TIMELESS QUESTIONS AND MODERN CHALLENGES: A JOURNEY FROM THE ORIGIN OF LIFE IN HYDROTHERMAL VENTS TO ELECTROCHEMICAL CO2 REDUCTION
type: CreativeWork
description: The objective of the work presented here is to investigate the functioning of the alkaline hydrothermal vent from an electrochemical point of view in order to inspire new technologies for CO2 reduction. Oceanic hydrothermal vents (HTVs) are geological structures that played a key role 4 billion years ago in the formation of the very first organic molecules on our planet and, eventually, life itself. The minerals composing the vent structure, mainly iron (-nickel) sulphides and oxyhydroxide, separate two environments with opposite characteristics: on the ocean side an acidic environment containing CO2 and on the hydrothermal fluid side an alkaline environment containing H2. Across this mineral barrier an electrochemical potential difference is generated; the dissipation of this energy takes place by coupling the CO2 reduction (CO2R) and the hydrogen oxidation (HOR), thus generating the very first organic molecule on Earth. The behaviour of HTVs can be modelled as a “short-circuited fuel cell”: in this system, H2 and CO2 in the respective environment serve as fuels and the two electrodes, composed of mineral materials, are short-circuited. The coupling between CO2R and HOR is rendered thermodynamically favourable by the pH difference between the two environments. The reduction potentials of the involved redox couples shift as a function of pH; consequently, a reaction that would be non-spontaneous if both half-reactions occurred at the same pH, can become spontaneous (ΔG < 0) when the two processes take place under distinct pH conditions. First, two model materials, Mackinawite [FeSm] and Violarite [(Fe,Ni)3S4] have been prepared by homogeneous precipitation method, obtaining the materials in powder form. The samples have been widely characterized in terms of crystalline structure, particle dimensions, porosity, and surface oxidation state. A series of “mineral-based electrode” have been prepared, by depositing the powder on carbon substrate, and tested for CO2 reduct…
abstract: The objective of the work presented here is to investigate the functioning of the alkaline hydrothermal vent from an electrochemical point of view in order to inspire new technologies for CO2 reduction. Oceanic hydrothermal vents (HTVs) are geological structures that played a key role 4 billion years ago in the formation of the very first organic molecules on our planet and, eventually, life itself. The minerals composing the vent structure, mainly iron (-nickel) sulphides and oxyhydroxide, separate two environments with opposite characteristics: on the ocean side an acidic environment containing CO2 and on the hydrothermal fluid side an alkaline environment containing H2. Across this mineral barrier an electrochemical potential difference is generated; the dissipation of this energy takes place by coupling the CO2 reduction (CO2R) and the hydrogen oxidation (HOR), thus generating the very first organic molecule on Earth. The behaviour of HTVs can be modelled as a “short-circuited fuel cell”: in this system, H2 and CO2 in the respective environment serve as fuels and the two electrodes, composed of mineral materials, are short-circuited. The coupling between CO2R and HOR is rendered thermodynamically favourable by the pH difference between the two environments. The reduction potentials of the involved redox couples shift as a function of pH; consequently, a reaction that would be non-spontaneous if both half-reactions occurred at the same pH, can become spontaneous (ΔG < 0) when the two processes take place under distinct pH conditions. First, two model materials, Mackinawite [FeSm] and Violarite [(Fe,Ni)3S4] have been prepared by homogeneous precipitation method, obtaining the materials in powder form. The samples have been widely characterized in terms of crystalline structure, particle dimensions, porosity, and surface oxidation state. A series of “mineral-based electrode” have been prepared, by depositing the powder on carbon substrate, and tested for CO2 reduct…
author: PANICO, FRANCESCO
language: eng
keywords: electrochemistry, origin of life, fuel cell, CO2 reduction, green chemistry, emergence of life, hydrothermal vent, Settore CHEM-02/A - Chimica fisica
date published: 2026-06-12
date modified: 2026-07-27T20:18:51Z
provider: Università degli Studi di Milano
publisher: Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations
type: WebPage
source organization: Università degli Studi di Milano

PropertyValue
property ID: Handle
value: https://hdl.handle.net/2434/1252495