 A
researcher at The University of Western Ontario hopes that small steps
he takes in his lab will help us address energy needs while helping us
leave an even smaller footprint on the environment.
“Energy shortages and environmental
pollution pose serious long-term challenges to the planet,” says Mechanical
& Materials Engineering professor Xueliang (Andy) Sun, named a Tier
Two Canada Research Chair (CRC) in the Development of Nanomaterials for
Fuel Cell Applications.
The ‘small steps’ he takes are actually
in the field of nanotechnology, which creates useful and functional materials,
devices and systems through control of materials on the nanoscale, or one
billionth of a metre – which is no small feat.
“We’re trying to make nanomaterials
to address clean energy,” says Sun, who will receive $100,000 annually
for the next five years to continue his work.
The CRC program also announced the
renewal of Western’s Victor Han, Tier One CRC in Fetal and Maternal Health
($200,000 annual for seven years) and Yining Huang, Tier Two CRC in Materials
Characterization ($100,000 annually for five years).
For Sun, he hopes to accelerate
the fuel cell commercialization process by combining nanomaterials with
fuel cell electrodes to lower their cost and to increase their stability.
“There is a growing awareness that
nanotechnology will have a profound impact on energy generation, storage
and utilization,” he says. “Fuel cells are energy conversion devices that
are efficient, quiet and environmentally-friendly; however, high cost and
low durability of electrodes still pose significant challenges.”
Sun’s lab is paying particular attention
to the synthesis and characterization of carbon nanotubes and metal oxide
nanowires. Carbon nanotubes are one-atom thick sheets of graphite rolled
into seamless cylinders with a diameter of about one nanometre. They are
100-times harder than steel and four-times better than copper for electrical
conductivity.
While Sun describes nanotubes as
‘the perfect structure,’ difficulty mass-producing them remains their biggest
downside. His lab hopes to address this shortcoming and to continue to
improve fuel cell technology.
As an alternative to oil, protein
exchange membrane fuel cells being developed in Sun’s lab use hydrogen
oxygen, producing a by-product of pure water and, at the same time, electricity.
That’s why, Sun says, it’s good for the environment, and also for energy.
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