成人大片

A sustainable and cleaner future for society depends on the next generation of advanced materials. In a new facility scientists at the 成人大片 will develop materials which will help to achieve those goals for South Australia and the nation.

The Advanced Materials Research Facility is launched at the 成人大片鈥檚 North Terrace campus today, Wednesday 1 September.

鈥淚n the new Advanced Materials Research Facility, chemical engineers and scientists will be making materials for a range of applications such as renewable energy conversion and storage, and to reduce the impact of microplastics on the environment,鈥� said Professor David Lewis who is Head of the School of Chemical Engineering and Advanced Materials at the 成人大片.

鈥淭he facility is the first of its kind in the country, where we will be able to observe the growth, formation and structure of new materials in real-time.鈥� Professor David Lewis

鈥淥ur researchers are finding new materials that will increase the efficiency of making 鈥榞reen鈥� hydrogen from water.鈥�

The majority of hydrogen used today is made from fossil fuels. Green hydrogen is not an economically viable alternative due to low yields from electrolysers that use electrolysis to split water into hydrogen and oxygen.

鈥淭he next generation of electrolysers that use materials developed by our scientists could provide the key to a cleaner energy future using cheap hydrogen produced from water,鈥� said Professor Lewis.

Other advanced materials being developed at the new facility include:

• The next generation of material used in aqueous batteries (batteries that use water instead of organic solvents as electrolyte) that is non-flammable and safe;
• Materials that will enable microplastics to be converted into environmentally harmless products;
• Catalyst materials for next generation solar-to-fuels production technology;
• Smart nanoreactors which assist with the manufacture of products on a nanotechnological scale.

Much of the scientists鈥� work will be carried out at the molecular scale and can be upscaled toward mass production.

鈥淭he facility is the first of its kind in the country, where we will be able to observe the growth, formation and structure of new materials in real-time,鈥� said Professor Lewis.

鈥淥ur specialised technology allows us to go from the design of the material from the virtual molecular level on a computer to the growth of the material and ultimately the actual device, in one location.鈥�

鈥淭he new Advanced Materials Research Facility complements the existing outstanding research capability in this field here at the 成人大片,鈥� said Professor Peter H酶j AC, Vice-Chancellor and President of the 成人大片.

鈥淭he facility will contribute to the training of university science and engineering students who will advance technological innovations across South Australia and around the world.鈥�