Huan Doan, University of Bristol funded to attend the SCN Symposium in Liverpool

The Solar Chemicals Network Symposium featured several enlightening talks on the forefront of solar chemical research. The sessions delved into various cutting-edge approaches to carbon capture and utilisation, highlighting recent advancements in photocatalysis and integrated CO2 capture and utilisation systems.

The symposium was characterised by its focus on engaging and productive discussions among leading experts. For instance, Professor Camille Petit from Imperial College London offered valuable insights into the use of porous materials like boron nitride, hyper crosslinked polymers, and MOFs for CO2 photoreduction. These materials, notable for their high surface area and ability to control electronic transfer, show promising potential in converting CO2 to CO using both UV and visible light.

Another highlight was Dr S Kar's presentation from the University of Cambridge, introducing an innovative integrated CO2 capture and PEC utilisation reactor. This reactor stands out for its ability to transform CO2 from diluted sources such as flue gas and air into syngas, solely utilising sunlight, marking a notable advancement in solar fuel production and waste upcycling.

The symposium also served as an excellent platform for networking with fellow early career researchers and engaging in meaningful discussions with seasoned experts. These interactions were particularly beneficial for my research endeavours in developing new catalysts for PEC CO2 reduction. The knowledge and insights gained from these presentations, coupled with the collaborative atmosphere of the symposium, will undoubtedly have a significant impact on my ongoing research,

Details of the SCN Travel Awards and application can be found here.

Travel Award Recipient Habib Ullah

I had the pleasure of attending the 1st Solar Chemical Network Symposium in Liverpool on January 11th and 12th, 2024. It was a wonderful experience, and I truly valued the opportunity to be a part of it. Throughout the symposium, I gained valuable insights into catalysis, particularly in the context of CO2 reduction. This participation felt like a significant update for me. My primary research focus lies in Computational Modelling of catalysts, primarily utilized for water electrolysis and CO2 reduction. Therefore, the discussions and posters related to electrolysis and CO2 reduction were particularly beneficial. 

Travel Award details can be found here.

Dr Qiao He: Supported by SCN to attend our first Symposium in Liverpool

As a research associate based in the Department of Chemistry at Imperial College London, my research focuses on design and synthesis of new organic semiconductor materials. These materials are often photo-responsive and can be employed as a media to convert sunlight to energy devices. I have been interested in exploring my materials with other optoelectronic applications, such as utilizing solar energy to produce green chemicals, e.g. H2 but I have not gotten much experience on this topic.

When I saw the 1st UK Solar Chemicals Network Symposium is open for registration, I justified my attendance to the SCN committee. After 10 days when I received an invitation with the SCN Travel Award to financially support my trip, I felt absolutely honoured. Before the symposium, I dedicatedly prepared a conference poster for introducing myself and expected to know some collaborators from this community.

The talks were fantastic and covered many aspects of solar chemicals, from biocatalysts, electrocatalysis, semiconductor-based light harvesting, to carbon capture, etc. These talks with discussions provided me a good taste with the ongoing research, and I became more interested in conducing the H2 generation research related to organic semiconductors. I met a few old collaborators and friends (such as Prof. James Durrant, Dr. Flurin Eisner, Dr. Matyas Daboczi, etc) during this conference and talked with some potential collaborators. I am very grateful that this network symposium can bringing us together to inspire one another. I also had a great time walking through the ‘red brick’ University of Liverpool and the city when on the way from the symposium hotel back to the Liverpool Lime Street Station.