Rapidly increasing consumption of carbon-based fuels as well as the resultant carbon dioxide emissions, air pollution, and economic issues pose environmental pollution issues. These can cause global greenhouse effects and adverse dangers to the human health. Hydrogen is a clean and renewable energy which when burnt or used in fuel cells can produce only water vapor with heat as the byproduct. Thus, it is safe as it cannot contribute to climate changes. Hydrogen can be produced from a variety of sources including water and renewable energy sources like wind solar power. In my laboratory we are working on the rational design of new efficient materials to improve the production of hydrogen gas. We have developed hybrid materials with titanium dioxide and other photocatalysts that can help to produce hydrogen as well as toxic material removal from wastewater sources. I will present also some results related to heterostructures and nanohybrids as photocatalysts for hydrogen production.

Contact: Michael Badawi