ABSTRACT: 

Hydrogen plays an important role as clean energy carrier for our future sustainable energy economy. Functional materials are key elements for efficient renewable production and reversible storage of hydrogen. Regarding hydrogen production, certain nanocrystalline semiconductors are photocatalytically active and can be used for solar water splitting in photo-electrochemical cells. With respect to hydrogen storage, solid metal hydrides offer a safe and energy-efficient solution for stationary as well as mobile applications. Recent research progress in tailoring materials and device fabrication as well as scale-up opportunities for technology implementation will be presented. 

BIO: 

Thomas Klassen is currently visiting Thayer via a Harris German-Dartmouth Fellowship. In Germany, he holds a shared professorship as director of the Institute for Materials Technology at the Helmholtz-Zentrum Geesthacht (national Research Center) and as director of the Institute of Materials Technology at Helmut Schmidt University / University of the Federal Armed Forces Hamburg. His research focuses on renewable energies, in particular hydrogen technology for sustainable energy concepts, as well as cold spray technology for surface coatings and additive manufacturing, covering the basic mechanisms as well as applications and the development of demonstrators and equipment. Thomas Klassen has published more than 150 peer-review papers (H-Factor 38) and over 20 patents, and he has presented more than 60 invited and keynote lectures. He is co-founder of the company KSS-Kinetic Spray Solutions GmbH in Buchholz.