Modern: Electrochemistry

She tapped a command on her tablet. A surge of electrons, harvested from a wind farm three hundred miles offshore, tore through the saltwater inside the tank. In the old days, this would have just made bubbles. But Elena’s electrodes were coated with a "smart" catalyst—a molecular lattice that acted like a microscopic sorting machine.

Elena walked to the window. Outside, the city lights flickered, powered by the very chemical bonds she was weaving in the dark. The age of fire was ending; the age of the electron had finally arrived. modern electrochemistry

"Look at the readout," her assistant, Marcus, said, his voice hushed. "It’s not just ethanol anymore." She tapped a command on her tablet