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September 7, 2021

Break-through green hydrogen research takes out top spot at Three Minute Thesis Final

PhD candidate presents innovative solution ready to commercialise

A researcher developing more efficient and cost-effective hydrogen production has taken out top spot at this year鈥檚 UOW Three Minute Thesis (3MT) Final, hosted by UOW鈥檚 Graduate Research School.

In just under three minutes, PhD Candidate, Aaron Hodges, from UOW鈥檚 Intelligent Polymer Research Institute (IPRI) at the Australian Institute for Innovative Materials (AIIM), presented his thesis 鈥淕reen Hydrogen vs Bubbles鈥�. He was awarded the overall winner during the virtual UOW 3MT Final, held on Wednesday, 25 August.

Aaron鈥檚 passion for creating a more sustainable future has driven his research to find a more innovative solution to unlock renewable energy and drive greenhouse gases down.

Electrolysers use electricity to split water into hydrogen and oxygen and are the key technology for producing green hydrogen.

鈥淚'm working on an electrolyser that is simple and highly efficient, bringing large scale adoption a step closer,鈥� Aaron said.

鈥淚 am particularly interested in practical innovation that will bring forward hydrogen deployment and integration.鈥�

This purpose led Aaron to quit his career to pursue further study, leading to the creation of UOW spin-out company Hysata. Launched in June, Hysata is commercialising the break-through Australian electrolyser technology. Aaron is part of the team from UOW鈥檚 that developed the technology, led by chemical catalysis and characterisation expert .  

Aaron believes Australia is the perfect place to launch the company, as efficiency, capital expenditure and the price of electricity are driving the adoption of hydrogen.   

鈥淗ysata will produce green hydrogen that is environmentally desirable and commercially indispensable. If we succeed the implications are truly mind-boggling,鈥� Aaron said.

This year, the 3MT final featured two PhD researchers from each faculty, and two from the Australian Institute for Innovative Materials (AIIM), showcasing their innovative research solutions to solve some wicked problems.

Originally developed by the 榴莲视频app of Queensland (UQ), 3MT cultivates candidates鈥� academic, presentation, and research communication skills. The finalists shared their research through engaging three-minute presentations, in non-specialist language with the assistance of only one PowerPoint slide.

^{Picture: PhD candidate Alice O鈥橩eefe, from the Faculty of Engineering and Information Sciences, and PhD candidate Usman Khalil, from the Faculty of Engineering and Information Sciences.}

Alice O鈥橩eefe, from the Faculty of Engineering and Information Sciences, was awarded the inaugural Community Award for her presentation, 鈥淗ow to cook cancer with magnets鈥�. She is making nanomaterials that can be used in a novel heat-based cancer therapy. Alice hopes that her research will improve the lives of patients with brain tumours that are hard to target.

The People鈥檚 Choice Award went to Usman Khalil, from the Faculty of Engineering and Information Sciences, for his presentation, 鈥淐oastal storage to achieve sustainable development goal 6鈥�. He is investigating water resources engineering and flood water storage solutions to mitigate disasters.

The MC for the 3MT Final, the Dean of Graduate Research, Professor Clive Baldock from the Graduate Research School congratulated the finalists and believes the skills learnt during the competition will be a huge benefit into the future.

鈥淎cross the 10 finalists, it was fantastic to see how our exceptional PhD researchers have been able to create and inspire meaningful impact in our communities. I have no doubt that these researchers are the next generation of changemakers.鈥�

UOW Vice-Chancellor Professor Patricia M. Davidson participated as a judge at the final and said the competition offered the opportunity to celebrate UOW鈥檚 incredible PhD candidates and their research endeavours.

鈥淭he Three Minute Thesis final is a celebration of the critical thinking and cutting-edge innovation of the researchers at UOW,鈥� Professor Davidson said.

鈥淚t is within universities that we have the power, passion and purpose to make a difference in the world. I congratulate the winners, each were inspirational and motivational.鈥�

As the winner Aaron Hodges will represent UOW at the 2021 Virtual Asia-Pacific 3MT competition, hosted by The 榴莲视频app of Queensland on Wednesday, 20 October.

 

^{Main picture: PhD candidate Aaron Hodges, from UOW鈥檚 Intelligent Polymer Research Institute (IPRI) at the Australian Institute for Innovative Materials (AIIM)}