Professor of Chemistry Ben Wiley was honored with the Cleantech Research Innovation Award at the Research Triangle Cleantech Cluster (RTCC)’s annual awards ceremony.
The Cleantech Research Innovation Award recognizes an individual or team from industry or within an institution of higher education that is pursuing a research-based solution to a pressing cleantech challenge.
Wiley’s work is focused on the reduction of industrial carbon emissions through the production of green hydrogen. Carbon emissions from the industrial sector accounts for 30% of U.S. emissions. These emissions can be greatly reduced through the use of “green” hydrogen, i.e., hydrogen produced via the electrolysis of water with renewable energy. The problem with green hydrogen is its high cost.
Wiley and his research group have focused on decreasing the cost of green hydrogen by greatly increasing the productivity of the electrolyzer. Their approach has developed low-cost, microfiber-based electrodes that operate in a novel liquid alkaline electrolyzer. Experimental results have demonstrated the potential for this device to achieve a threefold reduction in the cost of green hydrogen over conventional alkaline electrolysis.
This research has been supported by multiple sources at Duke University: the Bass Connections Program, the Climate Research Innovation Seed Program (CRISP) and the Office of Technology Commercialization.
The Research Triangle Cleantech Cluster is a not-for-profit organization supporting a network of members working to create sustainable communities through cleantech innovation and adoption. It aims at leveraging the unique concentration of industry, academic, and government leaders in the Research Triangle to create benefits through innovation, deployment, and talent in North Carolina and beyond.
Content adapted from Wiley’s nomination for RTCC Cleantech Research Innovation Award