How a Tiny Helper Boosts Big Chemical Reactions

Scientists have found a clever way to make chemical reactions happen faster. They used a tiny helper called imidazole (ImH) to boost the speed of a reaction that breaks down a pollutant called 2, 4-chlorophenol. The reaction was 110 times faster than before! Here's how it works: The ImH sticks to the surface of a copper oxide nanozyme. This creates new active sites called Cu─N sites. These sites are better at doing the job than the old ones. The ImH also helps the copper change back and forth between different states. This makes the reaction go even faster.The scientists also found that these new sites can change and adapt, just like the sites in real enzymes. This is a big deal because it shows that weak interactions can lead to strong catalysis. It's like how a small push can start a big domino effect. This discovery could lead to new ways of designing catalysts. Catalysts are used in many things, like making medicines, cleaning up pollution, and even in batteries. So, this could have big implications for many industries. But, it's important to note that this is just one study. More research is needed to see if this can be used in real-world applications. Also, the scientists used a specific pollutant in this study. It's not clear if this method will work for other pollutants or reactions.