The Green Scene webinar series took a hiatus this year with the closing lecture by Prof Sir Richard Friend in September 2020. In the new year, we welcome an Encore episode with a special guest lecturer, Prof Harry Hoster of Lancaster University, delivering a distinguished talk on Energy Research from Atoms to Applications.
Please feel free to join this public webinar via Zoom on 7 Jan 2021 at 4pm SG time.
Abstract:
The elementary processes at atomic scale provide the fundament of clean-energy technologies such as catalysis, batteries or fuel cells. I will start with some examples of my research into the atomic scale design of bimetallic surfaces, including their thermodynamic and electrochemical properties. The atomistic thermodynamic approaches used there can be transferred towards battery-related research questions, including non-destructive battery diagnosis via voltage and entropy profiles. With the rising share of electric vehicles and the increasing demand for grid-scale electricity storage, battery diagnostics becomes an important business sector of its own. At the example of our spin-out Altelium Ltd., I will highlight how electrochemistry in combination with probabilistic data-driven methods can even create new products for the financial services industry, thus diversifying the impact opportunities of fundamental research. The growing quest for decarbonization has triggered a global effort to grow the production of green hydrogen, for applications in fuel, heating, and industry feedstock. At the example of our project ‘Hydrogen to Heysham’, I will highlight some challenges and opportunities around the roll-out of hydrogen in local pilot markets, including seaports.
About the Speaker:
Harry Hoster is Professor of Physical Chemistry and Director of Energy Lancaster at Lancaster University (UK). Energy Lancaster coordinates the interdisciplinary research covering the demand, supply, and storage of energy. This includes engagement with companies and (local) government in the UK, jointly exploring technology transfer and roll-out. Before joining Lancaster in 2015, he was Associate Professor at Technical University of Munich and Scientific Director & Principal Investigator of the electric vehicle research programme TUM CREATE in Singapore. In close collaboration with data scientists and statisticians, his current research group specialises on Lithium-Ion Batteries and how their ageing behaviour can be monitored, modelled, and quantified. He is one of three founding directors of Altelium Ltd., a company that unites expertise in insurance, real-time data, and battery technology. Altelium provides a bridge between technology companies and the London insurance market, thus enabling longer-term and more attractive warranty arrangements.