Supercharging Chemicals For Clean Energy

Moving away from fossil fuels and towards clean, renewable forms of energy is crucial as the world strives to stall climate change. Wind turbines and solar panels can produce the green energy we need, but come with a catch – they are intermittent, generating less or even zero electricity when the wind is weak or the sun isn’t shining. Powering the world around the clock requires storing excess electricity for later use. “When we talk about electricity storage, most people immediately think of batteries. But if we want efficient long-term storage with added flexibility, we should also consider other forms of chemical energy storage, such as hydrogen, synthetic fuels, or ammonia. These carbon-neutral fuels can be produced using surplus renewable electricity, stored, and converted back into power,” says Dr. Süleyman Er, the Department Head of Chemical Energy at the Dutch Institute for Fundamental Energy Research (DIFFER). 

One leading example involves using renewable electricity to split water into oxygen and hydrogen. In a fuel cell, hydrogen – often described as a fuel of the future – can then be used to generate electricity with zero emissions. However, splitting water into its base elements is itself a hugely energy-intensive process. For this fuel to be truly sustainable, this chemical reaction needs to be made as efficient as possible, which requires the help of materials called catalysts. These catalysts are typically made from rare and expensive metals like ruthenium and iridium, making the process harder to scale. “We need to find alternatives that can perform as well as these metals or even better,” says Süleyman. “But there is no chemical element that works as catalyst for every chemical reaction. So, rather than using a single element from the periodic table, you can combine different elements in different ratios, tuning or tailoring the material composition and structure for a specific application.”

This process is ramping up thanks to artificial intelligence (AI), which can accumulate data from computer simulations and experiments, and use it to make predictions and guide decisions. In the years to come, Süleyman’s department is aiming to take this even further by developing an autonomous, self-driving lab that can operate almost by itself. Powered by AI, the lab will propose possible materials to investigate, carry out experiments, record the results, and learn from its findings to plan subsequent steps. Süleyman likens this to a self-driving car that can take you from A to B and make key decisions, such as when to change lanes, all on its own. “By combining human and AI intelligence, we aim to create new frameworks for scientific discovery, hoping to find better materials faster and more efficiently than we could with human intelligence alone,” says Süleyman. 

“At DIFFER, we are really knowledgeable when it comes to developing large scale research infrastructure. This facility will be used for our own research, but also externally by other researchers.” Openness and collaboration are key at DIFFER, where scientists frequently work together with leading universities and European organisations on a project basis. “We also collaborate quite a lot with industry, such as advanced equipment developers, software and chemical companies. We are a fundamental research organization, but we always keep the potential applications in mind while designing the projects. Thanks to these collaborations and the emphasis on synergy, our researchers can explore cutting-edge topics while broadening their professional networks and expertise.”

DIFFER’s status as a research institute also means that people who work there can spend most of their time in research, without classroom teaching duties. “That means we have more time to invest in research and stay focused,” says Süleyman. Another feature that sets DIFFER apart from a university is that the organization is mission-driven, with its research divided into two strands – chemical energy and fusion energy. “We are really programmatic. We implement a team-based strategy to ensure our findings, as well as the methodologies, tools, and equipment we use, are relevant for other projects within the same organization, but also for others beyond DIFFER.” 

“Chemistry, physics, material science, mechanical engineering, and computer science are all relevant to our work. We bring these disciplines together under the same hood, so we have room for a wide range of expertise and skill sets. This environment encourages creativity from diverse approaches, enabling rapid development of clean energy solutions.”