loading . . . Tethered oxygen turns methane into methanol Nature Catalysis, Published online: 24 July 2025; doi:10.1038/s41929-025-01381-yPrecise control of the oxidant ā that is, preventing overoxidation ā is the missing link in low-temperature methane upgrading. Now, the electro-splitting of carbonate on rutile IrO2 is shown to cover the surface with on-top oxygen adatoms that act as tethered, single-step hydrogen abstractors. One subset can pull the hydrogen from methane to form a methoxy intermediate, while the neighbouring site can protonate this intermediate to form methanol. Together, this mechanism delivers a room-temperature conversion of methane to methanol with >90% selectivity. https://bit.ly/4lEQ4JX
