Materials Modeling helps give theoretical insight into the working of various materials and in turn helps enhance the working of these materials. But are there examples of discovery of new materials which was a direct consequence of modeling of materials? The example(s) may include materials with applications in any field.
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1$\begingroup$ chemeurope.com/en/news/1166439/… $\endgroup$– Camps ♦Commented May 26, 2020 at 14:52
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$\begingroup$ mattermodeling.stackexchange.com/questions/1670/… has relevant answer $\endgroup$– leopold.talirzCommented May 28, 2021 at 15:01
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3 Answers
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A few years ago, I was fascinated by the news of the discovery of a new Carbon allotrope based on first-principle simulations by using USPEX software described here. Or particularly this article:
Zhu Q., Oganov A.R., Salvado M., Pertierra P., Lyakhov A.O. (2011). Denser than diamond:ab initio search for superdense carbon allotropes. Phys. Rev. B83, 193410, download here.
Update:
I promised to elaborate a bit more on my answer here. As I said in my comments after a few years later, this new Carbon allotrope is synthesized in the lab, which is truly fascinating how a theoretically predicted material structure, is synthesized by experimentalists (see here: https://elementy.ru/novosti_nauki/431105 and sorry for the Russian language only).
There are several other examples of discovering new materials for specific applications of batteries or fuel cells are provided here, that shows how quantum mechanical simulations combined with machine-learning methods could be used to tailor materials structure for a new application and developing new materials properties based on that.
answered Apr 29, 2020 at 14:56
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3$\begingroup$ Fascinating! Has it now been realized experimentlly? Has it been used in any practical applications? $\endgroup$ Commented Apr 29, 2020 at 15:08
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3$\begingroup$ @NikeDattani It is synthesized in the lab I believe just a few years later described here: elementy.ru/novosti_nauki/431105 , sorry for Russian language :( I don't know about this particular case but there are several other examples from this group and using USPEX for developing new materials for batteries, fuel cells, etc. $\endgroup$ Commented Apr 29, 2020 at 15:12
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1$\begingroup$ thanks! Maybe you could also add this paper and the other examples into the Answer! $\endgroup$ Commented Apr 29, 2020 at 15:16
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3$\begingroup$ @NikeDattani Sure, I will elaborate a bit more on my answer. $\endgroup$ Commented Apr 29, 2020 at 15:17
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This answer is adopted from the book Materials Modelling Using Density Functional Theory: Properties and Predictions by Feliciano Giustino
Greeley et al. (2006) searched for potential replacements for Pt as catalyst in hydrogen production using DFT calculations. One of the most promising alloy was an hypothetical material BiPt. The material was synthesized later in lab and as predicted from the DFT calculations, the measured catalytic activity of this new compound turned out to be superior to that of pure Pt.
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3$\begingroup$ Wow! That's exactly what the question was looking for! What are these Pt or BiPt catalysts used for in the practical world? $\endgroup$ Commented Apr 29, 2020 at 17:13
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$\begingroup$ For producing hydrogen gas by ‘hydrogen evolution reaction' . In this reaction protons are transferred from an electrolyte solution to a metal electrode which acts as a catalyst. $\endgroup$– ThomasCommented Apr 29, 2020 at 17:31
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$\begingroup$ Wow! I'm learning so much! Maybe you can elaborate your answer a bit by adding some of this. People will be interested in the practical applications for sure! $\endgroup$ Commented Apr 29, 2020 at 17:34
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2$\begingroup$ By the way, I very much enjoyed my interactions with Feliciano Giustino at Oxford, we even went to the same gym! He has been doing martial arts for many years, and has a Black Belt. $\endgroup$ Commented Apr 29, 2020 at 17:36
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I strongly recommend to follow the work of prof. Oganov and the use of the software USPEX.
Take a look at the site: https://uspex-team.org/en
In the above link, there is the information about the USPEX package, what it is capable to do, how it does what it does, etc. Also, there is a list of publications (including two books), all related to Materials Modeling.
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2$\begingroup$ Could you give a little bit of summary of the contents of the link? We generally try to avoid answers that are just a link to an external source. $\endgroup$– Tyberius ♦Commented Apr 29, 2020 at 23:39
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1$\begingroup$ In the link there is the information about the USPEX package, what it is capable to do, how it does what it does, etc. Also, there is a list of publications (including two books), all related to Materials Modeling. $\endgroup$– Camps ♦Commented Apr 30, 2020 at 13:12