How can thermoelectric coupling catalysis be applied to facilitate biomass conversion into value-added products and...

Biomass conversion into fuels and chemicals holds great promise for sustainable development, yet its efficient valorization remains hindered by the intrinsic complexity of polymeric structures and oxygen-rich functionalities. While thermocatalysis specializes in depolymerization and electrocatalysis enables precise redox control, both face fundamental limitations when used alone. Thermoelectric catalysis has recently emerged as a transformative strategy to resolve this trade-off by synergistically integrating thermal and electrical energy. More than a simple integration of techniques, this strategy represents a paradigm shift in catalyst design: from creating static, heat-tolerant materials to engineering adaptive, field-responsive systems. In this framework, temperature is reimagined as a precision tool for modulating electronic structure and driving in situ catalyst evolution. This tutorial review systematically builds on this concept, starting from mechanistic fundamentals and a comparison of cascade and coupled architectures to highlight different design logics. We then present a multi-scale electrode design roadmap: from atomic-scale active sites to mesoscale transport control and intrinsically responsive materials, showcasing how these strategies can unlock energy-efficient pathways for the concurrent production of value-added chemicals and hydrogen. The review concludes by outlining critical challenges for industrial relevance, including control of fluid flow and heat/mass transfer in non-Newtonian electrolyte suspensions, the operational stability and durability of thermoelectrocatalytic reactors, and process integration and evaluation.