| Abstract Scope |
As the world transitions toward a sustainable energy future, finding clean and efficient
solutions for heavy chemical industries remains a major challenge. We propose a novel, clean, and cost-competitive approach to transform the chemical industry by leveraging the Earth itself as a chemical factory. This method harnesses the natural temperature, pressure, and abundance of iron-rich subsurface rocks as reactive surfaces to convert inputs such as water and nitrogen into hydrogen and ammonia, without direct CO2 emissions. The widespread availability of these rocks makes the approach scalable and regionally adaptable. It enables decentralized production, reduces costs, supports local manufacturing, and minimizes environmental impact. In this work, we integrate computational and experimental methods to uncover the chemical, mechanical, and electronic principles governing these reactions at rock-water-gas interface, aiming to establish a generalizable framework. We also explore how the system can be tuned to selectively produce economically valuable products at scale. This innovation addresses global energy challenges, including energy poverty, and represents a significant step toward a low-carbon economy. |