SenterNovem grant for photoconversion research

1 December 2009
The FOM Institute for Plasma Physics Rijnhuizen has received a SenterNovem EOS-NEO grant ('Energie Onderzoek Subsidie - Nieuw Energie Onderzoek') of €100.000 for research on cheap metal oxide semiconductors for photoconversion. Photoconversion of sunlight in solar fuels is a promising technology to harvest and store solar energy in the form of hydrogen. Dr. Marko Sturm explains the importance of photoconversion research: "Metal oxide semiconductors, such as TiO2 or Fe2O3, are abundant and cheap; therefore their application in harvesting solar energy can potentially lead to a significant reduction in the cost of utilising solar energy."

The grant will be used to support fundamental research on photochemical reactions of water on flat, crystalline metal oxide films, deposited in ultra-high vacuum. The metal oxide is usually applied as porous photo-electrode in a photo-electrochemical cell. The porous structure of the metal oxide complicates a thorough investigation of the photochemical processes at the surface. The research will be carried out in close collaboration with the Technical University of Delft, in order to apply the knowledge from well-defined model systems to real photo-electrodes.

The EOS-NEO grants are intended for research projects on new technologies for renewable energy that have potential to become a main topic of the EOS program in the future.