Center for Fueling the Future
NSF Chemical Bonding Center
The Center for Fueling the Future carries out research that addresses fundamental aspects of proton transport, the molecular-level process that underlies the functioning of a central component of fuel cells. An important application of our research is the design of better fuel cell membranes.
Our goal is to improve the function and efficiency of today’s fuel cells and lead the way toward meeting the worldwide technological challenge of developing this sustainable, domestic source of energy.
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| (L-R) Prof. Scott Auerbach , Julia Kumpf (undergrad), Usha Viswanathan (grad student), and Prof. Justin Fermann. |
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Scott Auerbach, Ph.D.
Department of Chemistry
Julia Kumpf (undergrad), Usha Viswanathan (grad student), Prof. Justin Fermann and Prof. Scott Auerbach are working on molecular modeling of proton transfer in molecules and materials, with the goal of making better and more efficient fuel cells. Our job is to make molecular "movies" of how protons move (hop) from one location to another, kind of like a frog jumping from one lily pad to another in a stream.
Our goal is two-fold: (1) to suggest to the synthetic chemists in our team which chemical ("functional") groups would be best for making efficient fuel cell proton exchange membranes; and 2) to explain the vibrational motions of the jumping proton as measured by Yale spectroscopists in our team, Prof. Mark Johnson and coworkers.
To accomplish this goal, our modeling work breaks up into two steps: (1) apply quantum chemistry methods to compute the energies of proton transfer by sampling many different proton locations along its jumps; and (2) applying quantum statistical theories to predict likely vibrational motions and average "dwell times" on each lily pad before proton jumps.
Our modeling complements the experiments in the CBC team by providing detailed microscopic pictures of proton dynamics that shed light on the experiments that measure proton vibrations and conductivity in real materials. |
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| (L-R) Sam Bernard, Witold Witkowski, Elih Velazquez, Jeanne Hardy, all members of Team 2 from the Hardy Lab, cluster around the chromatography equipment while purifying expressed peptides. |
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Jeanne A. Hardy, Ph.D.
Department of Chemistry
Proteins have amazing properties as catalysts, transporters and scaffolds. Expertise in the Hardy lab lies in the design and expression of proteins for many uses. Our interest is in utilizing proteins as scaffolds and model systems to allow us to better understand proton transfer and conductance. As part of Fueling the Future, we work with Mike Barnes and D. “D.V.” Venkatraman to measure proton transport along a series of helical scaffolds we have designed. We chose peptides to serve as scaffolds because their defined molecular architecture allows both the rate and the path of proton transfer along these scaffolds to be studied. Because peptide structures can be predicted or determined experimentally, it gives us a tremendous tool for watching protons move along a series of proton transporting moieties. Other areas of current energy research in our lab involve redesigning proton transporting peptides for green energy solutions, such as in hydrogen
fuel cells. |
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| Highlights |
Published in Nature Nanotechnology
Savariar and Krishnamoorthy in the Thayumanavan group develop a platform technology for functionalizing nanoporous membranes... more
Schematic illustration of functionalization of the nanoporous membranes with polymers. The polycarbonate membrane included a layer of PVP functionalities in the walls of the nanopores. Immersion in SnCl2 led to Sn2+ ions (green) to be coordinated in the pores. Subsequent filtration of an anionic polymer solution resulted in the polymer (red) adhering to the Sn2+ ions. (Image created by graduate student Akamol Klaikherd.)
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UMass Amherst launched national fuel cell research center with National Science Foundation Grant ...more |
| Block copolymers continue to garner significant interest ...more |
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