Electrocatalysis for new sustainable and 'green' technologies

当今世界的一个主要问题是严重依赖化石燃料和非环境友好型技术。这些问题的长期解决方案将需要使用可持续的“绿色”能源资源和技术。氢已被确定为最有前途和最清洁的流体能源载体，而基于电化学的技术也因其“绿色”性质而引起了极大的关注。拟议的研究计划概述了开发新型纳米结构电催化材料的新战略，用于在可持续能源驱动的氢气发生器中生产氢气，以及可持续的基于电化学的过程，目的是在研究中使用新的方法、途径、材料和技术。通过理论考虑和组合电化学，以及使用裁剪电极表面的新方法，许多活性和功能化材料将被确定并开发为新的电催化剂。使用最先进的实验技术，将确定新型电催化剂的物理化学性质，反应机理/动力学和所产生的电催化性质之间的基本关系。反过来，这将使研究人员能够基于电子/原子/纳米表面水平的现象，而不是基于经验方法，设计出更活跃、更有效、更便宜和更耐用的催化剂。拟议的研究将有助于全球努力减少我们对化石燃料和非环境友好型技术的依赖。它将给学生一个在跨学科研究领域接受培训的机会。这里提出的研究计划、方法和途径也将确保培养的学生的质量反映加拿大作为世界科学和技术领导者之一的地位。

A major problem of today's world is its heavy dependency on fossil fuels and non-environmentally-friendly technologies. The long-term solution of these problems will require the use of sustainable and 'green' energy resources and technologies. Hydrogen has been identified as the most promising and cleanest fluid energy carrier, while electrochemistry-based technologies have also attracted a significant attention due to their 'green' nature.      The proposed research program outlines new strategies for the development of new nano-structured electrocatalytic materials for production of hydrogen in sustainable-energy-powered hydrogen generators, and for sustainable electrochemistry-based processes, with the aim to use new methods, approaches, materials and techniques in research.      By theoretical considerations and combinatorial electrochemistry, and using new approaches in tailoring electrode surfaces, a number of active and functionalized materials will be identified and developed as new electrocatalysts. Using state-of-the-art experimental techniques, fundamental relationships between physico-chemical properties of new electrocatalysts, reaction mechanisms/kinetics and the resulting electrocatalytic properties will be determined. This, in turn, will enable researchers to base the design of more active, efficient, cheaper and durable catalysts on phenomena at the electronic/atomic/nano-surface level, rather than on empirical methods.      The proposed research will contribute to global efforts to decrease our dependence on fossil fuels and non-environmentally-friendly technologies. It will give students an opportunity to be trained in an interdisciplinary area of research. The research program, methods and approaches proposed here will also ensure that the quality of the students trained reflects the position of Canada as one of the world's leaders in science and technology.