Young investigator research group on electrocatalysis at HZB
Dr. Michelle Browne (here at her graduation ceremony in Dublin) starts now a Young Investigator Group at HZB. © privat
Dr. Michelle Browne establishes her own young investigator group at the HZB . Starting in August, the group is co-funded by the Helmholtz Association for the next five years. The electrochemist from Ireland concentrates on electrolytically active novel material systems and wants to develop next-generation electrocatalysts, for example hydrogen production. At HZB she will find the perfect environment to conduct her research.
Michelle Browne received her PhD in 2016 from the University of Dublin, Trinity College Dublin (TCD), Ireland. She held research fellow positions at universities in Belfast, Prague, and Dublin. She has received prestigious fellowships and awards, for example the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Individual Fellowship, L’Oreal UNESCO Rising Talent UK & Ireland Fellowship and the Clara Immerwahr Award.
Her research focuses on the synthesis of novel catalytically active materials such as transition metal oxides and MXenes. She aims to characterise and optimise these material systems in order to develop next-generation electrolyzer materials that can also be upscaled for industrial use, in order to produce green hydrogen.
Electrocatalysis: Synthesis to Devices
Michelle Browne's research project fits perfectly with the research projects already underway at the Institute for Solar Fuels and within CatLab. "At HZB, I have a wide variety of investigation methods at my disposal, from scanning electron microscopy to the various instruments at BESSY II, which also allow operando analyses," she says.
Michelle Browne's affiliation with the Technische Universität Berlin in the Institute of Chemistry is planned. Starting in the fall, Browne will recruit postdocs and PhD students to join her team.
- Photovoltaic living lab reaches the 100 Megawatt-hour markAbout three years ago, the living laboratory at HZB went into operation. Since then, the photovoltaic facade has been generating electricity from sunlight. On September 27, 2024, it reached the milestone of 100 megawatt-hours.
- Postdocs at HZB: Crucial for research, innovation and diversityAt HZB, 117 postdocs from 29 countries are employed. They play a crucial role in driving the main research activities, fostering creativity and innovation. To honor them, the Postdoc Appreciation Week was first organised in the USA in 2009 and has in the meantime become a regular event in Germany as well in the third week of September every year.
- Green hydrogen: MXenes shows talent as catalyst for oxygen evolutionThe MXene class of materials has many talents. An international team led by HZB chemist Michelle Browne has now demonstrated that MXenes, properly functionalised, are excellent catalysts for the oxygen evolution reaction in electrolytic water splitting. They are more stable and efficient than the best metal oxide catalysts currently available. The team is now extensively characterising these MXene catalysts for water splitting at the Berlin X-ray source BESSY II and Soleil Synchrotron in France.