Invited seminar
Author: Prof. David Tilley
Affiliation: Department of Chemistry, University of Zurich, Switzerland
When: Friday, March 10, 2023 - 12:00 to 13:00
Where: Room number TD2304AA Escola Superior de Tecnologia i Ciències Experimentals
Presented by: Prof. Francisco Fabregat Santiago
Abstract: 

Photocatalytic sheets have disruptive potential in the field of solar hydrogen production from water. Recent demonstrations have shown the feasibility of their safe operation on a large scale. The key challenge is the development of visible light absorbing photocatalytic particles that are efficient and stable for at least one year. In this talk, I will discuss recent efforts in our laboratory towards adapting our thin film semiconductor water splitting materials towards stable, photocatalytic particles. After an introduction to our thin film systems (Sb2Se3 and Cu2O), the methods for the synthesis of the particles and particle sheets will be highlighted, as well as the challenges for the stringent stability requirements (in water, under illumination). Proof-of-principle systems involving hydrogen evolution coupled with the oxidation of various organic molecules (so-called "value added oxidations") will be highlighted. Initial efforts with BiVO4 particles will be discussed, as this is a well-studied material for the oxygen evolution reaction. I will close with an outlook on the interplay between thin film and particle approaches to solar hydrogen generation.

Biography: 
Biography: David Tilley studied Chemistry at the University of Georgia, with a minor in Spanish, and obtained his Ph.D. from the University of California, Berkeley in 2007. Following a two-year postdoc at Princeton University with Prof. Erik Sorensen, he joined the laboratory of Prof. Michael Grätzel at EPFL in Switzerland as an NSF International Postdoctoral Fellow. Following this postdoctoral fellowship, he served as Group Leader for the water splitting subgroup in the Grätzel laboratory from 2011-2014. He was appointed as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Chemistry of the University of Zurich in 2015 and was promoted to Associate Professor in 2020. His research focuses on new materials for photoelectrochemical water splitting, photocatalytic water splitting, novel approaches to anchoring molecular catalysts to electrode surfaces, and organic electrosynthesis.