Research Interests

 

The Haan Research Lab has undergraduate and graduate students working on 2 active project teams:

Fuel Cell Team Catalyst Team

 
 
FC.png

Fuel Cell Team

The development in 2008 of the first practical alkaline fuel cell membrane opened up the opportunity for investigators to study the performance of renewable fuels that were inefficient in previous fuel cell designs (Bianchini et al.).  While others focused on ethanol, our lab initially focused on sodium and potassium formate salts as fuels.  We designed and optimized a direct formate fuel cell (Bartrom et al.), demonstrating it was the most efficient alkaline direct liquid fuel cell.  We improved (Bartrom et al.) upon the initial results, and others (e.g., Li et al.) have confirmed the superiority of formate using other fuel cell configurations. Presently, the Team is examining various alcohols and sugars as fuels for alkaline direct liquid fuel cells.

Current team members:

Katie Hohl, Cheyanne Rose, Michael Bueno, Jawna Albakri, Charlotte Dillon, Lorenzo Vega

Link to Recent Publications:

The electrochemical oxidation of butanediol isomers in an alkaline direct liquid fuel cell

A Non-Precious Metal Ascorbate Fuel Cell

A Direct Liquid Fuel Cell Powered by 1,3- or 1,2-Propanediol

 

Top

 
 
TOC for website.jpg

Catalyst Team

A grand challenge of fuel cell research is the reduction in catalyst cost, and the development of the alkaline membrane opened up the opportunity to study a broader range of low cost, transition metal catalysts that quickly corrode in an acidic environment.  We are using Pd-based catalysts to efficiently oxidize renewable alcohols (e.g., ethanol and propanol) and renewable polyalcohols (e.g., ethylene glycol, propylene glycol, and glycerol).  We have found significant improvements to oxidation rates of these alcohols on Pd mixed with first-row transition metals (e.g., Cu and Ni) and Pd mixed with heavy metals (e.g., Sn, Sb, Pb).  For example, the oxidation rate of glycerol is 14 times faster on Pd63Cu37/C than on Pd/C after 3 hours of oxidation.

This work is done in collaboration with Dr. Allyson Fry-Petit (CSUF Chemistry), and Dr. Michael Groves (CSUF Chemistry).

Current team members:

Rueben Dsouza, Rumeysa Gurler, Christopher Dunn.

Links to Recent Publications:

PdCu/C Anode Catalysts for the Alkaline Ascorbate Fuel Cell

Book Chapter: Electrocatalysts for the Oxidation of Small Organic Molecules in Alkaline Media

Electrochemical Oxidation of Polyalcohols in Alkaline Media on Palladium Catalysts Promoted by the Addition of Copper

 

Top