The First AACG Carbon Symposium

June 26th-27th 2025
Istanbul Technical University, Istanbul

Asian Association of Carbon Groups (AACG) Carbon Symposium will be held on June 26th-27th 2025 at Istanbul Technical University, Istanbul just before The World Conference on Carbon which will be organized in Saint-Malo, France from June 29th to July 4th. In this symposium, academicians, industrial participants and students working on carbon materials will present the latest scientific and technological developments in the field.

Venue

Symposium will take place in the Senate Hall located in Süleyman Demirel Culture Center located at the Istanbul Technical University (İTÜ) Ayazağa (Main) Campus. The address is below in Turkish & English:

İstanbul Teknik Üniversitesi
Süleyman Demirel Kültür Merkezi
Senato Salonu
Ayazağa Yerleşkesi
34469 Maslak-Sarıyer / İSTANBUL

İstanbul Technical University
Süleyman Demirel Cultural Center
Senate Hall
Ayazağa Campus
34469 Maslak-Sarıyer / İSTANBUL

Entrance to the Senate Hall is from the back side of the Süleyman Demirel Culture Center.

You could see the image of the Süleyman Demirel Culture Center in the photo below which is taken from the main entrance just inside the ITU Ayazağa campus (i.e. from the main entrance of the campus which is the closest entrance of campus to the ITU Ayazağa metro station).  In the image, the Süleyman Demirel Culture Center was marked at top and in the bottom the arrow pointing up-left is showing the pink sideways which would direct you towards to the Symposium venue. Upon arrival to the campus, you will also see markings to guide you to the venue.

Transportation Guide for the First AACG Carbon Symposium at Istanbul Technical University (ITU), Istanbul:

Welcome to Istanbul for the upcoming First AACG Carbon Symposium at Istanbul Technical University! This guide provides essential transport information to help attendees arriving from outside Türkiye navigate to the university and around the city.

Arrival in Istanbul

Istanbul is served by two international airports:

Istanbul Airport (IST): Located on the European side, approximately 40 km from ITU’s main campus in Maslak.

Sabiha Gökçen Airport (SAW): Located on the Asian side, approximately 50 km from ITU’s main campus.

Both airports offer a variety of transport options to reach ITU and other parts of the city:

Taxi: Readily available at both airports. A trip to ITU from IST costs approximately 800-1000 TRY, and from SAW, it’s around 1000-1200 TRY (subject to traffic).

Airport Shuttles:

From IST: HAVAIST shuttles operate to major locations, including Maslak.

From SAW: HAVABUS shuttles run to Taksim, where you can transfer to the M2 metro line to reach ITU.

Public Transit:

From IST: Take the M11 metro line to Gayrettepe station, then transfer to the M2 metro line towards Hacıosman. Alight at ITU Ayazağa station.

From SAW: Use buses (E10 or E11) to Kadıköy, then take the Marmaray train to the European side and transfer to the M2 metro line.

Reaching Istanbul Technical University

ITU’s main campus, Ayazağa Campus, where symposium will take place, is located in the Maslak district on the European side of Istanbul.

By Metro: The campus is directly accessible via the M2 metro line. Disembark at the ITU Ayazağa station. Follow the signs to the university’s entrance.

By Taxi: Taxis are a convenient option for direct transport. Ensure the driver uses the meter and confirm the destination as “”.

By Bus: Several city buses stop near the campus. Use Istanbulkart (Istanbul’s transit card) to board. Buses serving the campus include lines 29M and 41AT.

Navigating Istanbul

Istanbulkart: This rechargeable card is essential for using public transport, including buses, metros, trams, and ferries. Purchase it at kiosks or metro stations. Then, you would need to load money to the card using the loading machines available at all metro stations (you could use either cash or credit card to load money on the cards using the machines). A sum of around €5 should be sufficient for the trip to ITU Ayazağa Campus and back for two days.

Metro and Tram: The metro system is efficient for reaching key areas. The M2 line connects Maslak to Taksim and Sultanahmet.

Taxis and Ride-Sharing: Taxis are widely available, but confirm the driver uses the meter. Apps like BiTaksi and Uber operate in Istanbul.

Ferries: To explore the Bosphorus or cross between the European and Asian sides, ferries are an affordable and scenic option.

Emergency Contacts

ITU Main Campus Security: +90 212 285 30 00
Istanbul Taxi Hotline: 153
Emergency Services: 112

We look forward to welcoming you to Istanbul and to First AACG Carbon Symposium at ITU.

Safe travels!

Prof. Mehmet Özgür SEYDİBEYOĞLU

Izmir Katip Celebi University

Nano Engineered Interfaces for Carbon Fiber Reinforced Composites and 3D Printed Parts

“Carbon materials and carbon fibers attract great attention across globe in various fields including transportation, energy, medical, sporting goods, and defense industries. Carbon fibers and carbon fiber-based composites with outstanding mechanical strength and low density is a promising alternative for many structural applications. With the advancement of nanotechnology and nanomaterials, it is possible to tailor the interface of composite materials and hence improve the mechanical properties of the composite materials.

Carbon fiber epoxy prepregs has been long studied and the interface of carbon fiber epoxy composites has been significantly improved with two different graphene oxide materials and it has been clearly shown that the flexural strength and ILSS values of the composites have been improved significantly [1].

In later studies, more sustainable composites with thermoplastic resin polyamide6 have been prepared with carbon fibers and glass fibers enhanced with another sustainable nanomaterial nanocellulose. The prepared composites have been transformed into the filaments used in fused filament fabrication (FFF) method and composites parts have been manufactured using FFF Ultimaker 3D printer. Various printing optimization studies have been conducted to tailor the properties. It has been understood that hybrid fiber (carbon and glass fiber mixed) reinforced composites provide optimum reinforcement with affordable prices and certain mechanical strength. The nanocellulose material provided extra strength to glass fiber composites and carbon fiber composites.

To conclude, these are just beginning of nano-enhanced composites and there will be numerous findings to be used in defense industries, aerospace and many other applications.”

M. Özgür Seydibeyoğlu obtained his BSc (Metallurgical and Materials Engineering) and MSc (Polymer Science and Technology) degrees from Middle East Technical University and PhD degree from Istanbul Technical University (Advanced Technologies, Materials Science and Engineering). During his PhD studies, he was the winner of Norwegian Government Scholarship where he has published his first paper on nanocellulose with Norwegian University of Science and Technology. During his PhD, he was invited by Prof. Kristiina Oksman to Lulea Technical University to join her group on Polymer Bionancomposites. After his PhD work, he joined Bioproducts Discovery and Development Center (BDDC), University of Guelph, Canada as a post-doctoral research fellow where he worked on lignin and biocomposites under the supervision of Prof. Amar Mohanty. Before joining Izmir Katip Celebi University, he worked full time R&D Engineer at AKSA Akrilik Kimya R&D Center to conduct research on carbon fiber composites and acrylic fiber nanocomposites. In 2012, he was appointed as one of the founding faculty members at Izmir Katip Celebi University (IKCU), Engineering Faculty. He led many industry supported projects and scientific projects at IKCU trying to create sustainable solutions for the scientific journals and industrial partners. As a faculty member, he has been invited to various countries as a Visiting Scientist. He has more than 100 publications with more than 2300 citations, h-index of 24. He has been working on carbon fibers, graphene, nanocellulose, lignin, and various polymers & biopolymers that have been commercialized in the real industry as well having 6 patents finalized and couple of patents pending.

Doç. Dr. Damla EROĞLU PALA

Bogazici University

Effect of carbon properties and amount on the lithium-sulfur battery performance

Effect of carbon properties and amount on the lithium-sulfur battery performance

“The high theoretical gravimetric energy density (2600 Wh/kg) and the high capacity (1675 mAh/g), and the availability of sulfur as a cathode active material led to a high research interest in lithium-sulfur (Li-S) batteries in the search for high capacity and inexpensive next-generation batteries. However, several critical issues need to be solved before the commercialization of these batteries. First, the low electronic conductivity of sulfur hinders the reaction kinetics. Moreover, the polysulfide shuttle mechanism (PSM) leads to fast capacity decay in these batteries. The PSM is caused by the shuttling of the polysulfide molecules within the cell; even though the overall reaction is 16Li + S8 8Li 2 S, the reaction mechanism is vastly complex, involving the formation of different order polysulfide molecules, soluble in the electrolyte. These extremely complicated reaction routes and the PSM lead to the design of cathode materials being one of the most promising pathways for improving the performance of the Li-S battery. The properties and amount of carbon used in the cathode have a crucial influence on the battery performance as they dictate the reaction kinetics and the PSM through the electronic conductivity and the sulfur encapsulation. Herein, we investigate the impact of carbon type and amount on the lithium-sulfur battery performance by integrating experimental and theoretical methods.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

We coupled electrochemical characterization (i.e., electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS), galvanostatic cycling) and modeling (i.e., electrochemical modeling, cell- and system-level performance modeling, machine learning) to investigate the critical link between carbon properties and amount and Li-S battery performance. First, the electrochemical performance of Li-S cells prepared with different carbon types and amounts was experimentally characterized through cycling and EIS tests to understand the influence of carbon on discharge capacity, capacity retention, and cell resistance. We also developed a 1-D electrochemical model projecting the discharge profile of a Li-S cell as a function of carbon properties and amount. Next, system-level performance models were built to calculate the energy density and specific energy of the Li-S battery at the pack level as a function of carbon design. Last, this key connection between carbon design and battery performance was studied using machine learning tools, specifically the Association Rule Mining (ARM) method.

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

We developed a novel cathode material for the Li-S battery: atomic vanadium (V) and cobalt (Co) modified Ketjen black-sulfur composite (VCKBS). Using VCKBS cathodes in Li-S cells significantly improves the discharge capacity and cycling performance. This may be explained by the catalytic activity delivered by Co and the polysulfide adsorption capability provided by V. The EIS tests show that Li-S cells with the VCKBS cathode present much lower cell resistances, especially at low electrolyte-to- sulfur ratios and high sulfur loadings. Consequently, the offered system-level performance model projects much higher specific energies for Li-S batteries with the VCKBS cathodes. [1,2] We prepared UiO-66/graphene nanoplatelet (GNP)/sulfur composites with different UiO-66/GNP ratios as sulfur cathode hosts for the Li-S battery. These composites offer superior rate capability, especially at higher S loadings, due to the synergy between GNP and MOF in the composite. The addition of GNP provides high electronic conductivity, whereas the presence of MOF favors the surface area and the polysulfide adsorption capability of the cathode. [3] We examined the effect of carbon amount, commonly quantified as the carbon-to-sulfur (C/S) ratio or the sulfur loading, on the cycling performance and system-level energy density of the Li-S battery for different carbon types. Even though an optimum C/S ratio maximizes the discharge capacity and the cycling performance, battery metrics at the pack level are best at the lowest C/S ratio. Our results also suggest that the dependence of battery performance on the S loading differs greatly for different carbons. [4,5] This experimental trend on the influence of the C/S ratio and S loading on the discharge profile can be captured with the proposed 1-D electrochemical model, mainly due to the novel definition of the cathode electrochemically active area, which depends on the carbon weight fraction and reference porosity in the cathode. [6]

CONCLUSIONS

To conclude, carbon is a critical component in a Li-S cell as it controls the reaction and polysulfide shuttle mechanisms through the electronic conductivity and encapsulation of the polysulfides within the cathode. Here, we investigated the critical link between carbon properties and amount and the Li-S battery performance at the cell and system levels by coupling experimental and theoretical methods. Our machine-learning analysis results confirm that designing novel carbon structures for the cathode is one of the most promising pathways for improving the Li-S battery performance. [7]”

Damla Eroglu Pala gained her B.Sc. and M.Sc. degrees in Chemical Engineering from Middle East Technical University, Turkey. During her MSc studies, she received the Outstanding Academic Achievement Award and Prof. Dr. Hasan Orbey Graduate Student Award. Following these, she earned her Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering from Columbia University, USA. During her Ph.D., she gained expertise in electrochemical characterization and modeling in complex electrochemical systems such as rechargeable batteries and electrodeposition of metal/ceramic particle composites. She then worked as a postdoctoral researcher in the Chemical Sciences and Engineering Division at Argonne National Laboratory, USA, as a part of the Joint Center for Energy Storage Research. Her work there focused on techno-economic modeling and materials-to-system analysis of beyond lithium-ion batteries for transportation applications. She has been a faculty member in the Department of Chemical Engineering at Bogazici University, Turkey since 2017. In 2022, she received the L’Oréal-UNESCO For Women in Science Award in Physical Sciences and the METU Prof. Dr. Mustafa N. Parlar Foundation Research Incentive Award. Her research group, named “Electrochemical Engineering Research Laboratory” at Bogazici University, conducts both experimental and theoretical research on electrochemical systems such as lithium-sulfur batteries. Her research aims to improve the performance of lithium-sulfur batteries intended to be used in electric vehicles and smart grids and to contribute to a sustainable environment and energy.

Doç. Dr. Burcu SANER OKAN

Sabanci University - Integrated Manufacturing Technologies Research and Application Center (SU-IMC)

Towards a Greener Future: Sustainable Graphene Production and Advancements in Lightweight Thermoplastic Composites

“Plastic waste is a growing environmental and climate concern that threatens the ecosystem and leads to soil and water contamination. Although plastic recycling provides several benefits, the recycled plastics do not have the same performance as virgin plastic composites. Instead of traditional recycling processes, it is possible to produce high value-added carbon nanomaterials by using a rich hydrocarbon source in plastics and rubbery materials which are also primary source for graphene. At this point, upcycling is a significant concept to bring an end to the life cycle of materials and open various new application routes for nanomaterial production. The present work provides an insight into the importance of green synthesis methods in graphene nanomaterials synthesis by combining recycling and upcycling technologies. It is observed that different plastic wastes based on their aromaticity and alifaticity and thermoset wastes and biomass can lead to the formation of different dimensional graphene structures such as 2D sheets and 3D spheres. The produced graphene materials are used for the design of lightweight composite structures for automotive and plastic industry by reducing adverse environmental impacts and adopting energy-efficient manufacturing technologies. With the develop waste derived graphene, compound formulations were developed by using recycled polymer sources (e.g. PP and PA) and natural fibers (hemp and flax) in order to replace with glass fiber reinforced plastic usage in commodity products. Additionally, Life Cycle Assessment studies integrate into raw materials and parts, fostering circular economy models. Consequently, this multidisciplinary work ensures significant innovation potential of graphene in the field of thermoplastic-based composites and overcomes the needs by addressing greenhouse gas emissions with sustainable designs.”

Burcu Saner Okan received BS degree in Chemistry at Middle East Technical University, Turkey in 2005. Dr. Saner Okan received MS degree in 2007 and PhD degree in 2011 in Materials Science and Engineering program at Sabancı University. Dr. Saner Okan has been serving as the academic director of Sabancı University Composite Research Center since March 2022, and has been a research faculty member in the Departments of Materials Science and Nanoengineering and Manufacturing Technologies at Sabancı University. In addition, Dr. Saner Okan is co-founder of NANOGRAFEN Nano Technological Products Company and was among the first entrepreneurs to successfully complete the TUBITAK 1512 program. Dr. Saner Okan develops cost-effective and lightweight automotive composites parts reinforced by waste tire- derived Graphene NanoPlatelet with part producers and leading OEM partners. She is working on sustainable advanced materials and developing compound solutions by using recycled and natural sources for thermoplastic processing. Upto now, she has secured funding totaling $4.7 million for national and international projects at Sabanci University. Dr. Saner Okan has an expertise in graphene, polymer nanocomposites, compounding, surface chemistry and electrospinning, recycling and upcycling, circular economy. She has more than 50 articles published in international journals, 8 book chapters, 2 patents and presented over 50 conference papers in these fields.

Doç. Dr. Önder METİN

Koç University

Carbon-based photocatalysts for sustainable chemical conversions

“Carbon-based two-dimensional (2D) materials have garnered significant attention following the discovery of graphene. These materials possess exceptional optical, electrical, and thermal properties due to the ability of their electrons to freely move in only two dimensions. As a result, they have found applications in various fields, including photocatalysis. Developing photocatalysts that can efficiently utilize sunlight into chemical transformations is a promising approach towards sustainable chemistry [1]. However, a survey of the literature on photocatalysis reveals that transition-metal complexes and organic dye molecules are the most commonly used photocatalysts in diverse reactions. Nevertheless, the practicality of using these photocatalysts in sustainable chemistry is hindered by issues related to their reusability and synthesis difficulties. Consequently, transition metal-based 2D semiconductor materials such as MoS2 , WS2 , WSe2 , TiS2 , and metal-free substances like black phoshorene (bP), bismuthene and graphitic carbon nitride (gCN) have recently been employed as photocatalysts in various chemical transformations [2]. Among them, gCN has received great attention owing to its attracting properties such as being non-metallic porous polymer with a visible-light band gap (2.7 eV, 454 nm) and prepared by a facile synthesis. However, like most semiconductor photocatalysts, gCN faces several challenges such as low absorption of visible light and high electron-hole (e - -h + ) recombination rates. To develop efficient gCN-based photocatalysts for chemical conversions, achieving effective charge carrier separation is crucial [3]. Among the various methods reported to reduce e - -h + recombination and enhance visible-light absorption of gCN-based photocatalysts, the formation of heterojunctions between gCN and other 2D semiconducting materials and/or other semiconductors or metal nanoparticles appears to be the most promising approach. In recent years, we have designed gCN-based heterojunction photocatalysts for various chemical transformations. In this talk, first, I will introduce the fundamentals of semiconductor materials, heterojunction photocatalysis and discuss the advancements made in this field. Next, I will summarize the selected g-CN-based photocatalysts that have been developed by my research group for hydrogen production and sustainable organic transformations [4-6].”

Önder Metin received his Ph.D. degree from Department of Chemistry, Middle East Technical University in 2010. He studied as a visiting scholar at Department of Chemistry, Brown University (Rhode Island/USA) in 2009 and at Darmstadt Technical University, Germany in 2010. In 2011, he got an Assistant Professor position at Department of Chemistry, Atatürk University. He then joined the Department of Chemistry, Brown University, U.S.A. as a post-doctoral research associate in 2012-2013. After working as a faculty member of Department of Chemistry at Atatürk University for 7 years, he moved to Koç University, Department of Chemistry in 2018. He received numerous scientific awards including the most prestigious ones, 2017 The Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey (TUBITAK) “Research Encouragement Award”(TÜBİTAK Teşvik), Turkish Academy of Sciences “The Highly Successful Young Scientists Award” (TÜBA-GEBİP), and Science Academy (BAGEP), and several others given to outstanding young scientists working in Türkiye. He has been an elected associate member of Turkish Academy of Sciences since 2018. He has served as the Vice-President of the Turkish Chemical Society, the Secretary General of Federation of Asian Chemical Societies (FACS) since 2023 and Titular Member of IUPAC Division II-Inorganic Chemistry. He has also served as the Associate Editor of the Turkish Journal of Chemistry since 2021. His research interests are transition metal nanoparticles, 2D materials, nanocomposites, nanocatalysis, photocatalysis, heterogeneous catalysis, electrocatalysis, hydrogen storage, fuel cells, rechargeable Lithium batteries, green chemistry and sustainable chemical transformations. He has published over than 140 scientific papers (>8900 citations and h-index= 49) in mostly high impact journals.

Dr. Recep İŞÇİ

Istanbul Technical University

Thienothiophene Based Materials; Synthesis, Investigation of Their Properties and Energy Based Applications

“Global problems like increasing universal energy problems, climate change and depletion of fossil energy resources in today's world increase the interest in the development of energy and energy-based materials. Finding renewable and sustainable alternative energy sources and ensuring their conversion has become the most important research topic. In this regard, new generation energy-based materials have been gaining increasing importance in the field of organic material chemistry, which is the combination of synthetic chemistry and energy science. Thienothiophene rings (TTs), known as heterocyclic compounds, are widely used in organic material chemistry due to their electron rich, delocalized, and rigid structures, as well as high thermal stability. TTs find utility across various energy-related research domains, including organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs), organic field-effect transistors (OFETs), capacitors, memory devices, next-generation hybrid materials, and electrocatalytic and organic batteries. In this study, new materials have been developed by modifying TT with triphenylamine (TPA), tetraphenylethylene (TPE), dimesitylboron and single-wall carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs). The optical and electronic properties of the materials were investigated, and their device properties on energy applications were studied. These functional materials and their applications are expected to make considerable contributions to the field of energy science.”

Recep Isci received his PhD in Organic Material Chemistry at Istanbul Technical University (ITU) (2023) under the supervision of Prof. Turan Ozturk on ‘synthesis of organic energy materials; investigation of their properties and device applications’. His thesis was supported by government grants (Council of Higher Education YOK 100/2000 and The Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey TUBITAK 2211-A); Smart and Innovative Materials. He took part in Imperial College London, Centre for Processable Electronics as a researcher during his PhD within the 2214-A TUBITAK International Research Fellowship Program. His research interests concentrate on the development of new organic materials, particularly including thienothiophene (TT) and dithienothiophene (DTT), having electronic and optical properties.

Assoc. Prof. Mustafa Kemal BAYAZIT

Sabancı University Nanotechnology Research and Application Center (SUNUM)

Surface Chemistry of Carbon Nanomaterials

“The extraordinary chemical nature of carbon allows different hybridizations via covalent bond formation, unveiling new directions towards advanced applications diversifying from energy to environment as well as health [1-3]. Covalent surface modifications induce changes in materials\' physicochemical and electronic properties. Such created surface moieties/domains can be anchoring sites for the surface of other materials, nanoparticles, molecules, and even atoms. They serve as performance-enhancing sites/defects for energy storage and photocatalysis. Today\'s talk aims to provide a glimpse of researchers planning carbon nanomaterials-based applications. More specifically, representative surface functionalization strategies for zero-, one-, two- and three-dimensional carbon materials and their potential utilization in energy and environmental applications are introduced with selected examples.”

Mustafa Kemal Bayazıt completed his PhD in carbon nanomaterials in 2010 at Durham University, UK, after being awarded a prestigious fellowship from TUBITAK and Durham University. After that, Mustafa joined Imperial College London Chemistry to research nanostructured hierarchical assemblies and composites. In 2014, he moved to the University College London Chemical Engineering, where he developed a microwave-fluidic reactor for high throughput production of nanomaterials (e.g., metal/metal oxide NPs and graphene) and used them in solar-to-energy applications. In 2019, he moved to Sabancı University Nanotechnology Research and Application Center, where he is currently an Associate Professor in Materials Science and Nanoengineering (http://myweb.sabanciuniv.edu/mkbayazit/). His research focuses on high throughput sustainable manufacturing of advanced inorganic/organic and inorganic/inorganic hybrids for energy materials, sensors, and functional surfaces. He is the recipient of prestigious TUBITAK 2232-A International Fellowship for Outstanding Researchers (2019) and the IChemE Global Business Start-up Award (2019), the respected COMSTECH Award (2022), and the finalist of the IChemE Global Research Project Awards (2022). He holds the RSC\'s Reaction Chemistry & Engineering Emerging Investigator Award (2023). He is also a member of the Royal Society of Chemistry and the American Chemical Society.

Dr. Sina ABDOLHOSSEINZADEH

Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology (EMPA)

Additive-free 2D-material-based Inks for Printed Energy Storage and Conversion Systems

“Printing is an additive manufacturing technique for low-cost, scalable, and sustainable production of electronics. However, the practical application of these technologies is hindered by the lack of functional inks. Conventional printing inks often contain considerable amounts of additives that drastically degrade the electronic properties of materials, necessitating high-temperature post-treatment processes for the fabrication of functional devices. Such additional post-treatments complicate the manufacturing process, limit the use of heat-sensitive materials, and increase production costs. To address these challenges, we have formulated various additive-free dry-only inks for different printing techniques using graphene, MXenes, and other 2D materials. The unique morphology of 2D materials results in enormous interflake interactions, which significantly affect their colloidal, rheological, and film formation properties. These distinctive features present both challenges and opportunities in printing and device fabrication using 2D materials. This presentation aims to demonstrate some of such complexities that we have faced in our research and discuss potential avenues for innovation in printing energy storage and conversion systems.”

Sina Abdolhosseinzadeh received his master\'s degree from Sabanci University in 2017, and then moved to Switzerland to pursue his PhD at EPFL, where he graduated with top 8% distinction. In 2021, he was awarded the Empa Young Scientist Fellowship and now is a scientist at the Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology. Since 2012 he has been working on synthesis, processing, and device fabrication using graphene and other 2D materials, especially for electrochemical energy storage and conversion applications.

Prof. Cengiz ÖZKAN

University of California, Riverside

Nanocarbon Materials for Electrochemical Energy Storage

“The global electrochemical energy storage market ranging from electric vehicles and personal electronics to physical grid storage and defense applications demands the development of new classes of materials for fabricating high performance batteries and supercapacitors. I will begin by describing innovative approaches for the design and synthesis of nanostructured carbon materials towards enhanced reversible capacity; superior rate performance and cycling stability; superior gravimetric capacitance; and enhanced energy density and power density. A novel 3D architecture called a pillared graphene nanostructure (PGN) is a combination of two allotropes of carbon, including graphene and carbon nanotubes possessing ultra large surface area, tunability, mechanical durability and high conductivity can be grown on a variety of substrates, which are appealing to diverse energy storage systems. Another type of 3D superporous carbonaceous architecture called chrysanthemum nanofibers can be grown in roll-to-roll form on commercial nickel foams. Integration of nanostructured pseudocapacitive metal oxides to such 3D templates can provide superior electrochemical performance in supercapacitor applications. PGN templates can also be transformed into cone-shaped clusters decorated with amorphous silicon for advanced lithium ion (Li-ion) battery anodes. Single and multilayer stacked 3D carbonaceous architectures could also be envisioned for future applications in hydrogen storage. Next, I will describe recent advancements in upcycling polyethylene terephthalate (PET) waste and glass waste bottles into active electrode materials for energy storage. An interconnected silicon-network is directly derived from glass-bottles via magnesiothermic-reduction. For PET plastic-waste, materials are dissolved in a mixture of trifluoroacetic acid and dichloromethane, followed by carbonization under an argon/hydrogen atmosphere. Electrodes derived from PET are employed in supercapacitors and Li-ion battery anodes. Glass bottles utilizing magnesiothermic-reduction without pre-leaching offers an environmentally-benign and energy-saving route to prepare silica-source materials, employed in fabricating Li-ion battery anodes. Both conversion processes for plastic and glass waste are highly scalable with environmental and economic advantages, and could provide the means for achieving a circular economy in energy storage technologies. Finally, I will talk about selected metal oxide (MxOy) thin film barrier layers to mitigate the polysulfide shuttling effects in Li-S batteries, and enhance their performance and cyclic stability. Through analysing the binding energies of Li2Sn adsorbed onto selected MxOy surfaces via density functional theory (DFT) calculations and Molecular dynamics (MD) simulations, we show that the strong Li-O bonds dominate the interactions between Li2Sn and selected MxOy surfaces. Our studies demonstrate that selected MxOy thin film barrier layers could be employed in scaled up manufacturing to enhance Li-S battery performance.”

Cengiz Ozkan received his Ph.D. degree in Materials Science and Engineering at Stanford University in 1997. He made pioneering advancements in the fields of energy storage; nanoelectronics; 2D materials including graphene and dichalcogenides; biochemical sensors; and nanopatterning for beyond CMOS. His group developed a new generation of energy storage materials including 3D graphene; silicon nanofiber fabrics; encapsulated sulfur materials; and atomically thin 2D materials for nanoelectronics. He has been a member of several prestigious centers including the SRC STARnet Center for Spintronic Materials, Interfaces and Novel Architectures (C-SPIN), NSF Materials Research Science and Engineering Center (MRSEC) on Polymers, and the SRC MARCO Center for Functional Engineered Nano Architectonics (FENA). Dr. Ozkan has nearly 800 technical publications including journal articles, conference proceedings, abstracts, edited books, book chapters and invention disclosures; and he has 45 US and foreign patents issued. He is a Member of the National Academy of Inventors (NAI), a Member of the Turkish Academy of Sciences (TUBA), a Fellow of the Materials Research Society (MRS), and received a number of awards including the William Johnson International Founders Award, TUBITAK Scientific Achievement Award, SRC Inventors Award, European Advanced Energy materials Award, and the John J. Guarrera Engineering Educator of the Year Award. His research received significant media attention in many news outlets including the Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Discovery Channel, Physics Today, Popular Science, and more. He organized and chaired over 40 conferences worldwide, and had been elected a Global Meeting Chair for the Fall 2021 Meeting of the MRS in Boston, MA.

Prof. Can ERKEY

Koç University, ISTANBUL

Importance of Carbon Materials For the Hydrogen Economy

“INTRODUCTION

The hydrogen economy stands as a promising solution to mitigate climate change and transition towards sustainable energy systems. Central to this transition is the significance of carbon materials, which play multifaceted roles in the production, storage, and utilization of hydrogen. This talk explores the pivotal importance of carbon materials in various aspects of the hydrogen economy.

DISCUSSION

Firstly, nanostructured carbon supported catalysts and/or carbon catalysts have demonstrated remarkable efficacy in enhancing the efficiency and cost of green hydrogen production by electrolysis of water. Carbon supports provide a high surface area and electrical conductivity, facilitating the dispersion and stabilization of catalyst nanoparticles. This improves the catalytic activity, durability, and cost-effectiveness of the electrolysis process. Additionally, carbonaceous materials serve as effective substrates for hydrogen storage due to their high surface area. Carbon materials offer the advantage of tunable pore structures, including micropores, mesopores, and macropores. These pores can be engineered to optimize hydrogen adsorption capacity and kinetics. Micropores are highly effective for hydrogen storage as they provide confinement effects that enhance hydrogen adsorption at low pressures. Furthermore, carbon fibers are an important component of hydrogen storage tanks for mechanical strength and lightness. Polymer Electrolyte Membrane Fuel Cells (PEMFCs) are important devices for conversion of hydrogen into electricity with high efficiencies. The catalysts that are utilized in PEMFCs are carbon supported. Moreover, the gas diffusion layers that are used in PEMFCs are primarily made out of carbon and provide efficient distribution of reactants and products to/from the catalyst layer enhancing efficiencies. The bipolar plates in PEMFCs can be made from graphite which provides electrical conductivity and mechanical stability. Fuel cells operate most efficiently when they run continuously at a constant output, but energy demand fluctuates in real-world applications. Carbon supercapacitors bridge this gap by efficiently managing the transient energy demands. They can store excess energy during low-demand periods and rapidly discharge it when higher power levels are required, thereby optimizing the fuel cell's operating conditions and extending its lifespan.

CONCLUSIONS

This talk demonstrates the indispensable role of carbon materials in driving the advancements and scalability of the hydrogen economy, emphasizing the need for continued research and innovation to realize its full potential in addressing global energy and environmental challenges.”

Can Erkey is Professor of Chemical and Biological Engineering at Koç University. He received his BS in Chemical Engineering at Boğaziçi University in 1984 and his PhD in Chemical Engineering at Texas A&M University in 1989. He started his academic career at the Chemical Engineering Department of the University of Connecticut in 1995 as an assistant professor. He was promoted to associate professor in 2001 and to full professor in 2006. He then joined the Chemical and Biological Engineering Department at Koç University in 2006. He served for 7 years as the founding director of the Koç University Tüpraş Energy Center established in 2012. His research interests are in hydrogen technologies, nanostructured materials and supercritical fluids. Dr. Erkey has 150 refereed journal publications with 8800 citations and an h-factor of 56. He holds 6 patents and is the author of two books by Elsevier. He has made over 200 presentations at technical meetings, universities and companies. He served as the major advisor of 20 Ph.D. and 19 M.S. students so far. He won the Dr. Akın Çakmakçı Award in 2023 given by the Technology Development Foundation of Turkey (TTGV) for his pioneering research and contributions to the commercialization of technologies in the field of “Fuel Cells and Green Hydrogen Production”.