Materials for Energy Applications

The transition to a sustainable energy system requires a plethora of new and improved materials. These materials enable novel applications for harvesting energy from renewable sources, transporting energy, storing energy, or converting it into other forms of energy.

Our research program is focused on fundamental principles to develop novel materials for energy harvesting, transport and storage, and conversion. Examples include development of photovoltaic material to convert solar energy to electricity or chemical fuels (Frymier, Khomami, Kilbey, Stein, Kalyanaraman), ion containing polymers such as ionomers, polymer electrolyte membranes, ionic liquids (Sangoro, Zawodzinski, Paddison, Guo), environmentally benign electrolytes (Sangoro, Paddison, Zawodzinski), electrocatalysts (Zawodzinski, Laursen, Khomami), and composite electrodes (Zawodzinski).