Members

Postdoctoral Researchers

Adrian Mularczyk

Adrian Mularczyk

After obtaining his bachelor’s and master’s degree in Mechanical Engineering from ETH Zurich Adrian carried out his PhD research at the Paul Scherrer Institute until 2021. During this time, he was researching water transport mechanisms in polymer electrolyte fuel cells using X-ray tomographic microscopy. Specifically, he investigated the complex interactions between the liquid phase and the gas diffusion layer (a porous substrate used to transport reactants to and from the catalyst layer) on a micrometer scale to better understand limitations and challenges of materials currently used in fuel cells.

Having secured funding from the EuroTechPostdoc2 program for his research proposal titled “Synthesis of porous electrodes with bimodal pore size distribution to address transport limitations in next generation electrochemical reactors” he joined the Membrane Materials and Processes group at TU/e under Antoni Forner-Cuenca. The aim of his project is to generate tailor made structures, capable to address mass transport requirements of electrochemical reactors which are often complex and can involve multiple phases. Outside of the lab he enjoys sports and outdoor activities, especially biking and bouldering.

Kiran Bhatia

Kiran Bhatia

After completing her BSc and MSc degrees in Physics from Maharshi Dayanand University (MDU Rohtak, India), Kiran moved to Switzerland for her doctoral studies. Having secured a Swiss Government Excellence Scholarship for Foreign Scholars and Artists (ESKAS), Kiran carried out her PhD at the University of Bern, where she graduated in 2021. During her PhD, she worked on electrochemical conversion of carbon dioxide to fuels. Specifically, Kiran synthesized novel porous monometallic and bimetallic foams to be used as electrocatalyst. Along with the catalyst development, she also worked with various characterization techniques for bulk and surface analysis such as SEM, EDX, XRD, operando XAS and Raman.

In March 2022, she joined Eindhoven University of Technology as a postdoctoral researcher. At TU/e, she will be working on the synthesizing porous electrodes for reversible fuel cells for space applications, a project funded by the European Space Agency. The aim of the project is to develop non-precious electrodeposited catalysts on 3D printed electrodes and the research will be conducted in collaboration with the University of Twente. Outside of the lab, Kiran enjoys music, reading, sports (especially badminton) and outdoor activities with friends.

PhD students

Emre B. Boz

Emre B. Boz

Emre received both his BSc and MSc degree in Materials Science and Nano Engineering, from Sabanci University in 2016 and 2019, respectively. He conducted his master’s research under the supervision of Prof. Dr. Selmiye Alkan Gursel, where he worked on metal-organic framework/graphene oxide sacrificial hybrid materials to generate hierarchically porous carbons, which were used as supports for Pt nanoparticles performing oxygen electroreduction.

In January 2020, Emre stated his PhD at Eindhoven University of Technology, where he develops electrodeposited functional layers on porous carbon electrodes for energy-storage applications. He enjoys scuba diving and swimming, is a fan of science fiction and fantasy movies and likes to practice guitar in his spare time.

Inmaculada Giménez García

Inmaculada Giménez García

Inmaculada Giménez García received her BSc and MSc in Chemical Engineering at Universitat Politècnica de València, Spain. For her Master Thesis she also studied at TUe, where she carried out research on the development of porous metal electrodes for advanced alkaline electrolysis. After finishing her MSc in 2020 she started her PhD in the group Membrane Materials and Processes at TUe.

The aim of the doctoral project is to develop synthetic methods to manufacture new ionomers and gas diffusion layers for next-generation polymer electrolyte fuel cells. This utilizes electrochemical methods on molecules with specific functionalities to control the properties of catalytic layers. Inma is the recipient of the La Caixa Excellence Award for Postgraduate Studies in Europe Fellowship.

Rémy R. Jacquemond

Jointly supervised with Prof. Kitty Nijmeijer

Rémy Richard Jacquemond graduated in Chemistry from the École Nationale Supérieure de Chimie de Montpellier (France) in 2018. He also completed a double master degree in Nanoscience and ...

Rémy R. Jacquemond

Rémy Richard Jacquemond graduated in Chemistry from the École Nationale Supérieure de Chimie de Montpellier (France) in 2018. He also completed a double master degree in Nanoscience and Nanotechnologies at the Universitat Rovira i Virgili (Spain) where he performed research on liquid crystalline proton exchange membranes for application in energy devices. During his studies, he also worked at DOW Benelux in R&D on the synthesis and characterization of solvent resistant nanofiltration membranes.

In late 2018, he started his PhD at Eindhoven University of Technology on the development next-generation redox flow batteries with a focus on electrodes and membranes for non-aqueous redox flow batteries. Rémy loves to cook and especially meat and pastries. He always wants to improve his skills and recipes, he thinks that baking is no more that scientific experiments that you can do at home and that is why it is so enjoyable. Rémy also likes to hike and to go touring on his bike that he can feel closer to nature for some time.

Maxime van der Heijden

Maxime studied Chemical Engineering and Chemistry at Eindhoven University of Technology, where she obtained her BSc and MSc degrees. During her bachelor she worked on complex patterning of ...

Maxime van der Heijden

Maxime studied Chemical Engineering and Chemistry at Eindhoven University of Technology, where she obtained her BSc and MSc degrees. During her bachelor she worked on complex patterning of luminescent solar concentrators for improved aesthetics. For her master with the focus on Molecular Systems and Materials Chemistry, she received a grant from the Royal Association of the Dutch Chemical Industry (VNCI) and DSM, and performed research on multi dye coordination in layered smectics for luminescent solar concentrator applications. For her internship at DSM Coating Resins in Waalwijk, Maxime studied receptive coatings for inkjet formulations.

In late 2019, Maxime began her PhD where she work on understanding and optimizing the three-dimensional structure of porous electrodes. The aim of the project is to design and synthesize novel electrodes with architected microstructures by using a combination of computer simulations and synthetic methods. Besides coming to work on her normal bicycle, she also likes to take out her road bike a couple of times a week for a nice trip. She also loves cooking, games, boxing, fitness, skiing and testing beers.

Rens Horst

Rens Horst

Rens received both his BSc. and MSc. degrees in Chemical Engineering from the University of Twente with a focus on heterogeneous catalysis and electrochemistry. During his studies he also studied Materials Science at ETH Zürich for a semester and worked on fuel cell electric vehicle hydrogen drive train for a full year. For his master thesis, Rens developed an open-source electrochemical quartz crystal microbalance that could be used simultaneously with in-situ surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy to study adsorption processes at interfaces. Rens’ internship was performed at BASF Netherlands and was focused on advanced ceramics. He was awarded a scholarship for both his bachelor and master studies from the Royal Association of the Dutch Chemical Industry in collaboration with BASF Netherlands and received the Young Talent Encouragement Prize from the Royal Dutch Society of Sciences and Humanities.

In January 2022, Rens started his PhD at Eindhoven University of Technology, where he will work on structural optimization of electrodes for low-temperature hydrogen fuel cells. He will focus particularly on the catalyst layer microstructure and the development of novel ionomer systems, coating techniques and advanced characterizations. In his spare time he likes reading fantasy and history books, doing small engineering projects, learning electrical engineering, hiking and just generally enjoying nature.

Winnie Kong

Winnie Kong

Winnie obtained her BSc degree in Chemistry from Utrecht University. During the bachelor thesis, Winnie performed research on self-assembling liquid crystalline nanorods. She obtained her MSc degree in Materials Science and Engineering at TU Delft. Passionate to contribute to sustainability she started her specialization in Materials for Sustainable Development. For her master’s thesis, she devoted her time to researching the influence of microstructure on the corrosion of 3D-printed implants.

In April 2022, Winnie started her PhD at Eindhoven University of Technology. She will work on platinum-group metal-free catalyst layers for next-generation polymer electrolyte fuel cells. In her free time, she practices Taekwon-do and has a creative outlet through baking and sewing.

Irene Sinisgalli

Irene Sinisgalli

Irene Sinisgalli studied Industrial Chemistry at the Alma Mater Studiorum – University of Bologna, where she received both her BSc and MSc degrees in 2019 and 2021, respectively. During her bachelor, she worked on the development of a new catalytic system based on supported gold nanoparticles. For her master, she worked at the University of the Basque Country on the development of a new catalyst for the glycerol hydrodeoxygenation. After completing her studies, she performed research at the Chalmers University of Technology and participated in a joint project with SCA (Svenska Cellulosa Aktiebolaget) on the valorization of the lignocellulosic wastes.

In April 2022, Irene started her PhD at Eindhoven University of Technology, where she will work on polymer electrolyte fuel cells. In particular, she will focus on the development of new coating methods of the carbon fiber substrate and alternative synthetic pathways for microporous layers. Apart from science, Irene also enjoys doing sports and every kind of outdoor activity, especially exploring nature. Last but not least, Irene has a lot of fun dancing like no one else in the world.

Mert Can Erer

Mert Can Erer

Mert received both his B.Sc. and M.Sc. degrees in Chemistry from the Middle East Technical University (METU), Ankara, Turkey. During his M.Sc. studies, he worked on the fabrication and characterization of organic solar cells comprising functional conjugated polymers under the supervision of Prof. Dr. Ali Cirpan. Within the scope, he also studied the fabrication and characterization of organic light emitting diodes (OLEDs) based on both conjugated polymers and structurally-demanding conjugated organic small molecules.

In June 2022, Mert started his Ph.D. at Eindhoven University of Technology where he will be designing gas diffusion electrodes (GDE) with tailored wettability for CO2 reduction electrolyzers. His main focus will be on engineering interfaces with tailored surface functionalities and topologies to develop GDEs for electrolyzers with extended operational times and high product concentrations. In his spare time, Mert likes to do any kind of outside activities, but mostly interested in more physical hobbies such as going to the gym and playing football, basketball, etc. Most importantly, he is a former licensed tennis player, and would accept any challenge at any sports that includes rackets.

Jenifar Mazumder

Jenifar Mazumder

After completing her BSc degree Power Electronics and Instrumentation Engineering from the Jorhat Institute of Science and Technology (JIST Assam, India), Jenifar moved to Germany to pursue her MSc in Applied Engineering at the Ernst Abbe Hochschule (EAH Jena, Germany). During her master thesis, Jenifar simulated the contact losses of the current collector/supplier plates from the electrode surfaces in Solid Oxide Electrolyzer cells (SOECs). In this work, a model was developed for a single SOEC where the effects of contact losses on the electrode current density, concentration of hydrogen produced, and other factors were simulated and analyzed. Besides contact losses, the effect of different flow directions (fuel and air) was also studied with respect to the overall performance of the SOEC.

In June 2022, she joined EKPO Fuel Cell Technologies (Germany) as a PhD student with Dr. Antoni Forner-Cuenca as the academic supervisor from the Eindhoven University of Technology. Her PhD thesis is a part of the project Gas diffusion layer properties on polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells water management and durability (Gallia). This project is funded by the Federal Ministry for Digital and Transport under the National Innovation Programme for Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Technology and coordinated by NOW GmbH and implemented by Project Management Jülich (PtJ). The aim of this project is to examine the design and properties of gas diffusion layers and their influence on the performance and durability of proton conductive membrane fuel cells. The mechanical and electrochemical aging phenomena of PEMFCs will also be further studied with a focus on the developed GDLs. The ultimate goal of this project is to develop optimized diffusion media and operating conditions for heavy-duty applications to achieve a long service life. Outside of work, Jenifar enjoys music, hiking and outdoor activities with friends.

Research Engineer

Rik van Gorp

Rik studied Chemical Engineering at the University of Groningen (BSc) and later at Eindhoven University of Technology (MSc). During his master, Rik has focused on the engineering ...

Rik van Gorp

Rik studied Chemical Engineering at the University of Groningen (BSc) and later at Eindhoven University of Technology (MSc). During his master, Rik has focused on the engineering of complex energy systems. In his master project Rik performed research on the computation bottom-up design of porous electrode microstructures. Afterwards, Rik moved to Aix-en-Provence to do an internship on tritium retention at the nuclear fusion facility ITER.

In his role as research engineer, Rik works on the upscaling and commercialization of gas diffusion layers with patterned wettability and gives support on the research of two large-scale fuel cell projects (MORElife, SH2IPDRIVE). In his spare time, Rik likes to cook, tinker with his 3D printer, and do a variety of sports.

Jeroen Dubbeld

Jeroen Dubbeld

Jeroen Dubbeld obtained his BSc degree in Chemical Technology from the University of Applied Sciences Fontys Hogescholen (Eindhoven, the Netherlands) in 2016. He performed his graduation research at DSM on anti-reflective coatings for the solar panel aftermarket. He then moved to Utrecht University to obtain his MSc in Nanomaterials Science, where Jeroen graduated in 2020. During his master thesis, Jeroen developed earth-abundant hydrogen evolution electrodes for the water splitting reaction in alkaline environments. Before starting at the TU/e, he worked for two years at a laboratory automation company as a field service engineer where he further developed his technical skills.

Since July 2022, Jeroen Dubbeld is a research technician in the Department of Chemical Engineering and Chemistry at the TU/e. Jeroen works on automation and up-scaling of electrochemical processes such as CO2 reduction, hydrogen fuel cells and redox flow batteries. His fields of expertise are: laboratory automation, electrochemistry, nano-scale processes and materials. Jeroen has experience as an engineer in laboratory automation, which he is now applying to translate proven innovative experiments towards large, commercial scale applications in the group. Outside work Jeroen enjoys to travel, reading fantasy books and generally being outside whether it is hiking gardening or sitting in a park.

MSc students

Koen Vlot

Research project: How far can we push electrochemical surface area in flow-through carbonaceous porous electrodes?