Ping Liu

Brookhaven National Laboratory

Chemistry Division
Bldg. 555
P.O. Box 5000
Upton, NY 11973-5000

(631) 344-5970
pingliu3@bnl.gov

Research | Education | Appointments | Publications | Highlights | Awards

Research Activities

Catalysis: Reactivity and Structure

Research interests

Theoretical description of diverse materials (metal, metal oxide, carbide, sulfide, phosphide) in various forms (nanostructures, supported nanostructures, surfaces) and their applications with a focus on energy production, conversion and storage. The current research focuses on the heterogeneous catalysts for production of fuels from greenhouse gases (carbon dioxide, methane), electrocatalysts involved in fuel cells which convert the chemical energy to electricity and battery materials for storage of electricity. Density functional calculations, kinetic modeling and sensitivity analysis are employed to obtain a fundamental understanding of how the materials function and provide guidance for design of advanced catalysts using the machine-learning based methods.

Education

• B.S.(Material Science & Engineering) Jilin University, P. R. China (June,1994)
• M.S.(Condensed Matter Physics) Jilin University, P. R. China (June, 1997)
• Ph.D.(Condensed Matter Physics) Jilin University, P. R. China (March, 2000)
• Postdoctoral fellow, Technical University of Denmark, Denmark (2000 - 2002)
• Research Associate, Brookhaven National Laboratory, USA (2002 - 2005)

Professional Appointments

• Assistant Chemist, Brookhaven National Laboratory, USA (2005 - 2007)
• Associate Chemist, Brookhaven National Laboratory, USA (2007 - 2010)
• Chemist, Brookhaven National Laboratory, USA (2010 - 2011)
• Chemist with Tenure, Brookhaven National Laboratory, USA (2011 - present)
• Adjunct Professor, Chemistry Department, SUNY Stony Brook, USA (2015-present)

Selected Publications

• Liu Z, Huang E, Orozco I, Liao W, Palomino RM, Rui N, Duchon T, Nemšák S, Grinter DC, Mahapatra M, Liu P, Rodriguez JA, Senanayake SD (2020) Water-promoted interfacial pathways in methane oxidation to methanol on a CeO2-Cu2O catalyst. Science 368:513–517. doi: 10.1126/science.aba5005
• Liao W, Liu P (2020) Methanol Synthesis from CO2 Hydrogenation over a Potassium-Promoted CuxO/Cu(111) (x ≤ 2) Model Surface: Rationalizing the Potential of Potassium in Catalysis. ACS Catalysis 10:5723–5733. doi: 10.1021/acscatal.9b05226
• Yang S-Z, Tallman KR, Liu P, Lutz DM, Zhang B, Kim SJ, Wu L, Marschilok AC, Takeuchi ES, Takeuchi KJ, Zhu Y (2020) The effects of vanadium substitution on one-dimensional tunnel structures of cryptomelane: Combined TEM and DFT study. Nano Energy 71:104571. doi: 10.1016/j.nanoen.2020.104571
• Yao S, Lin L, Liao W, Rui N, Li N, Liu Z, Cen J, Zhang F, Li X, Song L, Betancourt De Leon L, Su D, Senanayake SD, Liu P, Ma D, Chen JG, Rodriguez JA (2019) Exploring Metal–Support Interactions To Immobilize Subnanometer Co Clusters on γ–Mo2N: A Highly Selective and Stable Catalyst for CO2 Activation. ACS Catalysis 9:9087–9097. doi: 10.1021/acscatal.9b01945
• Zuo Z, Liu S, Wang Z, Liu C, Huang W, Huang J, Liu P (2018) Dry Reforming of Methane on Single-Site Ni/MgO Catalysts: Importance of Site Confinement. ACS Catalysis 8:9821–9835. doi: 10.1021/acscatal.8b02277
• Kattel S, Ramírez PJ, Chen JG, Rodriguez JA, Liu P (2017) Active sites for CO 2 hydrogenation to methanol on Cu/ZnO catalysts. Science 355:1296–1299. doi: 10.1126/science.aal3573
• Yao S, Zhang X, Zhou W, Gao R, Xu W, Ye Y, Lin L, Wen X, Liu P, Chen B, Crumlin E, Guo J, Zuo Z, Li W, Xie J, Lu L, Kiely CJ, Gu L, Shi C, Rodriguez JA, Ma D (2017) Atomic-layered Au clusters on α-MoC as catalysts for the low-temperature water-gas shift reaction. Science 357:389–393. doi: 10.1126/science.aah4321

Research Highlights

• Reaction Conditions Tune Catalytic Selectivity
• Catalytic Combo Converts CO₂ to Solid Carbon Nanofibers
• Scientists Make and Test Efficient Water-Splitting Catalyst Predicted by Theory
• New Catalyst Recycles Methane Emissions at Room Temperature
• Chemists Develop New Machine Learning Framework to Improve Catalysts
• Novel Chemical Reaction Supports Carbon-Neutral Industrial Processes
• Steering Conversion of CO2 and Ethane to Desired Products
• Converting Methane to Methanol—With and Without Water
• Catalyst Study Advances Carbon-Dioxide-to-Ethanol Conversion
• Lithium-Ion Battery Research "Flowers"
• Water is Key in Catalytic Conversion of Methane to Methanol
• Machine-Learning Analysis of X-ray Data Picks Out Key Catalytic Properties
• Producing Beneficial Propylene While Consuming a Major Greenhouse Gas
• ACS Meeting News: New catalyst details could help turn carbon dioxide into something valuable
• New Catalyst for Making Methanol from Methane

Awards & Recognition

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