The demand for new materials has increased exponentially since companies and governments depend on them in their pursuit to solve some of the most pressing world’s problems, like climate change and the energy transition. The discovery and development of novel catalyst materials in the field of energy are most essential since they accelerate the transition to a low-carbon future. Our ability to supply these demands depends on how fast researchers can develop new nanostructured materials.   

History has proven that material development takes 15-25 years from initial concept to market introduction. In view of the current climate crisis this is time we don’t have.

Change is needed!  

 In order to speed up the time necessary for new materials development, while also reducing the cost associated to it, we must drive a shift in the way the community science conducts research and development presently.  This requires a change in the way we do collaboration. Although collaboration is extensive and productive it is usually restricted in teams of researchers with similar expertise in theory, experiment, or simulation. 

If we could move our work towards a more seamless integration of theory, materials characterization, synthesis, processing and computational modelling we could become even more productive.  

Breakthroughs in fundamental scientific knowledge and tools must be integrated further into engineering practice and application. This requires a multidisciplinary effort that’s needed to accelerate progress in materials development. As a result of this the community will be informed more on the work of others, creating a better communication across disciplines, avoiding missteps and delays and creating a more optimized process of discovery and implementation.  

For this to happen we must engage the entire materials community, from discovery through deployment, across engineering and scientific disciplines, academic departments but also industries that work in the field of materials.