About

Alexis T. Bell is a Professor of the Graduate School in the Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering at the University of California, Berkeley. He holds the titles of Chancellor's Professor, Emeritus; The Dow Professor of Sustainable Chemistry, Emeritus; and Faculty Senior Scientist at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. His educational background includes a B.S. and Sc.D. from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, obtained in 1964 and 1967 respectively. Professor Bell has received numerous awards, including the Curtis W. McGraw Award for Research from the American Association of Engineering Education, the Paul H. Emmett Award in Fundamental Catalysis from the Catalysis Society, and the William H. Walker Award of the AIChE. He is a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and has been elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. His research focuses on understanding the fundamental relationships between the structure and composition of heterogeneous catalysts and their performance. He studies reaction mechanisms to identify factors limiting catalyst activity and selectivity, investigating systems such as the synthesis of oxygenated compounds from COx, the conversion of alkanes to olefins and oxygenated products under oxidizing conditions, and the reduction of nitric oxide. His approach combines experimental techniques—including spectroscopic methods like IR, Raman, NMR, UV-Visible, and EXAFS—with theoretical methods such as quantum chemical calculations. This integrated approach aims to deepen the understanding of catalytic processes by elucidating reaction pathways and catalyst structures, ultimately advancing the development of more effective catalytic systems.

Research topics

• Chemistry
• Computer Science
• Organic chemistry
• Materials science
• Physical chemistry
• Inorganic chemistry
• Nanotechnology
• Computational chemistry
• Programming language
• Computer graphics (images)
• Thermodynamics
• Metallurgy
• Theoretical computer science
• Environmental economics
• Photochemistry
• Engineering
• Polymer chemistry
• Business
• Composite material
• Process engineering
• Chemical engineering
• Systems engineering
• Computational science
• Environmental science

Selected publications

• Hydrogen Electrocatalysis on Perfluorosulfonic-Acid-Coated Pt

  ACS Energy Letters · 2026-03-19

  articleSenior authorCorresponding

  Membrane-electrode assemblies utilize ionomer-coated electrocatalysts to achieve facile ion transport. Consequently, isolation of intrinsic catalyst kinetics from measured polarization curves is challenging, as the properties of the catalyst and ionomer both affect the measurements. Here, we employ a Pt microelectrode coated by a thin perfluorosulfonic acid (PFSA) layer to measure polarization curves for the hydrogen oxidation reaction/hydrogen evolution reaction (HER/HOR). Intrinsic electrode kinetics are isolated by theoretical analysis of the local catalyst microenvironment, accounting for mass transport and thermodynamics. The observed enhancements in HER and HOR rates with increasing relative humidity (RH) at the working electrode are attributable to two competing factors: the decrease in activity of H+ in the ionomer and the dominant decrease in the water reorganization energy in the Marcus–Hush–Chidsey representation of HER/HOR kinetics. The increase in intrinsic rate with increasing RH is attributed to increased H+ transfer dynamics resulting from reduced confinement of water within the subnanometer water layer between the catalyst and ionomer as RH increases.

  PublisherDOI

• Competitive Adsorption Stabilizes Metallic Copper for Anodic H2 Evolution from α-H Aliphatic Aldehydes

  Research Square · 2026-04-01

  preprintOpen accessSenior author
  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Catalysis over Isolated and Nested Lewis Acid Centers and Noble Metal Centers Anchored by Nested Lewis Acid Centers in Zeolites

  Accounts of Chemical Research · 2026-03-25

  articleSenior authorCorresponding

  ConspectusHighly dispersed transition-metal Lewis acid centers (e.g., Zn, Co, Y, La, Fe, Sn, Hf, and Zr) and Lewis acid-anchored noble metal centers (e.g., Pt–Zn, Pt–Sn, Pt–Fe, Rh–Zn, and Rh–Co) supported on siliceous zeolites are promising catalysts for a number of industrially important reactions, such as alcohol dehydrogenation, aldol condensation, alkane dehydrogenation, and olefin hydroformylation. In this Account, we describe the preparation and characterization of Lewis acid centers grafted onto hydrogen (H)-bonded silanol groups present in zeolites as well as Lewis acid-anchored noble metal centers and discuss the mechanism and kinetics for different reactions occurring over each type of center. We show that isolated and nested Lewis acid centers can be created by the reaction of hydrated cationic species with H-bonded silanol groups on dealuminated beta (DeAlBEA) or Silicalite-1 zeolite. We then demonstrate that isolated and nested Lewis acid centers are effective catalysts for light alkane dehydrogenation. Nested Lewis acid centers can also serve as efficient anchoring sites for dispersing noble metals such as Pt and Rh to generate bimetallic centers that exhibit superior catalytic performance relative to monometallic Pt and Rh for reactions such as alkane dehydrogenation and olefin hydroformylation. Finally, we summarize our recent investigations of isolated and nested Lewis acid centers and the Pt- and Rh-based bimetallic centers as catalysts for ethanol conversion to 1,3-butadiene (ETB), acetone conversion to isobutene (ATI), propane dehydrogenation to propene (PDH), n-butane dehydrogenation to butene and 1,3-butadiene (BDH), and ethene hydroformylation to propanal. We show that the activity of Lewis acid centers for these reactions is affected by their local coordination environments. In particular, we highlight the significance of H-bonding between hydroxyl groups connected to Lewis acid centers in an open configuration (M–OH) and silanol groups on zeolite supports to generate (≡SiO)xMn+–OH···(O(H)–Si≡)y structures, which exhibit aldol condensation activities that are higher than that of (≡SiO)xMn+–OH sites. These studies demonstrate that siliceous zeolites rich in H-bonded silanol groups can be utilized to create highly dispersed Lewis acid centers and can be further employed as an anchoring platform for noble metal atoms to construct atomically dispersed bimetallic centers. Both the chemical structure and the local coordination environment of these centers significantly influence their catalytic performance.

  PublisherDOI

• Coupled Microenvironments for Artificial Photosynthesis of a C ₆ Oxygenated Product from CO ₂

  ACS Energy Letters · 2026-01-12

  articleSenior authorCorresponding

  Research on solar fuels generation has aspired to mimic photosynthesis. Powered by sunlight, photosynthesis converts CO2 and water into C3 intermediates en route to C6 oxygenates (sugars). This study reports an analogous artificial photosynthesis process, inspired by the biological principle of an assembly of coupled microenvironments to achieve multistep, selective chemical conversions to a desired C6 product. Through four codesigned microenvironments working in concert, powered by simulated sunlight, this work demonstrates the conversion of CO2 and water to 2-methyl-2-pentenal, a C6 oxygenate. Specifically, a photovoltaic-driven electrolyzer with a Ag–Cu cathode converts CO2 and water to H2, CO, and C2H4. The products are fed into a photothermocatalytic reactor containing a dual-catalyst bed of Rh-PPh3/SBA-15 and TiO2, which promotes ethylene hydroformylation to propanal, and subsequent propanal aldol condensation to 2-methyl-2-pentenal, a product convertible to hexane, a liquid fuel. This study presents an outline for codesigning assemblies of microenvironments that enable the conversion of CO2 to C6 products.

  PublisherDOI

• Effects of Cofeeding Hydrogen on Propane Dehydrogenation Catalyzed by Isolated Iron Sites Incorporated into Dealuminated BEA

  Journal of the American Chemical Society · 2025-01-02 · 28 citations

  articleSenior authorCorresponding

  Iron sites dispersed on nonacidic siliceous supports have been reported to be catalytically active for propane dehydrogenation (PDH), yet the precise relationship between site structure and catalytic activity remains elusive. This study provides a comprehensive understanding of the catalytic performance of iron supported on dealuminated BEA (DeAlBEA) zeolites for PDH. Using XAS, UV–vis, and IR spectroscopy of adsorbed pyridine and deuterated acetonitrile, it was found that, at an Fe/Al0 of 0.04, isolated Fe sites form. These isolated sites exhibit a forward rate of PDH of 213 mol propene/mol Fe·h at 823 K and a feed containing 15 kPa propane. When 15 kPa of H2 is added to the feed, the forward rate of PDH rises to 391 mol of propene/mol of Fe·h. In both cases, the propene selectivity is over 99%. IR spectroscopy of d3-acetonitrile suggests that the open Lewis acid site ((−Si–O−)2Fe3+–OH) serves as the active site responsible for PDH, while Brønsted acid sites (≡Fe3+–O(H)–Si≡) contribute to propane cracking with increasing Fe/Al0 ratios. Kinetic analysis of the effects of H2 addition to the propane feed on PDH kinetics shows that H2 enhances the activity of 0.04FeDeAlBEA primarily by enhancing the strength of the propane adsorption.

  PublisherDOI

• Unraveling the Unique Behavior of Atomically Dispersed Pt on Zeolite Fe-DeAlBEA for Catalyzing Propane Dehydrogenation with Cofed Hydrogen

  Journal of the American Chemical Society · 2025-04-11 · 19 citations

  articleOpen accessSenior authorCorresponding

  Propene, used on a large scale to manufacture polypropylene and several commodity chemicals, is increasingly produced by catalytic propane dehydrogenation (PDH). Atomically dispersed Pt has emerged as a promising candidate catalyst for PDH; however, stabilizing atomically dispersed Pt at high temperatures is challenging. Here, we demonstrate the use of dealuminated zeolite beta with a high Fe content as a host for stabilizing isolated Pt, which is anchored strongly to the zeolite support by Pt–Fe bonds. The isolated Pt–Fe sites exhibit promising PDH performance, including a high apparent forward rate coefficient for propene formation (404.8–26.4 mol propene/mol Pt·bar·s) and a high selectivity (≥96%) at 823 K in the presence of H2. Kinetics data characterizing the rate of PDH with a range of Pt loadings show that atomically dispersed Pt catalyzes propene formation at rates independent of H2 partial pressure, whereas metallic Pt clusters, formed at high Pt loadings, catalyze the reaction with a slightly negative dependence on H2 partial pressure. The shift in Pt speciation with Pt loading, confirmed by infrared spectroscopy of adsorbed CO, X-ray absorption spectroscopy, and high-angle angular dark field scanning transmission electron microscopy, suggests that the observed change in kinetics with Pt dispersion is a consequence of a change in the reaction mechanism.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Ethene Hydroformylation Catalyzed by Rhodium Stabilized by Cu-Containing Dealuminated Beta Zeolite

  ACS Catalysis · 2025-07-17 · 2 citations

  articleSenior author
  PublisherDOI

• Author Correction: The role of manganese in CoMnOx catalysts for selective long-chain hydrocarbon production via Fischer-Tropsch synthesis

  Nature Communications · 2025-01-20

  erratumOpen access

  Correction to: Nature Communicationshttps://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-024-54578-3, published online 27 November 2024 The original version of this Article omitted a line in the Acknowledgements section: Work at the Molecular Foundry was supported by the Office of Science, Office of Basic Energy Sciences, of the U.S. Department of Energy under Contract No. DE-AC02-05CH11231. This has been now added into the last line of the acknowledgements section in both the PDF and HTML versions of the Article.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• First Record of the Black-Headed Gonolek Laniarius erythrogaster East of the Eastern Rift Valley

  Journal of East African Natural History · 2025-06-26

  article
  PublisherDOI

• Dimethoxymethane carbonylation and disproportionation over extra-large pore zeolite ZEO-1: Reaction network and mechanism

  CHINESE JOURNAL OF CATALYSIS (CHINESE VERSION) · 2025-01-01 · 8 citations

  articleOpen access
  PublisherOA PDFDOI

Frequent coauthors

• Martin Head‐Gordon

  Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory

  283 shared

• Ezra L. Clark

  Technical University of Denmark

  188 shared

• Adam Z. Weber

  Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory

  180 shared

• Justin C. Bui

  Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory

  142 shared

• Enrique Iglesia

  University of California, Berkeley

  115 shared

• Frerich J. Keil

  112 shared

• T. Don Tilley

  University of California, Berkeley

  109 shared

• Niels Hansen

  University of Stuttgart

  93 shared

Education

• ScD, Department of Chemical Engineering

  Massachusetts Institute of Technology

  1967

Awards & honors

• Curtis W. McGraw Award for Research, American Association of…
• The Professional Progress and R. H. Wilhelm Awards, the Amer…
• Paul H. Emmett Award in Fundamental Catalysis, Catalysis Soc…
• National Academy of Engineering (1987)
• Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Sc…