Ruthenium-Substituted Polyoxoanion Serves as Redox Shuttle and Intermediate Stabilizer in Selective Electrooxidation of Ethylene to Ethylene Glycol

The high carbon intensity of present-day ethylene glycol (EG) production motivates interest in electrifying ethylene oxidation. Noting poor kinetics in prior reports of the organic electrooxidation of small hydrocarbons, we explored the design of mediators that activate and simultaneously stabilize light alkenes. A ruthenium-substituted polyoxometalate (Ru-POM, {Si[Ru(H