Title: Design principles for catalysts, transport processes, and the reaction microenvironment for improved electrolyzers and related technologies
Date and Time: Sep 27, 2024 at 1:00pm
Location: CHBE 102
Refreshments will be served at 12:50pm
Abstract
Electrified processes have rapidly gained attention in the energy sector as a means to utilize low-cost renewable electricity (e.g. wind and solar) for the sustainable production of fuels and chemicals. This includes water electrolysis for H2 production, CO2 electrolyzers for the production of carbon-based fuels and chemicals, and the electrochemical conversion of nitrate and N2 to ammonia. Technologies that make use of those energy carriers through direct electrochemical conversion are also of interest, e.g. fuel cells and flow batteries. Innovation is needed in these technologies in order to reach cost-targets that are competitive with conventional chemical processes. Key to such innovation is establishing a deeper understanding of catalysts, transport processes, and the reaction environment, and then further utilizing that knowledge to design and develop improved systems. This will be the theme of the presentation, aiming to build a fundamental understanding and set of design principles in electrochemical technologies for the sustainable production and use of fuels and chemicals.
Biography
Thomas Francisco Jaramillo is a Professor of Chemical Engineering and of Energy Science Engineering at Stanford University, along with a faculty appointment in Photon Science at SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory. He serves as Director of the SUNCAT Center for Interface Science and Catalysis, a joint partnership between Stanford and SLAC. Prof. Jaramillo’s research efforts are aimed at developing catalyst materials and new processes to improve sustainability in the energy and chemical sectors. A key emphasis is engineering catalyst materials at the nano- and atomic-scale to induce desired properties, and then on designing and developing new technologies that employ them. Examples include solar- and wind-powered processes to convert water, N2, and CO2 into valuable molecular products such as hydrogen (H2), ammonia-based fertilizers, and carbon-based products (e.g. fuels, plastics) for use in transportation, agriculture, energy storage, and in the chemical industry, among others. The overarching theme is the development of cost-effective, clean energy technologies that can benefit society and provide for economic growth in a sustainable manner.
Prof. Jaramillo has authored over 200 publications in the peer-reviewed literature in these areas, and has earned a number of honors and awards for his efforts. Honors include the Paul H. Emmett Award in Fundamental Catalysis (2021) from the North American Catalysis Society, the Resonate Award (2014) from the Resnick Institute, the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists & Engineers (PECASE, 2011), the U.S. Dept. of Energy Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Program Research & Development Award (2011), the National Science Foundation (NSF) CAREER Award (2011), and the Mohr-Davidow Ventures (MDV) Innovator Award (2009). Prof. Jaramillo is on the annual list of Highly Cited Researchers by Clarivate Analytics, ranking in the top 1% by citations (2018-present).
Professor Jaramillo is from Carolina, Puerto Rico, earning a BS in chemical engineering at Stanford University and MS and PhD degrees in chemical engineering at the University of California, Santa Barbara. He then pursued post-doctoral research as the Hans Christian Ørsted Postdoctoral Fellow at the Technical University of Denmark, Department of Physics, prior to joining the Stanford faculty.
This seminar is hosted in collaboration with
