrid Cu2O–Pd Nanostructures
Dr. Sunil Gyawali and Professor Alan Bristow, members of the Ultrafast Nanophotonics Group at West Virginia University, worked with chemists from the University of South Florida to understand the photoexcited charge transfer mechanisms responsible for this enhancement. The hybrid nanostructures enabled the carbon–carbon coupling reaction, under normal room temperature and pressure, opening the process to convert solar energy and atmospheric hydrocarbons into useful fuels.

Read the article in ACS Applied Materials and Interfaces, Vol. 17/Issue 18.

Gyawali completed his dissertation in Spring 2025 under the supervision of Bristow. Professor Bristow is the Associate Chair for Graduate Studies and Research in WVU Physics and Astronomy and leads the Nanophotonics Group.

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