Um Create New Two-Dimensional (2d) Materials For Hydrogen Energy In Collaboration With Universitas Negeri Malang
Universiti Malaya in collaboration with Universitas Negeri Malang, has signed a Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) to create new two-dimensional (2D) materials for hydrogen energy.
The MoA was signed by the Vice-Chancellor UM, Prof. Dato’ Ir. Dr. Mohd Hamdi Abd Shukor, the Dean of the Faculty of Science, Universiti Malaya, Prof. Dr. Zulqarnain Mohamed, the Rector of Universitas Negeri Malang, Prof. Dr. Hariyono, and the Dean of the Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Universitas Negeri Malang, Prof. Dr. Hadi Suwono.
This collaboration includes the sharing of expertise in material science knowledge, human resources, research facilities, and research grants such as matching grants between the universities, international grants, and internal grants for both parties. Universitas Negeri Malang has expertise in advanced materials science for renewable energy, as well as various fabrication and characterization technologies for advanced materials.
“In the current energy crisis owing to the depletion of fossil fuel, harvesting the solar power into chemical energy, particularly hydrogen, is an alternative solution, due to its clean energy resource. Through this collaboration, we will working together to synthesize new 2D materials (such as tungsten carbides, WC) using an in-house hot-wire chemical vapor deposition (HWCVD) system. These new atomically thin WC nanosheets possess large-surface active area, highly metallic, and excellent catalytic properties are expected to show high performance in hydrogen evolution reaction via electrocatalysis. Moreover, the HWCVD technique which is developed from our group, is a very versatile technique to synthesis various new 2D materials including transition metal carbides and nitrides” said Associate Professor Dr. Goh Boon Tong.
The project involves synthesis of tungsten carbides using an in-house HWCVD high-vacuum system at the Low Dimensional Materials Research Center, Department of Physics, Faculty of Science, Universiti Malaya. The produced high-quality WC nanosheets will undergo several advanced characterizations such as micro-Raman scattering spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, field-emission scanning electron microscopy, high-resolution transmission electron microscopy and atomic force microscopy. The obtained data will be analyzed in detailed and correlated with the experimental parameters and the density functional theory simulated results. The results and discussion will be conducted together with the collaborators from Universitas Negeri Malang for the project report and conclusion. The synthesis process will undergo the optimization for the reproducibility test and electrode fabrication after the solid conclusions on the fundamental have been made.
After the optimization, we will fabricate a 2D material electrode following to the optimized parameters and the as-prepared 2D material electrodes (WC and hetero-structured WC/W2C) will be investigated for their hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) performance via electrocatalysis, Dr. Zarina Binti Aspanut, the co-investigator added. Furthermore, the preliminary results show that the WC-electrode having much better performance in water-splitting process under the visible light irradiation as compared to tungsten nanoparticle and graphene-electrodes produced by the similar system (Figure 1). This is mainly attributed to the single-crystal of WC and large-surface active area of this transition metal-based 2D material.
The objectives and potential outcomes to be achieved through this MoA include the report on the optimized conditions of synthesis new 2D WC nanosheets by the in-house HWCVD, presentation of the findings at local and international conferences, publication, and patent filling.
-DG
