2025 Internship Project Overview

Rising atmospheric CO2 levels have driven interest in technologies that can convert the greenhouse gas into valuable products. Electrochemical CO2 reduction (CO2RR), if powered by renewables, is a process that could potentially complete the anthropogenic carbon cycle by enabling the conversion of CO2 into fuels and chemicals. While significant progress has been made in small-scale systems, industrial-scale application requires improved catalysts that enhance efficiency and selectivity. Two-dimensional transition-metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) are promising as they can impart unique active sites that suppress the competing hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) and favor desired carbonaceous products. In this project, we synthesized a promising TMD catalyst for CO2RR and employed cyclic voltammetry (CV) to assess electrochemical activity and identify CO2RR responses relative to HER. To correlate activity with material properties, we performed Raman spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), allowing us to study morphology, surface composition and active site features—insights critical for guiding the design of efficient CO2 electrocatalysts.

ORGANIZATION/RESEARCH GROUP

Koel Research Group, Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Princeton University

LOCATION

Princeton, New Jersey

 

Interns

Christopher Li ’26
Major: Civil and Environmental Engineering
Minor(s): Music Performance
"I gained valuable technical and analytical skills in both electrocatalysis and materials science more broadly. The projects I worked on challenged me to think critically about research objectives and to problem-solve when difficulties arose. I also had the opportunity to learn how to operate analysis equipment in the Imaging and Analysis Center, which was an exciting and rewarding experience. I look forward to applying these analytical skills and my experience with material characterization to my senior thesis."

 

Bruce Koel
Professor of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Emeritus

Mentors

  • Hengfei Gu, Postdoctoral Research Associate, Chemical and Biological Engineering
  • Yiteng Zheng, Associate Research Scholar, Chemical and Biological Engineering