Recent developments in tailoring the structural and chemical properties of
colloidal metal nanoparticles (NPs) have led to signifi cant enhancements
in catalyst performance. Controllable colloidal synthesis has also allowed
tailor-made NPs to serve as mechanistic probes for catalytic processes. The
innovative use of colloidal NPs to gain fundamental insights into catalytic
function will be highlighted across a variety of catalytic and electrocatalytic applications. The engineering of future heterogenous catalysts is also
moving beyond size, shape and composition considerations. Advancements
in understanding structure-property relationships have enabled incorporation
of complex features such as tuning surface strain to infl uence the behavior of catalytic NPs. Exploiting plasmonic properties and altering colloidal surface chemistry through functionalization are also emerging
as important areas for rational design of catalytic NPs. This news article
will highlight the key developments and challenges to the future design of
catalytic NPs.