Regenerative fuel cell is an electrochemical device that generate hydrogen from water and also are able to carry out the reverse process of generating electricity from hydrogen. It is a prospective technology for regenerative energy storage on the longer time scales. There are several challenges in this technology as the electrochemical cell has to dynamically perform the functions of both an electrolyzer and a fuel cell in a reversible fashion.

Water electrolysis is a key technology for hydrogen generation with low-carbon intensity. Water electrolysers use renewable electricity to split water into its elemental components. However, the low temperature electrolysis technologies (80 °C) face a steep challenge as they have a very electrical energy consumption. Performing electrolysis at higher temperature (300 to 800 °C) leads to lower electrical energy consumption as rest of the energy can be supplied in thermal form using waste heat from industrial process.

Redox flow batteries are electrochemical devices that are capable of energy storage on a longer-time scales (> 4 hours). There are a few successful redox flow battery systems such as the all-vanadium battery but these are very expensive thereby hindering commercialization activities. In this project, we will identify alternative low-cost chemistries for redox flow batteries and perform an analysis on levelized cost of storage followed by an experimental demonstration of a single cell redox flow battery. 

(Experimental)

Ionomers are polymeric membranes with semi-permeability to certain types of ions i.e., they allow either cations or anions to pass through. Ionomer membranes are critical for the development of solid-state electrochemical devices such as electrolyzers and fuel cells. In this project, we will do a review of ionomer membrane synthesis and fabrication, as applied to both Proton Exchange Membrane (PEM) and Anion Exchange Membrane (AEM) water electrolyzer technologies.

Water electrolyzers are electrochemical devices that use renewable electricity to split water into its elemental components such as hydrogen and oxygen. Hydrogen is a common chemical feedstock in major chemical industries and is also a potential energy carrier for automotive and long-term energy storage applications. In this project, we will be designing and building a test bench for water electrolyzer and its various components.

This project aims at studying the impact of distributed architecture on control of an interacting system. Specifically, distributed model predictive controller is used for controlling levels in a quadruple tank system. The work will be primarily experimental but may also require validation using simulations. The work would require background in advanced process control. Pre-requisites: CL 701, CL 686.

(Experimental + Computational)

This project aims at pursuing sustainable design of an integrated biogas-fuel cellcarbon capture system to generate renewable power. The work is an extension of our previous work ( https://aiche.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/aic.70118 ) by including anaerobic digestor, gas clean up and carbon capture steps into the design envelope. The work would require background in mathema9cal op9miza9on. Pre-requisites: CL 701, CL 603.

(Computational)

Sodium-ion batteries are emerging as a promising low-cost alternative to lithium-ion batteries, but their performance strongly depends on material and transport properties that are not directly measurable from standard tests. This project focuses on developing a physics-based computer model of a sodium-ion cell that can realistically predict voltage, capacity, and rate performance under different operating conditions.

Commercial lithium-ion batteries only show us the total voltage, hiding what is actually happening inside each electrode during charging, discharging, and aging. This project aims to develop and use a very thin, minimally invasive "micro-sensor" that can be safely placed inside a real commercial battery to separately monitor the behavior of the anode and cathode without dismantling the cell.

Molecular simulations analyze how organic molecules self-assemble into protective thin films on metal substrates to block corrosive agents like oxygen and chloride ions. By calculating adsorption energies and molecular interactions, these studies predict the stability and coverage of the inhibitor layer. This atomic-scale modeling allows researchers to design eco-friendly "green" inhibitors by optimizing the molecular orientation and binding strength to ensure long-term surface passivation in diverse industrial environments.