Tuning the Surface Chemistry of Structured Materials for Enhanced Performance

调整结构材料的表面化学以增强性能

• 批准号: RGPIN-2020-06522
• 负责人: Gates, Byron
• 金额: $ 3.5万
• 依托单位: Simon Fraser University
• 依托单位国家: 加拿大
• 项目类别: Discovery Grants Program - Individual
• 财政年份: 2021
• 资助国家: 加拿大
• 起止时间: 2021-01-01 至 2022-12-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nserc-crsng.gc.ca/ase-oro/Details-Detailles_eng.asp?id=741292
• 关键词: Tuning; Surface; Chemistry; Structured; Materials

Surface treatments are widely used to tune the properties of materials. Examples you may encounter on a daily basis include non-stick coatings on frying pans, scratch resistant coatings on sun glasses, and water repellent coatings on windows. Surface modifications are, however, integral to many more sectors of our economy. Nanotechnology, which lies at the heart of modern computer circuitry and which is poised to deliver an even larger array of products, has been touted for potential economic gains across multiple sectors of the economy. Harnessing the properties of many of these products relies on surface treatments such as molecular coatings, but quality of these coatings is highly variable. Variations persist between suppliers, as well as between different batches of material. The proposed research program will equip materials producers with the means to assess and control the quality of molecular coatings on their nanomaterials. This research will also provide the academic and industrial communities with methods that will increase the diversity of chemical species available to modify their nanomaterials. It will also enable the use of more widely available and easier to handle reagents. Equipped with these new methods and materials, the proposed program will apply this knowledge to improve the energy efficiency and durability of nanomaterials used for electrochemically driven catalytic processes in clean energy applications. The electrolysis of water is being sought to convert intermittent sources of energy into chemical energy. Hydrogen gas produced from water electrolysis can be stored, transported, and used on demand to operate low temperature fuel cells. The other product of this reaction is oxygen gas. Its production is less energy efficient than hydrogen gas production, which decreases the overall efficiency of water electrolysis. Also of concern for a wider scale implementation of water electrolysis is degradation of the electrocatalysts. The proposed program will develop a series of surface treatments to improve the energy efficiency of water electrolysis and the durability of its nano-catalysts. Further studies will extend this knowledge to improving water electrolysis, as well as other gas evolution reactions. This knowledge of surface treatments that enhance these electrochemically driven catalytic processes will be extended to electrocatalysts in low temperature fuel cells. The nano-catalysts and supporting particles within the catalyst layers of water electrolyzers and low temperature fuel cells will also be tuned for improved management of gas and water transport efficiencies. This research will improve the lifetime and energy efficiency of these systems. Canada is well positioned to take advantage of the fundamental knowledge created from the proposed program. Many Canadian companies are producing nanomaterials, and many more are utilizing these materials in applications that include water electrolyzers and fuel cells.

表面处理广泛用于调节材料的性能。您每天可能会遇到的例子包括煎锅上的不粘涂层，太阳镜上的防刮涂层和窗户上的防水涂层。然而，表面改性是我们经济中许多部门不可或缺的。纳米技术是现代计算机电路的核心，有望提供更大范围的产品，已被吹捧为多个经济部门的潜在经济收益。利用这些产品的许多特性依赖于表面处理，如分子涂层，但这些涂层的质量是高度可变的。供应商之间以及不同批次的材料之间存在差异。拟议的研究计划将为材料生产商提供评估和控制纳米材料上分子涂层质量的方法。这项研究还将为学术界和工业界提供方法，增加可用于修改其纳米材料的化学物种的多样性。它还将使人们能够使用更容易获得和更容易处理的试剂。配备了这些新方法和材料，拟议的计划将应用这些知识来提高用于清洁能源应用中电化学驱动催化过程的纳米材料的能源效率和耐用性。人们正在寻求水的电解，以将间歇性能源转化为化学能。水电解产生的氢气可以储存、运输，并根据需要用于操作低温燃料电池。这个反应的另一个产物是氧气。其生产的能源效率低于氢气生产，这降低了水电解的整体效率。对于水电解的更大规模实施，还关注的是电催化剂的降解。该计划将开发一系列表面处理，以提高水电解的能源效率及其纳米催化剂的耐久性。进一步的研究将扩展这一知识，以改善水电解，以及其他气体析出反应。这种增强这些电化学驱动的催化过程的表面处理的知识将扩展到低温燃料电池中的电催化剂。水电解槽和低温燃料电池的催化剂层内的纳米催化剂和支撑颗粒也将被调整，以改善气体和水传输效率的管理。这项研究将提高这些系统的寿命和能源效率。加拿大完全有能力利用拟议方案所产生的基本知识。许多加拿大公司正在生产纳米材料，更多的公司正在将这些材料应用于水电解槽和燃料电池等领域。