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Professor Emily A. Carter on quantum mechanics to combat climate change

Hillert Materials Modeling Colloquium series XX

Photo: Daoudi Aissa, Unsplash.
Published Mar 26, 2024

Professor Emily A. Carter and her research team use computational methods to model complex molecular systems, to study, amongst other things processes related to direct ocean capture of CO2 to form minerals. The goal is to develop strategies for getting to negative CO2 emissions.

Emily A. Carter
Professor Emily A. Carter.

Emily A. Carter is Professor in Energy and the Environment at Princeton University. She uses quantum embedding methods to develop materials for clean electricity (such as solar cells, fuel cells, and fusion reactors).

Her research themes involve designing catalysts for renewable fuels and chemicals production, and she emphasizes the need for developing sustainable processes to convert and store CO2 in useful, durable products.

“To preserve the planet for future generations, it is not enough to transition to sustainable energy. We must stop emitting carbon into the atmosphere from all sectors, aiming not just for net-zero but net-negative emissions,” says Professor Carter.

In a recent online seminar at Hillert Modeling Laboratory, she described her team’s quantum embedding methods that simulate sustainable production of fuels and chemicals catalytically, using electricity and/or light. The methods are then used for studying processes related to direct ocean capture of CO2 to form minerals.

Watch to the seminar here: How Quantum Mechanics Can Help Identify Mechanisms and Materials to Combat Climate Change