Dino Villagrán combines a drive to better understand the basics of electrochemistry with research focused on applying those insights to real-world energy and environmental issues. He is exploring the rational design of molecular systems and well-defined inorganic architectures to investigate electron transfer (ET) and electrocatalysis for the activation of small molecules of energy and environmental concern.
His lab spans physical, inorganic, and computational chemistry, using multiple-bonded bimetallic systems and organic macrocycle architectures to study multi-electron redox chemistry and delineate electron transfer reactions through covalent or hydrogen-bond pathways.
“Many of the most fundamental aspects of small molecule activation and the way we manipulate chemical bonds through redox processes are still not well understood,” Dr. Villagrán, professor at The University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP), explained. “I have an incredibly diverse lab, trying to bridge the gap from basic electron transfer, quantum chemistry and how electrons move to how we can apply those concepts to clean energy production and removing pollutants from water.”
His group focuses on physical measurements and computational and theoretical studies. Using advanced synthetic techniques, they create novel inorganic, transition-metal compounds designed to activate small molecules and then study their electrochemical and magnetic properties. The goal is to synthetically manipulate the compounds’ structure and bonding to tailor them to perform attractive multielectron redox chemistry.
For example, Dr. Villagrán is working to better understand the mechanisms of the electrocatalysis of water, both to produce clean hydrogen energy from water – “relatively simple on paper but complicated in real life,” he notes – and to clean polluted water.
His aim is to create the means to detect, absorb, and destroy pollutants such as nitrates, found in fertilizers, and per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), human-made ‘forever’ chemicals that are precursors to Teflon and used in firefighting. Stable and water-resistant, the very qualities that make PFAS useful also mean nature hasn’t yet found a way to break them down. Dr. Villagrán believes that a better understanding of their basic chemistry allows a rational design approach. His team experiments with oxidizing small molecules by adding and removing electrons and using these electrochemical strategies to create sensors that can detect pollutants in water and then absorb and destroy them.
Growing up on the border, Dr. Villagrán studied chemistry at UTEP. After pursuing a Ph.D. at Texas A&M University with Welch Award recipient Al Cotton and postdoctoral work at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology with Dan Nocera (now at Harvard), he returned to teach at UTEP 14 years ago.
Dr. Villagrán says he finds it incredibly fulfilling to work with a student body composed of many first-generation, non-traditional, and Hispanic students like himself.
“I have been privileged to work with so many fantastic and brilliant students,” he said. “The Welch Foundation has been transformative, allowing me to pursue truly fundamental research while addressing important environmental challenges.”
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