Grant: Discovery Grants Program - Individual

We are facing tremendous energy challenges due to the depletion of fossil fuel reserves. Hydrogen is considered a promising clean and renewable alternative. However, hydrogen, like electricity, is an energy carrier, not an energy source, and must be produced. Electrolysis offers the greatest potential for sustainable hydrogen production, but it is not yet economically feasible due to the high material costs of the catalysts. Storage of hydrogen is also a substantial challenge. None of the hydrogen storage materials currently available meets the targeted capacities set by the US Department of Energy. In addition, the need for improved water treatment technologies becomes more pressing as the population growth places increasing demands on the water resources. This proposed research aims at developing an innovative approach, combination of photocatalytic degradation and electrochemical oxidation, for wastewater remediation and hydrogen production, and designing functional nanomaterials for hydrogen storage. This proposed research program builds upon the work currently being carried out in my research group. Nanomaterials are both scientifically interesting and technologically important. Their unique electronic, optical and catalytic properties provide a great opportunity to develop novel catalysts for Green Chemistry applications. This proposed research program will address the fundamental issues of the relationship between structure and reactivity at nanostructured catalyst-solution interfaces. Specifically we will investigate the effect of size, morphology and composition of nanomaterials on their catalytic activity and hydrogen storage capacity. The findings from this proposed research are expected to bear significant ramifications in science, to help decipher the differences in the surface chemistry of catalysis as bulk and as nanomaterials, and to build up a firm correlation between interfacial structure, composition and reactivity. Our goal is to develop new green technologies to address the pressing environment and energy challenges of both Canada and the world.