Distinguished iNANO Lecture: Nanomaterials for Energy Conversion and Storage: Challenges and Opportunities

Professor G.Q. Max Lu, Provost and Senior Vice-President,  The University of Queensland, Brisbane Queensland, Australia

Nanomaterials for Energy Conversion and Storage: Challenges and Opportunities

According to the REN21 (Renewables Global Status Report 2014), renewable energy provided an estimated more than 19% of global energy consumption in 2013. The total new investment in renewable energy reached $214 billion in 2014. The top countries for investment were China, Germany, and United States. In addressing the challenging issues of energy security and climate change, innovative materials are essential enablers.  New materials underpin innovations for renewable energy, clean use of fossil energy, and greenhouse gas mitigation technologies.  

Energy conversion devices such as fuel cells and solar cells, and energy storage systems such as Li-ion, Li-S batteries and supercapacitors will underpin the development and utilisation of renewable energy for sustainable transport and energy supply.  Conversion efficiency, enhancement of energy storage capacity and power density are the key technological challenges that can be largely addressed through innovations in new electrodes and catalysts involved in such systems.

In this regard, many efforts in recent years have focused on nanomaterials, particularly nanostructured oxides and carbons.  Oxides such as TiO2 and ZnO are readily available and versatile catalyst and electrode materials for photocatalysis and solar energy utilisation. Nanocarbons such as carbon nanotubes, porous carbons and graphene are promising materials to improve the performances of these devices and systems.

This talk will review these advances particularly from the materials synthesis and surface chemistry perspectives.  Examples of nanomaterials we have developed will be used to illustrate the importance of new synthesis method, surface functionalization and hybridization in enhancing energy conversion efficiency or storage capacity and durability.

Biography of Max Lu

Professor Max Lu is currently Provost and Senior Vice President of the University of Queensland. He was the Foundation Director of the ARC Centre of Excellence for Functional Nanomaterials from 2003 to 2009.  Professor Lu’s research expertise is in the areas of materials chemistry and nanotechnology. He is known for his work on nanoparticles and nanoporous materials for clean energy and environmental technologies. With over 500 journal publications in high impact journals including Nature, J.Am. Chem. Soc., Angew. Chem., Adv. Materials, he is also co-inventor of 20 international patents. Professor Lu is Thomson Reuters Highly Cited Author in both Materials Science and Chemistry with over 32000 citations (h-index of 89). He has received numerous prestigious awards nationally and internationally including the China International Science and Technology Cooperation Award, Orica Award, RK Murphy Medal, Le Fevre Prize, ExxonMobil Award, Chemeca Medal (2011), Top 100 Most Influential Engineers in Australia (many times). He is an elected Fellow of the Australian Academy of Science, and Academy of Technological Science and Engineering. He is editor and editorial board member of 12 major international journals including Colloid and Interface Science and Advanced Energy Materials. 

Host: Professor Flemming Besenbacher, iNANO & Chairman of the Board of Directors at Carlsberg A/S and at the Carlsberg Foundation