Our PhD's
Ongoing PhD's:
Selective recovery of precious metals from e-waste
Because of the growing amount of disposed e-waste worldwide, there is an emerging need for clean small-scale technologies for recycling of this waste. The economic driving force for e-waste recycling is the recovery of precious metals like gold and silver.
Quantitative in-situ structural, morphological and compositional characterization of bimetallic nanoparticles as a route towards innovative electrocatalysts
The goal of this project is to perform an in-situ structural, morphological and compositional characterization of bimetallic electrocatalytic nanoparticles (NPs) both at the nanometer and the atomic scale.
Integrated CO2 capture and electrochemical conversion: development of an electrocatalytic system
Climate change and global warming pose an imminent global threat to our society and are directly
linked to the rising CO2 levels in the earth’s atmosphere. Since the energy sector is an important
contributor, significant impact is to be achieved in the transition from fossil-based towards renewable
energy like solar or wind power.
Electrochemical reduction of CO2 to CO – Towards industrial application
The rise in atmospheric greenhouse gas concentration has been linked to a global warming of 1.0 ± 0.2 °C since pre-industrial times. The need for negative emissions to prevent a global warming superior to 1.5 °C has increased the attractiveness of carbon dioxide (CO2) capture and utilization technologies.
New redox mediators and improved electrocatalytic materials for the functionalization of CH-bonds by electrosynthesis
Carbon-Hydrogen bonds are the most common bonds that occur in organic chemistry, they’re generally very strong, and unreactive. Because of the high dissociation energy associated with C-H bond activation ( the C-H bond dissociation in alkanes is 2.2-2.7 (V vs SHE)), molecules already containing functional groups will have them react at lower potentials, rendering late stage C-H functionalization useless. Chemical C-H activation is difficult to achieve, especially with C(sp3)-H bonds, it is expensive and associated with generation of a lot of waste.
Biorefinery electrochemical processing for the production of value-added products from sugars
A Biorefinery is an ensemble of conversion processes and equipment to produce fuels, power and platform chemicals from biomass. In particular, platform chemicals derived from biomass have a variety of applications, ranging from the production of pharmaceuticals, bio-plastics, bio-detergents, food ingredients and other specialty chemicals.
Development of Cu/M-C electrocatalysts for the electrochemical reduction of CO2 to hydrocarbons and alcohols
The development of energy-efficient catalysts for the electrochemical CO2 reduction reaction (CO2RR) to CO and ethylene has reached several critical milestones recently, making industrial implementation of the technique more relevant than ever before. Within this scope, we investigate an important class of non-noble metals as potential industrial electrocatalysts for the selective conversion of CO2 to ethylene and alcohols, namely carbon-supported copper-based electrodes (Cu/M-C).
Electron tomography combined with state-of-the-art electrochemistry to boost electrocatalytic CO2 reduction
In the future, renewables will gain importance. Combining the use of CO2 as a feedstock along
with the supply of renewable energy can compensate for fluctuations in energy production, while
at the same time reducing CO2 emissions. In this PhD project, CO2 will be converted to CO through
an electrochemical approach.
BECO2Me “Bringing the Electrocatalytic Conversion of CO2 to formic acid towards an industrial feasibility by unraveling the fundamental role of the supporting Material”
Return BECO2Me “Bringing the Electrocatalytic Conversion of CO2 to formic acid towards an industrial feasibility by unraveling the fundamental role of the supporting Material” September 2018 – September 2022 Researcher: Kevin Van Daele Lowering the atmospheric CO2 concentrations and reducing anthropogenic CO2 emissions are two of the greatest scientific challenges faced by our current generation. Nowadays, a lot of pressure…
Feasibility Study Towards An industrial CO2 Electrolyzer Design (STACkED)
Return Feasibility Study Towards An industrial CO2 Electrolyzer Design (STACkED) 01/01/2018 – 31/12/2021 Researcher: Bert De Mot By 2050 80% of Europe’s electricity should be produced through renewables. The vast majority of this (up to 65%) would be provided by solar photovoltaics and on- or offshore wind farms, with a production that is clearly subject to seasonal and hourly weather…
Defended Phd's:
Development of electrocatalysts and membranes for the cogeneration of electricity and valuable chemicals
A lot of economically valuable chemicals are obtained in industry through oxidation and reduction reactions. While many of these processes are highly exothermic, liberating energy as heat, they generally do not reach high energy efficiencies because most of this liberated energy cannot be recovered efficiently. Fuel cells offer the possibility to produce these chemicals through electrochemical reactions while converting the released energy into electricity, thus offering a clear advantage over the conventional production process.
Solvent extraction in membrane microcontactors: modeling, spacer structuring and applications
Microfluidic technology involves the manipulation of fluids (gas or liquid) in channels with
dimensions lower than 1 mm, typically between 10-100 μm. Over the past 25 years, it has
grown into a mature field. Because of the small channel dimensions, chemical process
operations like mixing, reactions, dosing, and analyses have acquired substantial efficiency
gains. However, one aspect remains underdeveloped: general techniques that enable
downstream processing.
Electrosynthesis as an environmentally friendly production method : A screening methodology towards upscaling
Organic electrosynthesis is a field within electrochemistry that concerns the synthesis of organic products using the electron as a redox agent instead of chemical reductants or oxidants. It offers several important advantages to conventional synthetic methods, such as mild process conditions as reactions can be carried out at ambient temperature and pressure, higher selectivity due to precise control of the reaction by control of the electrode potential, ability to produce unstable or hazardous reagents in situ and less generation of pollutants and waste streams
Influence of electrodeposited nanoparticles on the electrochemical halide reduction
Fundamental advances in energy conversion and storage which are full of vigor in meeting outfaces of some environmental phenomena such as waste water pollution and impact of fossil fuels are held by electrosynthesis. In the past decade organic electrosynthesis has become an interesting, versatile and environmental friendly alternative compared to classical organic synthesis.
New routes towards efficient electrocatalyst development
Electrocatalysis is the linchpin of several modern electrochemical applications ranging
from energy storage devices over electroanalytical sensors to organic electrosynthesis.
Over the past decades electrocatalysis has grown to be a full-fledged part of heterogeneous
catalysis, supported by state-of-the-art theoretical insights.
Electrogenerative hydrogenation of nitrobenzene: electrocatalytic study and application in a microfluidic reactor
Oxidation and reduction reactions are widely used in chemical industry for the
production of chemicals. As many of these processes are highly exothermic, a lot of
heat is produced. Because this heat cannot be fully recovered the processes often
have a low energy e_ciency.
Towards a targeted optimization of electrocatalysts by combining electrosynthesis with in-situ electron paramagnetic resonance
In recent years, there has been a growing search for clean, environmental friendly methodologies for organic synthesis. Organic electrochemistry offers an interesting alternative to tackle the issues for organic transformations.