Science and Health duo funded under SFI National Challenge Fund

Dr Mary Pryce, School of Chemical Sciences and Dr Rob O¡¯Connor, School of Physical Sciences will collaborate on developing a new, more sustainable electrolyser, to split water, and produce green hydrogen. Simon Harris TD, Minister for Further Education, Research, Innovation and Science today announced the first 26 teams, including the faculty duo, who will receive funding under the €65 million Challenge Fund. ¡°In this project, green hydrogen will be produced by electrolysis - the splitting of water into hydrogen and oxygen,¡± says Dr Pryce. This will be done by harnessing renewable electricity from wind or solar energy. ¡°Green hydrogen is produced with zero associated carbon dioxide emissions,¡± says Dr Pryce. Ireland has stringent climate action and decarbonisation targets to meet by 2050. The SFI 2050 Challenge addresses these by providing funding for researchers in Ireland to identify innovative ways to reach them. ¡°Traditionally electrolysers use precious metals such as platinum, which is rated as a critical raw material by the EU,¡± says Dr Pryce. ¡°We propose to replace platinum with synthetically designed materials (in our labs at DCU) based on more commonplace and cheaper metals.¡± ¡°We are excited to be part of the solution to decarbonise the Irish economy and society,¡± says Dr Pryce. The 26 winning teams, including the DCU team, will be provided with the chance to grow and scale their activities through follow-on funding in future phases, ranging from €500,000 to €2 million. The next teams to join the challenges will be announced in June.