-
A team of researchers led by Ajou’s Prof. Seo Hyung-tak has successfully developed a high-precision sensor capable of detecting high concentrations of hydrogen. The researchers expect their work to help enhance the safety of hydrogen energy, supporting the production and application of hydrogen in the future.Prof. Seo (Dept. of Materials Science and Engineering / Graduate Dept. of Energy Systems, pictured) and his team have invented a high-precision hydrogen sensor capable of detecting hydrogen at all levels of concentration, from particles per million (ppm) to 100 percent, using a new material created by combining an ultra-thin, multilayered, alloyed catalyst and electrodes. Their discovery was published in a paper entitled “Confined interfacial alloying of multilayered Pd-Ni nanocatalyst for widening hydrogen detection capacity” in the January 1 online issue of Sensors & Actuators B: Chemicals, an international journal on sensing technology. Dr. Lee Young-Ahn and Dr. Le Thai Duy, both of Ajou University, were featured as the co-first authors. The team also included Prof. Kim Hyun-you of Chungnam National University and Dr. Park Ju-cheol of the Gumi Electronics and Information Technology Research Institute.The range of possible applications of hydrogen as an alternative source of energy for automobiles, electricity generation, and other industries has been expanding rapidly as of late. The growing demand for hydrogen fuel cell vehicles, in particular, highlights the importance of developing hydrogen applications for eco-friendly transportation. Safety, however, has been a chief issue hindering the rapid growth of hydrogen as a fuel. An odorless, colorless substance that is also extremely lightweight, hydrogen carries a significant risk of undetected leakage. It does not take much to trigger an explosion when the hydrogen concentration in the surrounding air reaches four percent. Because extremely high pressure is crucial to ensuring the high energy intensity (energy stored per unit volume) required of hydrogen as a fuel, it is critical to equip hydrogen-powered vehicles and other such machinery with well-functioning hydrogen detectors.Furthermore, to diversify the possible use of hydrogen for purposes including fuel cells, it is essential to have a device capable of monitoring and controlling the purity and concentration of hydrogen. High-precision sensors capable of monitoring high concentrations of hydrogen (95 to 100 percent) are in particularly high demand. Such high-concentration hydrogen sensors, however, can be very complex to develop. There are only a handful of expensive options available on the market worldwide today. None of the existing products, furthermore, are able to detect a wide range of hydrogen concentrations ranging from ppm levels to 100 percent.With the goal of finding a high-precision, highly reliable alternative to the palladium (Pd) catalyst electrodes that are widely used in the conventional chemically resistant hydrogen sensors, the Ajou researchers have developed a new electrode by layering ultra-thin films of Pd and nickel (Ni) in a lattice-like fashion, with each layer having a thickness on the nanometer scale. Numerous existing structures using either a Pd film or nano-Pd structure are capable of detecting hydrogen at limited and low concentrations, but have proven hopelessly incapable of detecting hydrogen at concentrations of 50 percent or above. The hydrogen atoms decoupled from hydrogen molecules by the Pd fail to desorb from Pd lattices, thereby saturating the hydrogen signals, while repeated hydrogen detection also hydrogenates the Pd film or structure, destroying the catalyst.Prof. Seo and his team’s ultra-thin Pd-Ni interfacial super-lattice is capable of detecting high concentrations of hydrogen with incredible precision. It has indeed demonstrated top-notch performance at all levels of concentration (linearity = 95 to 99 percent, response time of less than three seconds, and signal variation of one percent or less). The new sensor even stably maintained its high performance throughout the repetitive accelerated durability test (hydrogen detected 40,000 times), a key step before the manufacture of hydrogen fuel cell parts. Furthermore, the team has demonstrated, through atom-level calculations and ultra-high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (TEM), that the success was entirely due to the structural stability of the Pd-Ni nano-surfactant alloy (only two to three nanometers in thickness) and its ability to reduce the energy required for hydrogen desorption.Prof. Seo’s team unveiled its latest invention at Consumer Electronics Show (CES) 2021, an exposition of today’s most cutting-edge technologies. Due to the pandemic, this annual IT and appliance industry expo, the largest of its kind in the world, was held exclusively online from January 11 to 14 this year.Prof. Seo explained: “Korean companies are solidifying their leadership in hydrogen fuel cell vehicles now that the demand for hydrogen energy is growing worldwide. Nevertheless, these companies have had to rely on very expensive and imported hydrogen sensors in order to ensure the safety of their products.”He added: “We are working on developing additional technologies to ensure the broad application of our new invention to hydrogen monitoring systems. Such systems have a wide array of potential applications in all hydrogen-using industries and sectors, including energy infrastructure, semiconductors, and petrochemicals.”The team’s study was made possible with the support of the Energy Technology Development Program of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy and Korea Institute of Energy Technology Evaluation and Planning, as well as the Research Support Program for New Researchers with Advanced Overseas Accomplishments, Basic Research Support Program, and BK21 Four Program of the Ministry of Science and ICT and National Research Foundation of Korea. The team has been granted a patent for their sensor in Korea, and their applications for patents worldwide are in progress.Image of Prof. Seo Hyung-tak and his team’s hydrogen sensor shown at CES 2021
-
28
- 작성자OI***
- 작성일2021-02-23
- 3711
- 동영상동영상
-
A team of researchers led by those affiliated with the Ajou School of Medicine has demonstrated the existence of a chemical shield that protects tumor cells against attacks by immune cells, revealing a pathway to a new potential tumor treatment strategy.The team, led by Prof. Park Tae-jun (Dept. of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology), Prof. Kim Jang-hee (Dept. of Pathology), and Prof. Choi Yong-won (Dept. of Oncology-Hematology), has found that senescent tumor cells found in colorectal cancer serve to prevent immune cells from infiltrating the tumor, rendering them ineffective and thereby promoting the progression of colorectal cancer. The team’s findings were published in a paper entitled “Senescent Tumor Cells Build a Cytokine Shield in Colorectal Cancer” in the January 4 issue of Advanced Science.Senescent cells no longer grow and multiply, but still secrete a variety of substances. Micro-environmental changes associated with diverse illnesses have been attributed to the strong metabolic activities of these senescent cells. Until now, however, little had been known about how these old cells affect cancerous growths.Having verified the presence of senescent tumor cells in a surgically extracted specimen of colorectal cancer, the Ajou researchers observed that, the greater the number of senescent tumor cells found in a specimen, the slower the penetration of cytotoxic T-cells. The researchers also assayed the secretions found on the surfaces of senescent tumor cells and identified two specific cytokines responsible for the function of immune cells.The researchers demonstrated that CXCL12, a chemokine, inhibits the infiltration of cytotoxic T-cells into tumor cells, while CSF1, a cytokine, catalyzes the differentiation of macrophages that induce this immunosuppressant effect, thereby undermining the functioning of cytotoxic T-cells. They also found that, by inhibiting CXCL12 alone in mice with colorectal cancer, cytotoxic T-cells infiltrate the tumor cells far better, significantly inhibiting tumor growth.Concluding that senescent tumor cells in colorectal cancer can affect the progression of the cancer, the researchers expressed hope that their findings will “aid research and lead to the development of a new treatment strategy for colorectal cancer, which is quite resistant to immunotherapy, by targeting senescent tumor cells or the secretions they produce to inhibit immunotherapy.”This study was made possible with the support of the University-Centered Research Lab Support Program and Basic Research Program of the Ministry of Education, the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF), and the Bio and Medical Technology Development Program (for the Enhancement of Clinician Scientists’ Research Capabilities) of the Ministry of Science and ICT and the NRF.Immunosuppressant function of senescent tumor cells in colorectal cancer# Pictured from left to right: Prof. Park Tae-jun (Dept. of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology), Prof. Kim Jang-hee (Dept. of Pathology), and Prof. Choi Yong-won (Dept. of Oncology-Hematology).
-
26
- 작성자OI***
- 작성일2021-02-23
- 3528
- 동영상동영상
-
Prof. Yoo Young-dong’s team has developed new mixed-dimensional in-plane heterostructures, generating hopes for the invention of a new core material for flexible and transparent electric and energy semiconductors.The team, led by Prof. Yoo (Dept. of Chemistry, pictured) has found a new method for synthesizing mixed-dimensional in-plane heterostructures, and published their findings under the title, “Mixed-Dimensional In-Plane Heterostructures from 1D Mo6Te6 and 2D MoTe2 Synthesized by Te-Flux-Controlled Chemical Vapor Deposition” in Small, an international nanoscience journal. Kim Hyeon-kyeong, currently in the combined postgraduate program at Ajou University, is listed as the first author on this paper that went on to be featured on the journal’s November 26 issue.Chalcogen compounds, used in two-dimensional semiconductors, promise utility as materials for next-generation electric and energy semiconductors for wearable devices and rollable displays as the rollable and transparent compounds possess superior electric and optic properties. However, the significant contact resistance that arises when these compounds and metallic electrodes are combined to create two-dimensional semiconductors has consistently limited compound performance.Prof. Yoo’s team used the chemical vapor deposition method (i.e., depositing films on semiconductors and metals through the vaporization of precursors with heat or plasma) to control the dimensions of the synthetic materials to be created, as the method using is suited to controlling the flux of precursors. As a result, the researchers were able to synthesize mixed-dimensional metal-semiconductor heterostructures. The metallic molybdenum telluride (Mo6Te6) on the first dimension is combined horizontally with the semiconductor-like molybdenum ditelluride (MoTe2) on the second dimension to create these novel structures. The team’s discovery provides new clues to the solution for minimizing contact resistance. A precursor refers to a material that transforms into a desired substance through chemical reactions.The team, moreover, has demonstrated the specific mechanism for synthesizing low-dimensional substances through flux control. When the amount of tellurium (Te) supplied per unit of time remains small, one-dimensional Mo6Te6 is synthesized with molybdenum (Mo) and Te atoms matched in an equal ratio. When the amount of Te supply per unit of time increases, two-dimensional MoTe2 is obtained, with double the amount of Te atoms bonding with Mo atoms. This mechanism can help synthesize not only mixed-dimensional materials, but also either one-dimensional or two-dimensional materials. The diverse low-dimensional materials so synthesized can be applied to electronics, optoelectronics, and catalysts.Prof. Yoo remarked: “The synthesis mechanism we have discovered is simple and expandable, and is therefore expected to help create much more diverse mixed-dimensional heterostructures. I expect these new synthetic structures to become core materials for making flexible and transparent next-generation electronic and energy semiconductors.”The study has been conducted with support from the Ministry of Science and ICT and the National Research Foundation of Korea’s New Researcher Support Programs.
-
24
- 작성자OI***
- 작성일2021-02-23
- 3231
- 동영상동영상
-
A team of researchers from Ajou and Konkuk Universities has created a new polymer doping strategy based on their discovery of dynamic and thermodynamic factors affecting polymer doping.Prof. Kim Jong-hyun (Dept. of Applied Chemistry and Biological Engineering and Dept. of Molecular Science and Technology, pictured left) and Prof. Seo Hyung-tak (Dept. of Materials Science and Engineering, pictured right), both from Ajou, teamed up with Konkuk researchers led by Prof. Kim Bong-gi (Dept. of Organic and Nano System Engineering) to conduct the groundbreaking study, which has gone on to appear on the front cover of the December 10 issue of Advanced Materials (IF = 27.398). Professors Kim Jong-hyun, Seo Hyung-tak, and Kim Bong-gi participated as corresponding authors, and Yoon Sang-eun, currently in the combined postgraduate program in the Department of Molecular Science and Technology at Ajou University, was listed as the first author.The title of the study is “Improvement of Electrical Conductivity in Conjugated Polymers through Cascade Doping with Small-Molecular Dopants.”Active research on conjugated polymers for organic semiconductors has led to leaps in the performance of electric charge mobility, but researchers have struggled to achieve the desired high level of conductivity due to the difficulty of creating electric charges through doping that equally affects conductivity.The efficiency of molecular doping is known to be proportional to the energy offset between the highest occupied molecular orbital (HOMO) of the electron-supplying conjugated polymer and the lowest unoccupied molecular orbital (LUMO) of the electron-receiving dopant. In their latest study, the Ajou and Konkuk researchers demonstrated that sequential use of dopants with different LUMOs increases doping efficiency, and were able to achieve the world’s highest level of conductivity for molecular doping—above 600 S/cm—with their strategy.The team has also demonstrated that the low doping efficiency associated with the use of dopants with high energy offsets from conjugated polymers stems from thermodynamics. They discovered that doping efficiency can be dramatically increased when doping is first attempted using a molecular dopant with a low energy offset and superior doping dynamics, followed by the use of a second dopant with a high energy offset. The researchers confirmed that this cascade effect is attributed to the decrease in activation energy needed for molecular doping.Prof. Kim Jong-hyun explained: “Our study provides in-depth insights into the energy orbitals of various molecular dopants, the dynamic and thermodynamic equilibria, and the conductivity of finally doped polymers, as well as an effective polymer doping strategy. Using this kind of strategy can significantly improve the conductivity of organic conductors that has hit an impasse as of late.”The team expects that development of new materials alongside their cascade doping strategy can lead to the discovery of highly flexible and highly elastic organic conductors capable of replacing conventional metal and oxide-film inorganic conductors.<Courtesy of WILEY VCH>
-
22
- 작성자OI***
- 작성일2021-02-23
- 3094
- 동영상동영상
-
Prof. Cho In-sun (Dept. of Materials Science and Engineering, pictured) and his team have discovered a higher-efficiency photocathode capable of producing hydrogen energy from sunlight. The team’s discovery is expected to lead to a variety of economic applications in areas of energy technology where photovoltaic hydrogen generation is needed, such as solar cells and fuel cells.The team’s study on the new photocathode, at least four times more efficient than existing technology, was published in the November issue of Nano Energy (IF = 16.602) and entitled, “High-performance bulky crystalline copper bismuthate photocathode for enhanced solar water splitting.” Listed as authors were Dr. Shin Seong-sik of the Korea Research Institute of Chemical Technology; Seo Gab-kyung and Kim Bit-na, both first authors and currently enrolled in the master’s program at Ajou University; and Hwang Sung-won, a doctoral candidate at Ajou University.The depletion of fossil fuel resources and climate change have led to growing demand for sustainable energy, including solar water splitting technology that generates hydrogen for fuel from sunlight, all without carbon emissions. Researchers working in this field, however, have struggled until recently to improve the efficiency of that process to the extent required for commercialization. Interest has been growing in affordable photo-electrodes capable of absorbing sunlight with great efficiency to generate electric charges.Research on photo-electrode materials has so far been focused on photoanodes capable of generating oxygen from oxides. Interest in photocathodes capable of generating hydrogen directly from water splitting has been comparatively limited. Prof. Cho’s team, however, broke new ground by seizing on a crystalline copper bismuthate photocathode (CuBi₂O₄).Copper bismuthate is the optimal material for photocathodes as it is readily available on the surface of the earth and obtaining it exerts little environmental impact. It also boasts a conduction band conducive to water splitting, an extremely low band gap energy level (1.6 to 1.8 eV) and a high internal voltage (> 1V), raising the theoretically potential photocurrent level to as high as 29 mA/cm². In practice, however, it has been difficult to achieve that potential due to the inferior quality of the actual film that limits electric charge mobility.Prof. Cho’s team found a solution to this problem in the evaporation-decomposition-controlled (EDC) method for producing better-quality films. The EDC process, designed to produce affordable solutions, controls the speed at which the solvent evaporates in the pre-annealing process so as to regulate the density and speed of crystalline grain growth. This process helps produce a dense film consisting of large particles, which significantly improves the mobility of electric charges and doubles the amount of photocurrent obtained. Compared to conventional films produced by electrophoresis or spray-coating, the EDC method increases the film’s photocurrent efficiency fourfold.Prof. Cho’s team was able to demonstrate a high photocurrent density of 3.5 mA/cm2 under standard sunlight conditions by coupling the copper bismuthate photocathode with a copper oxide (CuO) nano-underlayer. The photocurrent density is the highest reported to date.Prof. Cho states: “We still need to further improve efficiency and stability and increase the film’s surface in order to make it viable on the market. We expect additional research will lead us to find ways to improve the productivity and economicity of solar water splitting.”He adds: “Our recent discovery can be expanded into a process for synthesizing various oxide semiconductor films, and may have useful applications in other areas of energy technology, including solar cells and fuel cells.”The study was undertaken with support from the Ministry of Science and ICT and the National Research Foundation of Korea’s support program for experienced researchers.Diagram of the double-bound (CuBi₂O₄ and CuO) photocathode made with the EDC process구리 비스무스 산화물CuBi₂O₄구리산화물CuO투명전극Transparent electrode유리 기판Glass substrateEffect of the CuBi2O4 film made with the EDC process(a)산소기체수소기체백금전극CBO전극(a)Oxygen gasHydrogen gasPlatinum electrodeCBO electrodeEDC 공정 -> Bulky CBO기존 공정 -> 기공 + 불순물EDC process à Bulky CBOConventional process à Porous + polluted(b)광전류(b)Photocurrent(d)이종접합 전극기존 전극 기술x 4배(d)Double-bound electrodeConventional electrodex4
-
20
- 작성자OI***
- 작성일2021-02-23
- 3293
- 동영상동영상