News at Department of Chemistry - Ångström

Prof. Erik Johansson and his research group, at the Department of Chemistry at the Ångström Laboratory, focuses on solar cells. With the help of quantum dots, they have showed that you can make a kind of super light, flexible and environmentally friendly solar cells. 

The EU is investing over SEK 1.5 billion in battery research via the Battery 2030+ project, which is led by Prof. Kristina Edström at the Department of Chemistry - Ångström. The project has been going on for three years and is now moving on to the next stage. The aim is to make Europe a world leader in the development and production of batteries that are environmentally and lifetime sustainable, safe and efficient. 

Regeringen besökte Ångströmlaboratoriet torsdagen den 7 september och presenterade då en satsning på bl.a. batteriforskning som kommer att innebär ökade forskningsanslag till Uppsala och den forskning som Prof. Daniel Brandell bedriver inom forskningsprogrammet för strukturkemi på Institutionen för kemi - Ångström.

A unique hybrid truck with a trailer covered in solar panels is now being tested on public roads. This is a result of a two-year research project, run by Prof. Erik Johansson at Physical Chemistry. 

Each year, Uppsala University presents distinguished teaching awards for outstanding contributions in undergraduate education according to specific nomination categories. Senior Lecturer Christer Elvingson, Physical Chemistry, has been awarded the 2023 Distinguished Teaching Award in Mathematics, Natural Sciences and Technology.

Henrik Ottosson and Pia Lindberg, together with their research groups at the Department of Chemistry - Ångström, have found that isoprene - which is produced by cyanobacteria (so-called blue-green algae), with the help of sunlight, water and carbon dioxide - can be part of the solution in the search for fossil-free aviation fuel. 

Research.com has published a ranking list of the most outstanding researchers, nationally and internationally, in various research fields. Two of the researchers at the Department of Chemistry - Ångström are included in the top-15 list in Sweden, within both Chemistry and Materials science. 

A new method for extracting hydrogen from air has been discovered by Gustav Berggren's research group within the Molecular Biomimetics research programme at the Department of Chemistry - Ångström, Uppsala University, in collaboration with other researchers from Australia and UK, among others. The discovery could reduce dependence on fossil fuels. The research results have been published in Nature.

The material perovskite has attracted attention for its ability to produce lightweight, flexible and cheaper solar cells. Prof. Gerrit Boschloo, at the Physical Chemistry research programme, has received the "Attractive Innovation Project" award from Uppsala University Innovation (UU Innovation) for his method of manufacturing a solar cell module in which perovskite solar cells are connected in an efficient way. The manufacturing method has been patented and transferred to a company for further development and commercialization.

Six researchers at the Department of Chemistry - Ångström have been awarded funding from the Knut and Alice Wallenberg Foundation's new investment in research for a sustainable society, the WISE project. 

Anders Hagfeldt, who is a Professor in Physical Chemistry and also the Vice-Chancellor of Uppsala University, is one of the most cited researchers in the world. 

Each year, Ny Teknik (New Technology, a weekly Swedish magazine) lists the most innovative and promising young Swedish technology start-up companies for the year in something called "the 33-list". This year, two companies founded by researchers at the department are once again included on the list: Peafowl Plasmonics and Altris - for the second and third year in a row! 

Can nature's own processes be used to create new carbon dioxide-neutral fuels? Yes, that's what researchers Pia Lindberg and Leif Hammarström think at the research programmes for Molecular Biomimetics and Physical Chemistry at the Department of Chemistry - Ångström at Uppsala University. 

PhD student Robin Dürr, within the research programme for physical chemistry at the Department of Chemistry - Ångström, hopes with his new patent-pending manufacturing method for membrane electrode assemblies (MEA) to accelerate the use of electrochemical cells (e.g. fuel cells) and the transition to renewable energy sources. 

Altris, a startup company from the Department of Chemistry - Ångström, is investing in the production of cathode materials for sodium ion batteries in its own new factory in Sandviken.

How does a Pelletron Accelerator work? And how can it help Prof. Sascha Ott, within the research programme for Synthetic Molecular Chemistry at the Department of Chemistry - Ångström, in his research on hydrogen production and artificial photosynthesis? 

Lithium-sulfur is a type of battery that could challenge the Lithium-ion battery as more energy can be stored, but which currently does not measure up due to the battery's short lifespan. Now, Prof. Daniel Brandell's research group, within the research programme for Structural Chemistry at the Department of Chemistry - Ångström, together with researchers from Scania and the Laue-Langevin Institute, has succeeded in identifying some of the bottlenecks. 

This autumn, a brand new master's programme is offered at the Department of Chemistry - Ångström Laboratory at Uppsala University: The Master's Programme in Battery Technology and Energy Storage. In the field of battery technology, this is Sweden's first education and the Nordic region's first master's education. The training is carried out in collaboration with Northvolt and Volvo. 

Every year, the Uppsala Municipality awards gold medals of honor to a small number of Uppsala residents for their valuable services to the municipality or who in some other way are considered to have earned the municipality's award.

This year, Prof. Kristina Edström, at the research programme for structural chemistry at the Department of Chemistry - Ångström, is honored by being awarded a medal "for her many years of research and science in chemistry and with her leadership and world-leading research on next generation batteries - a necessity for energy storage in a fossil-free society - inspires researchers in Uppsala, within the EU and around the world ". 

Prof. Johannes Messinger, within the molecular biomimetics research programme at the Department of Chemistry - Ångström at Uppsala University, is researching a new method for producing fossil-free ammonia (NH3) from water and nitrogen using renewable energy. 

Professor Kristina Edström, working within the Structural Chemistry research programme at the Department of Chemistry - Ångström, has been appointed as the 2021 recipient of the Björkén Prize. The prize is one of Uppsala University's greatest scientific prizes for outstanding research. Kristina Edström receives the award for her world-leading battery research. 

Senior lecturer Erik Lewin, within the research programme for Inorganic Chemistry at the Department of Chemistry - Ångström, has received an award for his "considerable pedagogical skill and clarity" from the student association K-section.

Henrik Land, within Molecular Biomimetics at Department of Chemistry - Ångström, has received a large Emerging Investigator grant of approx. 11 million SEK from the Novo Nordisk foundation for his project "Biocatalytic fixation of carbon dioxide – Biodiversity and evolvability of present day carbon monoxide dehydrogenase and its ancestors". 

Ben Johnson and Nicolas D'Imperio, two former PhD students in Prof. Sascha Ott's research group within the Synthetic Molecular Chemistry research programme at the Department of Chemistry - Ångström, who defended their dissertations in 2020 are now both awarded for their respective PhD theses. 

Prof. Kristina Edström, at the Department of Chemistry - Ångström, Structural Chemistry, has been elected to the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, KVA.

Batteriforskning är en viktig pusselbit för att kunna ställa om till förnybar energi och ett mer hållbart samhälle. Prof. Daniel Brandell och Prof. Kristina Edström vid Institutionen för kemi – Ångström ingår i Nordens största forskargrupp inom området. Här forskas det om framtidens batterier – som bland annat kan användas för att driva fordon och lagra energi. 

Hydrogen for energy use can be extracted in an environmentally friendly way from water and sunlight, using photocatalytic composite polymer nanoparticles developed by Haining Tian's research group within the Physical Chemistry research programme at the Department of Chemistry - Ångström. 

The decision regarding the appointment of Vice-Chancellor that we have been waiting for since June, when the recruitment group and the Consistory decided that Prof. Anders Hagfeldt would be appointed Vice-Chancellor, has now been announced: On November 20, the Government decided that Anders Hagfeldt will be the new Vice-Chancellor of Uppsala University from 1 January, 2021.

Hydrogen gas and methanol are currently produced mainly from fossil sources, such as oil or natural gas. A more environmentally and climate-friendly alternative is to produce these substances from water and carbon dioxide using sustainable electricity. Prof. Sascha Ott and co-workers at Synthetic Molecular Chemistry have now developed a new material that is needed in the process - by using sunlight as a complement to electricity. The study is published in the journal Nature Communications.

Kristina Edström, battery researcher and professor of inorganic chemistry here at the Department of Chemistry – Ångström Laboratory at Uppsala University, is one of four 2020 gold medallists honoured by the Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences (IVA) for outstanding achievements within engineering, economics, business and industry, and society.

Professor Jacinto Sá och Cristina Paun har tillsammans skapat företaget Peafowl Solar Power, deras huvuduppgift är att skapa så effektiva solceller som möjligt, utan att kompromissa med utseendet. Det har lett till världens första transparenta solcell.

Solar cells on trucks to reduce carbon dioxide emissions is one of the collaborative projects that Vinnova is focusing on in its Challenge-Driven Innovation initiative. Erik Johansson, Professor at the Department of Chemistry – Ångström, is leading the project.

Jacinto Sá and Cristina Paun together lead Peafowl Solar Power, a startup that recently won an award for its efforts in aiding the climate.

Every year, Ny Teknik (New Technology) lists the most innovative and promising young technology companies for the year. And this year, THREE companies founded by researchers at the Department of Chemistry - Ångström are included in the list: Peapowl Solar Power and Altris, both new on the list, and Graphmatech who made it to the list in 2019 as well. 

The European research initiative BATTERY 2030+ is now getting going. The ambition is to make Europe a world-leader in the development and production of the batteries of the future. These batteries need to store more energy, have a longer life, and be safer and more environmentally friendly than today’s batteries in order to facilitate the transition to a more climate-neutral society. The project is led from Uppsala University.

Chao Zhang, assistant professor at the Structural Chemistry program was awarded ERC StG 2020 from European Research Council. His project DeepProton is on the development of new computational techniques for modelling electrified metal oxide nanostructures in electrochemical systems.

Congratulations Chao!

Daniel Brandell, professor vid strukturkemi här på kemi - Ångström, får 10 miljoner kronor för forskning om återuppladningsbara batterier. Totalt sex projekt från svenska universitet tilldelas 10 miljoner kronor vardera inom Stiftelsen för strategisk forsknings (SSF) svensk-taiwanesiska samarbetsavtal.

By using x-ray absorption in studies of nitrogen gas, and starting from an ion rather than from a neutral molecule one may get out much more detailed information. It is possible to make deeper analyses than what the established ESCA-method has made possible. This shows a new study from, among others, Uppsala University published in Physical Review Letters.

Ett hållbart samhälle kräver hållbara, säkra och kostnadseffektiva batterier. Nu har utvecklingsbolaget Altris tillsammans med forskare vid Institutionen för kemi - Ångström och battericellsbolaget LiFeSiZE knäckt koden.

Because of the current situation that the world is in, many people work from home and might want to take online courses to increase their competence in certain areas. A course that is sought after by both the public and students is a course on batteries for electric vehicles.

Hundreds of protective face shields, face masks, safety glasses, aprons and bottles of hand sanitiser from Uppsala University were delivered to Uppsala University Hospital on Friday afternoon, in response to the acute shortage of certain items of personal protective equipment at the emergency services centre ahead of the weekend.

Jacinto Sá from Physical Chemistry is one of the researchers involved in finding a less toxic blue dye. The research has quickly gotten worldwide spread and getting articles written in reputable newspapers like the NY Times.

Each year, the Göran Gustafsson Foundation give out several awards, one in particular is called the grand prize.

Watch the clip about our battery research, with Kristina Edström, Daniel Brandell and more.

Intresset för framtidens batterier är större än någonsin och Ångström Advanced Battery Centre (ÅABC) här på institutionen för kemi - Ångström är nordens största batterigrupp. Erik Berg är biträdande lektor och forskar inom ÅABC.