Atomically thin layers for energy harvesting and storage
Lead Research Organisation:
Northumbria University
Department Name: Fac of Engineering and Environment
Abstract
Over the next 20 years the fuel mix for passenger vehicles will shift dramatically to support
electrification. Significant variation is already evident in different countries' approach to this
challenge including for example battery technologies (in the UK) or hydrogen fuel cells (in
Germany). However, in order to achieve this transition, fabrication and characterisation of new
materials and devices is fundamentally important. The overall aim of this project is to explore the
potential for transparent oxide materials as key enabling materials for energy conversion and
storage. For example, metal oxides can play the role of anode or cathode in electrochemical
energy storage devices or they can act as buffer layers in novel thin film solar cell. They therefore
exert a strong influence on performance and have offer the potential for disruptive innovation
when fabricated at the nanometre scale. In order to achieve the project aim, two main fabrication
approaches will be taken: (1) high precision atomic layer deposition and (2) solution processing.
The former offers the potential to create conformal oxide layers on nanostructures and ultra-high
quality interfaces. The latter can be done under ambient laboratory conditions and is naturally
suited to scaling up. In addition to fabricating and characterising nanostructured oxide layers, the
project offers the opportunity to combine these layers to create novel semiconductor
heterostructures which could for example be used to store hydrogen which in the long term, has
the potential to emerge as a material energy carrier for transportation. There is a further
opportunity within the project to characterise the performance of energy devices fabricated from
these heterostructures during their operation. The project involves industrial input and also offers
the possibility to visit international research laboratories working in this area.
electrification. Significant variation is already evident in different countries' approach to this
challenge including for example battery technologies (in the UK) or hydrogen fuel cells (in
Germany). However, in order to achieve this transition, fabrication and characterisation of new
materials and devices is fundamentally important. The overall aim of this project is to explore the
potential for transparent oxide materials as key enabling materials for energy conversion and
storage. For example, metal oxides can play the role of anode or cathode in electrochemical
energy storage devices or they can act as buffer layers in novel thin film solar cell. They therefore
exert a strong influence on performance and have offer the potential for disruptive innovation
when fabricated at the nanometre scale. In order to achieve the project aim, two main fabrication
approaches will be taken: (1) high precision atomic layer deposition and (2) solution processing.
The former offers the potential to create conformal oxide layers on nanostructures and ultra-high
quality interfaces. The latter can be done under ambient laboratory conditions and is naturally
suited to scaling up. In addition to fabricating and characterising nanostructured oxide layers, the
project offers the opportunity to combine these layers to create novel semiconductor
heterostructures which could for example be used to store hydrogen which in the long term, has
the potential to emerge as a material energy carrier for transportation. There is a further
opportunity within the project to characterise the performance of energy devices fabricated from
these heterostructures during their operation. The project involves industrial input and also offers
the possibility to visit international research laboratories working in this area.
Planned Impact
ReNU's enhanced doctoral training programme delivered by three uniquely co-located major UK universities, Northumbria (UNN), Durham (DU) and Newcastle (NU), addresses clear skills needs in small-to-medium scale renewable energy (RE) and sustainable distributed energy (DE). It was co-designed by a range of companies and is supported by a balanced portfolio of 27 industrial partners (e.g. Airbus, Siemens and Shell) of which 12 are small or medium size enterprises (SMEs) (e.g. Enocell, Equiwatt and Power Roll). A further 9 partners include Government, not-for-profit and key network organisations. Together these provide a powerful, direct and integrated pathway to a range of impacts that span whole energy systems.
Industrial partners will interact with ReNU in three main ways: (1) through the Strategic Advisory Board; (2) by providing external input to individual doctoral candidate's projects; and (3) by setting Industrial Challenge Mini-Projects. These interactions will directly benefit companies by enabling them to focus ReNU's training programme on particular needs, allowing transfer of best practice in training and state-of-the-art techniques, solution approaches to R&D challenges and generation of intellectual property. Access to ReNU for new industrial partners that may wish to benefit from ReNU is enabled by the involvement of key networks and organisations such as the North East Automotive Alliance, the Engineering Employer Federation, and Knowledge Transfer Network (Energy).
In addition to industrial partners, ReNU includes Government organisations and not for-profit-organisations. These partners provide pathways to create impact via policy and public engagement. Similarly, significant academic impact will be achieved through collaborations with project partners in Singapore, Canada and China. This impact will result in research excellence disseminated through prestigious academic journals and international conferences to the benefit of the global community working on advanced energy materials.
Industrial partners will interact with ReNU in three main ways: (1) through the Strategic Advisory Board; (2) by providing external input to individual doctoral candidate's projects; and (3) by setting Industrial Challenge Mini-Projects. These interactions will directly benefit companies by enabling them to focus ReNU's training programme on particular needs, allowing transfer of best practice in training and state-of-the-art techniques, solution approaches to R&D challenges and generation of intellectual property. Access to ReNU for new industrial partners that may wish to benefit from ReNU is enabled by the involvement of key networks and organisations such as the North East Automotive Alliance, the Engineering Employer Federation, and Knowledge Transfer Network (Energy).
In addition to industrial partners, ReNU includes Government organisations and not for-profit-organisations. These partners provide pathways to create impact via policy and public engagement. Similarly, significant academic impact will be achieved through collaborations with project partners in Singapore, Canada and China. This impact will result in research excellence disseminated through prestigious academic journals and international conferences to the benefit of the global community working on advanced energy materials.
Organisations
People |
ORCID iD |
| Neil Beattie (Primary Supervisor) | |
| Ewan Matheson (Student) |
Studentship Projects
| Project Reference | Relationship | Related To | Start | End | Student Name |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| EP/S023836/1 | 01/04/2019 | 30/09/2027 | |||
| 2283343 | Studentship | EP/S023836/1 | 01/10/2019 | 30/09/2023 | Ewan Matheson |
| Description | We have discovered a way to make solution processed gas sensors from materials which are also applicable in solar cells. This is important because the conventional way to make the semiconductor materials involves low throughput, high energy intensity and expensive equipment. The method developed for this project is highly cost effective and scalable making it suitable for industry. The materials used are earth abundant, low cost and non-toxic transparent semiconductors. They are used for hydrogen sensing however the sensitivity is comparatively low compared to other materials of higher cost. The sensitivity however is significantly improved by using a crystal growth method which increases the surface area. |
| Exploitation Route | The manufacturing methods are scalable as they are fast, simple and high throughput, making them ideal for industrial applications. In the large scale deployment of hydrogen for example, the rapid manufacturing of gas sensors allows for hydrogen safety to take front and centre for in-situ sensing. For solar, the transparent materials allows for entirely solution processed solar cells which offers significant higher throughput production compared to conventional methods. |
| Sectors | Chemicals,Electronics,Energy,Manufacturing, including Industrial Biotechology |
| URL | https://ewanmatheson.blog/ |
| Title | LAMMPS |
| Description | Large-scale Atomic/Molecular Massively Parallel Simulator (LAMMPS) is an atomistic simulation program based on modern Fortran for computing molecular dynamics calculations. On this project, this was achieved by recreating the crystal structure of the sample in the computational environment and using a time-iterated loop, simulate the diffusion of particles through the crystal structure. |
| Type Of Technology | Physical Model/Kit |
| Year Produced | 2023 |
| Open Source License? | Yes |
| Impact | These calculations impacted this research by developing a detailed recreation of the laboratory experiments to develop an intuition of the governing mechanisms and physics involved in the system. |
| Title | MCCCS Towhee |
| Description | Towhee is an atomistic modelling program based on modern Fortran to compute Monte Carlo calculations. In this project, this was done by recreating the crystal structure and using a random number generator to position atoms in energetically favourable positions. This was then used to calculate all the possible configurations and correlate this to physical properties which can be compared to real experiments. |
| Type Of Technology | Physical Model/Kit |
| Year Produced | 2023 |
| Impact | This program has impacted the project by recreating laboratory experiments in a computational environment which was used to develop an understanding of the physics and governing mechanisms. |