Shuang Yang

Research

Electrochemical CO2 reduction reaction (CO2RR) represents a promising approach towards artificial carbon recycling for addressing global challenges in energy and sustainability. For this process, Cu is the only metal known to catalyze the CO2RR to hydrocarbons with adequate efficiency, but it suffers from poor selectivity. Among a variety of factors that impact CO2RR selectivity and activity (including catalyst morphology, composition, pH and ions in an electrolyte, reactor design), catalyst surface structure attracts a lot of attention due to its importance for essential mechanism study and rational design of advanced electrocatalyst. Significant breakthroughs are often the result of deeper understandings of the relationship between surface structures and catalytic performance. In my project, the design and synthesis of Cu-based nano-catalysts capable of producing selective products with high activity will be systematically developed first, by electrodeposition and wet chemical method for example. As for mechanism investigation, advanced operando X-ray techniques (XAFS, GIXAS) will be used for identifying catalytically active sites and structure evolution of as-prepared catalysts during reaction. Optical techniques (Raman and FTIR) are also of interest for key intermediates and reaction pathways study.

C.V.

Aug. 2019 – present
PhD candidate – Utrecht University – the Netherlands
Supervisor: Prof. dr. ir. Bert M. Weckhuysen

Sep. 2016 – Jul. 2019
MSc Materials Science and Engineering –University of Science and Technology of China – P.R. China
Master thesis: Synthesis and Electrocatalytic Performance of Transition Metal Phosphides/Nanocarbon Composites

Supervisors: Prof. Li Song

Sep. 2012 – Jul. 2016
BSc Advanced Energy Materials and Devices–Sichuan University – P.R. China

Mar. 1993
Born in Guizhou – P.R. China