Catalysis Hub GraphQL API Guide

Overview

Catalysis Hub is an open-access database of DFT-calculated reaction energies and activation barriers for heterogeneous catalysis, developed at SUNCAT Center (Stanford/SLAC). It aggregates computational results from published studies, enabling researchers to search, compare, and reuse DFT data for catalyst screening and mechanism validation.

The GraphQL endpoint provides structured access to reactions, publications, and atomic structures. All data is linked to peer-reviewed publications and includes computational details (DFT code, XC functional, surface facet, coverage).

Authentication

No authentication required. Catalysis Hub is a free public service with no API keys.

GraphQL Schema

Endpoint:

https://api.catalysis-hub.org/graphql

All queries use HTTP POST with a JSON

query

edges

node

Root Query Types

reactions

publications

systems

species

Reaction Fields

chemicalComposition

surfaceComposition

facet

reactionEnergy

activationEnergy

dftCode

Quantum-Espresso

VASP-5.4.4

dftFunctional

RPBE

reactants

products

Equation

0.5O2(g) + * -> O*

Publication Fields

title

authors

journal

year

doi

reactions

Core Queries

List Reactions

curl -s -X POST "https://api.catalysis-hub.org/graphql" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" -d '{"query":"{ reactions(first: 3) { edges { node { chemicalComposition reactionEnergy activationEnergy surfaceComposition } } } }"}'

Response (truncated):

{"data":{"reactions":{"edges":[
  {"node":{"chemicalComposition":"Nb9Sn3","reactionEnergy":-9.687,"activationEnergy":null,"surfaceComposition":"Nb3Sn"}},
  {"node":{"chemicalComposition":"Ir3V9","reactionEnergy":-8.395,"activationEnergy":null,"surfaceComposition":"V3Ir"}},
  {"node":{"chemicalComposition":"Ir9Ni3","reactionEnergy":-2.005,"activationEnergy":null,"surfaceComposition":"Ir3Ni"}}
]}}}

Filter by Surface Composition

curl -s -X POST "https://api.catalysis-hub.org/graphql" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" -d '{"query":"{ reactions(first: 2, surfaceComposition: \"Pt\") { edges { node { chemicalComposition surfaceComposition facet reactionEnergy dftCode dftFunctional Equation } } } }"}'

Response (truncated):

{"data":{"reactions":{"edges":[
  {"node":{"chemicalComposition":"Pt28","surfaceComposition":"Pt","facet":"100","reactionEnergy":0.856,"dftCode":"Quantum-Espresso","dftFunctional":"RPBE","Equation":"0.5N2(g) + * -> N*"}},
  {"node":{"chemicalComposition":"Pt28","surfaceComposition":"Pt","facet":"100","reactionEnergy":-0.984,"dftCode":"Quantum-Espresso","dftFunctional":"RPBE","Equation":"0.5O2(g) + * -> O*"}}
]}}}

Search by Chemical Composition (partial match with

~

prefix)

curl -s -X POST "https://api.catalysis-hub.org/graphql" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" -d '{"query":"{ reactions(first: 3, chemicalComposition: \"~CO\") { edges { node { chemicalComposition reactionEnergy dftCode } } } }"}'

Response (truncated):

{"data":{"reactions":{"edges":[
  {"node":{"chemicalComposition":"Co9Cr2FeMnNiO20","reactionEnergy":1.910,"dftCode":"VASP-5.4.4"}},
  {"node":{"chemicalComposition":"Co9Cr2FeMnNiO20","reactionEnergy":0.648,"dftCode":"VASP-5.4.4"}},
  {"node":{"chemicalComposition":"Co10CrFeMnNiO20","reactionEnergy":3.167,"dftCode":"VASP-5.4.4"}}
]}}}

Query Publications

curl -s -X POST "https://api.catalysis-hub.org/graphql" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" -d '{"query":"{ publications(first: 2, year: 2019) { edges { node { title authors journal year doi } } } }"}'

Response (truncated):

{"data":{"publications":{"edges":[
  {"node":{"title":"High-Throughput Calculations of Catalytic Properties of Bimetallic Alloy Surfaces","authors":"[\"Mamun, Osman\",\"Winther, Kirsten T.\",\"Boes, Jacob R.\",\"Bligaard, Thomas\"]","journal":"Scientific Data","year":2019,"doi":"10.1038/s41597-019-0080-z"}},
  {"node":{"title":"Selective high-temperature CO2 electrolysis enabled by oxidized carbon intermediates","journal":"Nature Energy","year":2019,"doi":"10.1038/s41560-019-0457-4"}}
]}}}

Rate Limits

• No documented rate limits; add 200-500ms delays between requests as courtesy
• Use

  first

  to limit results; pagination via cursor-based

  after

  argument

Academic Use Cases

• Catalyst Screening: Compare adsorption energies across bimetallic alloy surfaces to identify candidates for target reactions (ORR, NRR, HER)
• DFT Validation: Cross-reference your DFT results against published values matched by surface, facet, and functional
• Scaling Relations: Retrieve adsorption energies across surfaces to build Bronsted-Evans-Polanyi (BEP) relations
• Literature Discovery: Find publications by year or linked reactions for citation and methodology verification

Python Example

import requests

ENDPOINT = "https://api.catalysis-hub.org/graphql"

def query_catalysis_hub(query):
    """Execute a GraphQL query against Catalysis Hub."""
    resp = requests.post(ENDPOINT, json={"query": query})
    resp.raise_for_status()
    return resp.json()["data"]

# Screen adsorption energies on Pt surfaces
data = query_catalysis_hub("""
{
  reactions(first: 20, surfaceComposition: "Pt") {
    edges { node { Equation facet reactionEnergy dftFunctional } }
  }
}
""")
for edge in data["reactions"]["edges"]:
    r = edge["node"]
    print(f"{r['Equation']:<30} facet={r['facet']}  E={r['reactionEnergy']:+.3f} eV")

# Publications with linked reactions
pubs = query_catalysis_hub("""
{
  publications(first: 5, year: 2019) {
    edges { node { title doi reactions { surfaceComposition Equation } } }
  }
}
""")
for edge in pubs["publications"]["edges"]:
    pub = edge["node"]
    print(f"{pub['title']} | DOI: {pub['doi']} | {len(pub.get('reactions') or [])} reactions")

References

• Catalysis Hub: https://www.catalysis-hub.org
• GraphQL Endpoint: https://api.catalysis-hub.org/graphql
• Winther et al., "Catalysis-Hub.org: An Open Electronic Structure Database for Surface Reactions," Sci. Data 6, 75 (2019). DOI: 10.1038/s41597-019-0081-y
• SUNCAT Center: https://suncat.stanford.edu