Shiwen Wu

1. Developing new Cu-based electrocatalysts for CO2 reduction to C2+ products. During my PhD, I developed a new plasma-assisted bottom-up synthesis method for growing Mo- and W-based oxycarbides, characterized by their distinctive plasma-induced morphology and chemical composition, to enhance electrocatalytic water splitting. Currently, I am conducting several projects focused on the fabrication of single-atom Cu-based catalysts and copper oxide nanosheets for CO2 electroreduction. I believe my experience in tuning the atomic structure and coordination number of transition metal compounds will contribute to future studies in developing innovative Cu-based electrocatalysts for CO2 reduction.

2. Managing and understanding the microenvironment at the catalyst surface during CO2 electroreduction. Throughout my PhD, I extensively studied the thermodynamic properties of water molecules and the effects of liquid-wall interactions on fluid transport, utilizing both experimental and theoretical approaches. Additionally, I participated in the design and fabrication of aqueous battery electrolytes containing cations with varying solvation structures, which can be potentially used to suppress hydrogen evolution and modify local microenvironments during CO2 reduction in future studies.

• Louis Beecherl, Jr. Graduate Fellowship for Excellence in Graduate Research, The University of Texas at Dallas, 2024

1. S. Wu, etc. Plasma-Structured Molybdenum Oxycarbides Enabling Ultrastable Acidic Hydrogen Evolution up to 10 A cm-2. ChemRxiv, 10.26434/chemrxiv-2024-dmpdd (2024).

2. S. Wu, etc. Designing interconnected passages by “legs-to-head” directional U-shape freeze casting to boost solar-driven self-pumping oil spill recovery. J. Mater. Chem. A DOI: 10.1039/D3TA07164B (2024).

3. S. Wu, etc. Simultaneous solar-driven seawater desalination and continuous oil recovery. Nano Energy 107, 108160 (2023).

4. S. Wu, etc. Bio-inspired salt-fouling resistant graphene evaporators for solar desalination of hypersaline brines. Desalination 546, 116197 (2023).

5. S. Wu, etc. Eggshell Biowaste-Derived Flexible and Self-Cleaning Films for Efficient Subambient Daytime Radiative Cooling. ACS Appl. Mater. Interfaces 15, 44820–44826 (2023).

6. S. Wu, etc. Molecular Alignment-Mediated Stick–Slip PoiseuilleFlow of Oil in Graphene Nanochannels. J. Phys. Chem. B 127, 6184–6190 (2023).

7. S. Kim (Co-first author), S. Wu (Co-first author), etc. Design of a High-Performance Titanium Nitride Metastructure-Based Solar Absorber Using Quantum Computing-Assisted Optimization. ACS Appl. Mater. Interfaces 15, 40606–40613 (2023).

8. S. Wu, etc. Enhanced water evaporation under spatially gradient electric Fields: A molecular dynamics study. J. Mol. Liq. 360, 119410 (2022).

9. S. Wu, etc. Graphene petal foams with hierarchical micro- and nano-channels for ultrafast spontaneous and continuous oil recovery. J. Mater. Chem. A 10, 11651–11658 (2022).

10. S. Wu, etc. High-performance polarization-independent black phosphorus refractive index sensors enabled by a single-layer pattern design. Opt. Lett. 47, 517–520 (2022).

11. S. Wu (Co-first author), D. Huang (Co-first author), etc. Molecular understanding of the effect of hydrogen on graphene growth by plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition. Phys. Chem. Chem. Phys. 24, 10297–10304 (2022).

12. R. Jian(Co-first author), S. Wu (Co-first author), etc. Tunable multi-peak perfect absorbers based on borophene for high-performance near-infrared refractive index sensing. Opt. Mater.131, 112751 (2022).

13. D. Huang(Co-first author), S. Wu (Co-first author), etc. Effect of electric field on water free energy in graphene nanochannel. J. Appl. Phys. 132, 015104 (2022).

14. S. Wu, etc. Ultra-broadband high solar absorption in checkerboard-shaped titanium nitride plasmonic metastructures. Opt. Mater. 116, 111117 (2021).

15. S. Wu, etc. Plasmon Hybridization-Induced Ultra-broadband High Absorption from 0.4 to 1.8 Microns in Titanium Nitride Metastructures. Plasmonics 16, 799–809 (2021).

16. S. Wu, etc. Carbon solid lubricants: role of different dimensions. Int. J. Adv. Manuf. Technol. 107, 3875–3895 (2020).

• ACS PRF (DNI60563). Mechanisms of Plasma-Catalytic Petroleum Upgrading.
• NSF (CBET-1937949). Understanding the Synergistic Effect of Graphene Plasmonics and Nanoscale Spatial Confinement on Solar-Driven Water Phase Change.
• NSF (CBET-1949962). Chemically Modified, Plasma-Nanoengineered Graphene Nanopetals for Spontaneous, Self-Powered and Efficient Oil Contamination Remediation.

Photothermal-enhanced Spontaneous and Continuous Oil Recovery. GEM-2023 | Boston, MA | March 06-08, 2023