Lithium-air battery: a green energy source for the sustainable future. Electrification of vehicles and the implementation of smart electric grids can dramatically reduce greenhouse gas emissions and realise sustainable development. Lithium-air batteries have the highest energy density among all battery systems and are therefore a promising power source for electric vehicles and stationary energy storage.
Hybrid cathode for low temperature solid oxide fuel cells. This project aims to develop molten carbonate-perovskite hybrid cathode materials for low temperature solid oxide fuel cells (LT-SOFCs) possessing both high catalytic activity towards oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) and high tolerance to carbon dioxide poisoning. Carbon dioxide in air can poison nearly all the perovskite cathode materials developed for LT-SOFCs (below 600 degrees C) so far. These materials will not be practically useful ....Hybrid cathode for low temperature solid oxide fuel cells. This project aims to develop molten carbonate-perovskite hybrid cathode materials for low temperature solid oxide fuel cells (LT-SOFCs) possessing both high catalytic activity towards oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) and high tolerance to carbon dioxide poisoning. Carbon dioxide in air can poison nearly all the perovskite cathode materials developed for LT-SOFCs (below 600 degrees C) so far. These materials will not be practically useful until carbon dioxide poisoning can be prevented. This project expects to make these LT-SOFC cathode materials commercially viable, solving a problem for the widespread use of low temperature solid oxide fuel cells.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE240101045
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$448,407.00
Summary
Bioinspired 2D nanocatalysts for inorganic nitrogen cycle. This project aims to develop novel catalysts for high-efficient nitrogen fixation by learning from the natural enzymes, which can convert nitrogen or nitrate into reactive ammonia at very mild conditions. It is expected that the enzyme-mimicking catalysts possessing the nitrogen active sites similar with the natural enzymes will allow the effective fixation of nitrogen from both the atmosphere and the nitrogen excessively fertilized envi ....Bioinspired 2D nanocatalysts for inorganic nitrogen cycle. This project aims to develop novel catalysts for high-efficient nitrogen fixation by learning from the natural enzymes, which can convert nitrogen or nitrate into reactive ammonia at very mild conditions. It is expected that the enzyme-mimicking catalysts possessing the nitrogen active sites similar with the natural enzymes will allow the effective fixation of nitrogen from both the atmosphere and the nitrogen excessively fertilized environment into reusable ammonia. The outcomes of this project will provide a sustainable approach to solve the issues in current unbalanced inorganic nitrogen cycle in the world and contribute to a green artificial nitrogen cycle while with minimized environmental impact.Read moreRead less
Functionalising sustainable natural binders for energy storage devices. This project aims to produce low-cost energy storage devices to meet the energy demands and safety requirements of electric appliances, electric vehicles and smart electricity grids. High-cost and non-regenerable resources and existing energy storage devices’ safety issues have hindered the electrification of portable electronic devices and vehicles and use of intermittent solar and wind energy. This project will use sustain ....Functionalising sustainable natural binders for energy storage devices. This project aims to produce low-cost energy storage devices to meet the energy demands and safety requirements of electric appliances, electric vehicles and smart electricity grids. High-cost and non-regenerable resources and existing energy storage devices’ safety issues have hindered the electrification of portable electronic devices and vehicles and use of intermittent solar and wind energy. This project will use sustainable natural polymers to develop green electrode technologies for manufacturing batteries with greatly reduced production and environmental cost. The in-depth understandings from the combination of experiments and computation simulations will help create strategies to realise low cost, long-life and safe batteries.Read moreRead less
Two-dimensional nanoporous structured high performance gas evolution electrocatalysts. This project aims to develop nano-catalysts with high catalytic activity and rapid gas detachment properties for efficient fuel gas production. Heterogeneous electrocatalytic gas evolution reactions are important for clean energy generation and storage technologies, but high overpotentials caused by slow gaseous products’ detachment from catalyst surface severely hinder their efficiencies. Expected outcomes in ....Two-dimensional nanoporous structured high performance gas evolution electrocatalysts. This project aims to develop nano-catalysts with high catalytic activity and rapid gas detachment properties for efficient fuel gas production. Heterogeneous electrocatalytic gas evolution reactions are important for clean energy generation and storage technologies, but high overpotentials caused by slow gaseous products’ detachment from catalyst surface severely hinder their efficiencies. Expected outcomes include insights into gas bubble formation and evolution during electrocatalysis, effective catalyst structures to mitigate negative effects of gas bubble formation, and improved catalytic efficiency of gas evolution reactions and develop high performance electrocatalysts for fuel gas production.Read moreRead less
In pursuit of high performance lithium-oxygen batteries. This project aims to achieve high-energy lithium-oxygen batteries for electric vehicles. Electrification of road transport will minimise consumption of fossil fuels, reduce carbon dioxide emissions, and increase energy security. Lithium-oxygen batteries have the highest energy density among all rechargeable battery systems, which is more than 10 times the density of current lithium-ion batteries. Through exploration of new catalysts, redox ....In pursuit of high performance lithium-oxygen batteries. This project aims to achieve high-energy lithium-oxygen batteries for electric vehicles. Electrification of road transport will minimise consumption of fossil fuels, reduce carbon dioxide emissions, and increase energy security. Lithium-oxygen batteries have the highest energy density among all rechargeable battery systems, which is more than 10 times the density of current lithium-ion batteries. Through exploration of new catalysts, redox mediators, and porous material architectures, this project intends to significantly improve the performance of lithium-oxygen batteries, including specific capacity, cycle life and round-trip efficiency.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE240100060
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$638,853.00
Summary
High speed multi modal in-situ Transmission Electron Microscopy platform. This project aims to establish an in situ transmission electron microscope that will allow the atomic scale imaging of materials, while simultaneously measuring physical, chemical, electrical and optical properties, using a novel combination of cutting edge in-situ sample holders and an instrument mounted laser system. The instrument will be optimised for imaging of dynamic phenomena and the combination of spatial resoluti ....High speed multi modal in-situ Transmission Electron Microscopy platform. This project aims to establish an in situ transmission electron microscope that will allow the atomic scale imaging of materials, while simultaneously measuring physical, chemical, electrical and optical properties, using a novel combination of cutting edge in-situ sample holders and an instrument mounted laser system. The instrument will be optimised for imaging of dynamic phenomena and the combination of spatial resolution in the picometre scale, with microsecond level temporal resolution will be unique. The instrument will accelerate research into hydrogen production and carbon dioxide transformation, and thus support Australia's move to a more sustainable economy. Read moreRead less
Anion Exchange Membrane Water Electrolysis for Clean Hydrogen Production. Low-cost and robust water electrolysis technology is a cornerstone towards the success of the hydrogen economy. This project aims to develop next generation anion exchange membrane water electrolyser technologies for low-cost and high-efficiency clean hydrogen production and renewable energy storage. Novel non-precious transition metal-based catalysts with high intrinsic activity, large surface area and super-hydrophilic s ....Anion Exchange Membrane Water Electrolysis for Clean Hydrogen Production. Low-cost and robust water electrolysis technology is a cornerstone towards the success of the hydrogen economy. This project aims to develop next generation anion exchange membrane water electrolyser technologies for low-cost and high-efficiency clean hydrogen production and renewable energy storage. Novel non-precious transition metal-based catalysts with high intrinsic activity, large surface area and super-hydrophilic surfaces will be developed, and their mechanism and stability within membrane electrode assemblies understood by using operando spectroscopy, electrochemistry and 3D X-ray imaging characterisations. An efficient anion exchange membrane water electrolyser prototype made entirely of non-precious materials is to be devised. Read moreRead less
Sodium ion interactions with biomass-derived hard carbon electrodes. This project aims to investigate sodium ion behavior when electrochemically interacting with hard carbon electrode materials by using both in-situ and ex-situ techniques in combination with advanced computational methods. This project expects to generate new knowledge and establish structure-property-performance correlations, thus providing guidelines and strategies for synthesising cost-effective electrode materials from bioma ....Sodium ion interactions with biomass-derived hard carbon electrodes. This project aims to investigate sodium ion behavior when electrochemically interacting with hard carbon electrode materials by using both in-situ and ex-situ techniques in combination with advanced computational methods. This project expects to generate new knowledge and establish structure-property-performance correlations, thus providing guidelines and strategies for synthesising cost-effective electrode materials from biomass for developing sustainable sodium-ion batteries. The intended outcome of this project includes knowledge advancement, enhanced capability to build international collaborations, training of early career researchers and students, and positioning Australia on the world map as a world-leading nation in energy storage.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE190101410
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$393,000.00
Summary
Structural and compositional controlled nanocarbon-based electrocatalyst. This project aims to develop highly effective carbon-based electro-catalysts for oxygen reduction by using elaborately designed metal-organic framework precursors. Oxygen reduction is a key cathodic reaction in clean energy technologies such as metal-air batteries and fuel cells. Expected outcomes of this project include carbon-based nanomaterials with optimised topological and compositional features. This project will bro ....Structural and compositional controlled nanocarbon-based electrocatalyst. This project aims to develop highly effective carbon-based electro-catalysts for oxygen reduction by using elaborately designed metal-organic framework precursors. Oxygen reduction is a key cathodic reaction in clean energy technologies such as metal-air batteries and fuel cells. Expected outcomes of this project include carbon-based nanomaterials with optimised topological and compositional features. This project will broaden the knowledge of designed synthesis of carbon-based nanocatalysts for oxygen reduction and provide a conceptual nanofabrication framework for preparing functional nanomaterials.Read moreRead less