NEWS

Finally, after hundreds of hours of work in total, the Pioneer consortium proudly presents the Pioneer Database (PDB)! The PDB is filled with experimental data collected from literature on the performance of plasma(-catalytic) conversion of CO₂. It is open-access and allows the community to put their own results into context and to deduce underlying trends. Furthermore, researchers are invited to provide their own published results to the PDB to increase the visibility of their work but also to make the tool even more powerful. For all the details also check our publication on the PDB!

Shortly before the summer break, on July 3 2023, Omar Biondo successfully defended his PhD thesis titled “Towards a fundamental understanding of energy-efficient, plasma-based CO₂ conversion”. He thereby received his PhD degree from University of Antwerp and Eindhoven University of Technology (the work was partly carried out at DIFFER). Congratulation Dr. Biondo!

Yet another PhD! Minh Nguyen-Quang defended his thesis titled “Efficient catalyst preparation for plasma-assisted CO₂ methanation.” on May 2 2023 and was awarded the PhD degree from University of Caen and AGH Univiversity of Science and Technology, Krakow. Congratulations Dr. Nguyen-Quang!

On April 28 2023, Carolina Garcia Soto defended her thesis titled “Fundamental study of plasma-catalytic surface interactions for CO₂ conversion and application of fluidized bed reactors” and obtained her PhD degree from École Polytechnique as well as University of Bucharest. Congratulations Dr. Garcia Soto!

Recently, Pioneer supervisor Dr. Ana Sobota gave an interview for the Eindhoven Institute for Renewable Energy Systems (EIRES) at Eindhoven University of Technology (TU/e). EIRES is the TU/e’s answer to the challenge of the energy transition. Dr. Sobota introduced the Pioneer project with focus on the work done in Eindhoven.

Since last week we have another doctor in the consortium! On April 14 2023, Chloé Fromentin defended her thesis, titled “Reaction mechanism for CO₂-N₂ low-temperature plasmas: the role played by O₂ and N₂ on the CO₂ vibrational kinetics and dissociation”, and obtained her PhD degree from IST of University of Lisbon with distinction. Congratulations Dr. Fromentin!

Beatrice Musig has won the Best Poster Award at 2023 MCAA Annual Conference and General Assembly with her poster “Synergy of non-thermal plasma with Ni/CeO₂ catalysts for CO₂ recycling”. Congratulations!

When it comes to dissemination, the first thing that comes to mind in a project like Pioneer is probably publishing in academic journals or contributions to conferences. However, at the front of an innovative topic like plasma catalysis, patents are also very interesting. Recently, Minh Nguyen Quang and co-workers filed patent FR2210833 in France. This is the first patent of the Pioneer project. Congratulations!

While the end of the PIONEER project might cause mixed feelings, it also means that one after another the ESRs obtain their PhD degrees – without a doubt a very important moment in their lives. Already last December, Golshid Hasrack obtained her PhD from Sorbonne University and IST of University of Lisbon. She defended her thesis, titled “Tailoring selectivity with different plasma sources for CO₂ hydrogenation” on December 7 2022. Congratulations Dr. Hasrack!

From September 13 to 15 the Pioneer project reached one of the final mile stones: The organization of our own scientific conference! During the International Symposium Plasma Catalysis for CO2 Recycling at AGH university in Krakow, Poland not only all ESRs shared their work but also plenty of colleagues and friends from the CO2 plasma catalysis community. The fact that our field is not only fascinating but also represents an enormous economic potential was underlined by various participants from industry, in particular innovative start-ups.

The conference was followed by the last official Pioneer meeting. The project is coming to an end and we used this opportunity to recall the past, identify current opportunities and look ahead at a time after Pioneer with continued collaboration. Maybe even a Pioneer 2.0? Stay tuned!