Congratulations Emmanuel

Torben joined the lab to add to the team currently working on CO2 electrolysis, following his PhD that he completed at the Max Planck Institute for Solid State Research in Stuttgart (Germany).

Torben’s background is in characterization and development of hydrocarbon ionomer membranes for PEMFC and PEMWE application, focusing on their balance of properties to combine high performance and durability.

His broader interest lies in functional polymeric materials, electrochemistry, and the renewable energy economy.

I got my Bachelor’s in Chemistry at Michael Okpara University, Nigeria. My research focus was focused on the biosorption of heavy metal ions aqueous solutions using agricultural waste.

I worked as a Quality control chemist in the pharmaceutical industry for about a year and then proceeded to obtain my Masters in Chemistry at Illinois State University. My research was focused on designing metal nanoparticle/polymer nanocomposite as highly stable and efficient quasi-homogeneous catalyst in C-C bond forming reactions.

In my free time, I enjoy cycling and taking photos of beautiful scenery.

Jacob Ronen Keffer obtained his B.Sc. in Chemistry from McMaster University, in Hamilton, Ontario. He worked with Dr. Gillian Goward’s group, using solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance to study sodium-ion battery cathodes.

He is now pursuing his Master’s in Chemistry and is focusing on carbon dioxide reduction. He hopes to apply solid-state NMR methods to polymer membranes.

In his free time, Jacob has been exploring Vancouver and loves hiking, skiing, biking and wants to explore camping and climbing.

I’m a SFU undergraduate majoring in chemistry. I wanted to put my knowledge and abilities in chemistry towards a good cause, so I joined Dr. Holdcroft’s group in the pursuit for stable and effective AEMs that could contribute towards global warming and other hot issues. I enjoy video games, movies, fencing and handwriting.

Anastasiia obtained her B.Sc. from Kyiv Polytechnic Institute (KPI), Ukraine in Chemical Technology. As a participant of Double Degree program, she got her M.Sc. in Environment Engineering from KPI and Korea Institute of Science and Technology. She decided to continue her research journey in Korea and completed Ph.D. program at University of Science and Technology/KIST School.

Her experience is ranging from polymer synthesis to membrane fabrication and full physical/chemical characterization, as well as the application in fuel cells, electrolysers and batteries.

Pete has an MChem from the University of Southampton, UK, and a PhD in PEMFC technology from the Centre for Fuel Cell and Hydrogen Research at the University of Birmingham, UK.

His research interests are in the development and characterisation of new materials for PEMFCs and carbon dioxide electro-reduction cells. In his spare time you will likely find him on the mat training BJJ and Japanese Jiu Jitsu.

Xin completed her B.Sc. degree in chemistry at St. Francis Xavier University focusing on electroactive materials modified carbon-based supercapacitors.

She is now pursuing her graduate study on water electrolysis using proton exchange membranes in Holdcroft’s group.

She is an amateur of Chinese traditional musical instruments and loves cooking in her spare time.

Luigi graduated with a B.Sc. in Industrial Chemistry from the University of Milan (Italy).

His main scientific interests are chemical characterization and learning new analytical techniques. His project focuses on the relationship between the chemical structure of Proton Exchange Membranes (PEM) and their degradation process.

In his free time, he’s the stereotypical geek: he plays videogames, writes fantasy novels and collects random pieces of trivia to impress his friends.

Philip Overton has Chemistry BSc (Imperial College London, UK), MSc Polymer Chemistry (Helsinki University, Finland), and Ph.D Polymer Science (Université Grenoble-Alpes, France).

His research experience is broadly within polymer synthesis and characterisation.

Philip’s present research interest is the structure-property relationships of poly(imidazolium)s for anion transport.

Kate has an MChem from Lancaster University in the UK, with her research focussed upon developing small molecules for solar thermal fuels.

She moved to SFU for a PhD and is currently interested in developing structure – property relationships of poly(imidazolium)s for anion exchange membranes.

In her free time, Kate likes to be exploring BC on her bike or hiking up the mountains.

Binyu graduated with a B. Eng. in Chemical Engineering from East China University of Science and Technology and a M. Sc in Chemistry from Memorial University of Newfoundland.

Before joining Dr. Holdcroft’s group, he worked on developing more efficient anode catalysts for direct ethanol fuel cells.

Now, he starts to study the water electrolysis on our anion exchange membrane (HMT-PMBI). In his free time, you may find him in the gym.

Sidney is a first year graduate student in the Holdcroft Lab interested in characterizing the ionic conductivity and permselectivity on anion exchange membranes.

She received a B.S. in Chemistry from the University of Waterloo in 2017 where she worked in Jean Duhamel’s lab during her thesis project and proved the ability of using Model Free Analysis (MFA).

In her spare time, Sidney enjoys playing piano, skiing and is a food lover.

Emmanuel got his bachelors degree in Engineering Physics at Obafemi Awolowo University, his research focus was on Dye Sensitised Solar Cells (DSSC).

He went on to work in the industry for two years before obtaining his M.Sc degree in Electrical Engineering at the University of Cape Town focusing on PFSA catalyst coated membranes for PEMFC performance enhancement.

Emmanuel is a huge lover of nature and wildlife photography and in his spare time likes to teach life skills to kids.

Apurva is a visiting research student in Holdcroft’s group. 

She completed her MSc in Energy Science from IIT Bombay, her masters project focused on the mechanism(s) of hydrogen sorption in metal hydrides. Currently she is continuing her PhD at IIT Bombay.

Her current research project in Holdcroft’s group focuses on the analysis of transport properties in ion exchange membranes.

Apurva loves to paint in her spare time and is fond of Madhubani paintings.