Nasim Hyder

Postdoctoral Fellow
Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering  (2008)
University of Waterloo

Carbon-based Nanomaterials for Environmental Applications

The unique and tunable properties of carbon-based nanomaterials such as carbon nanotubes and grapheme and their composites (with polymer) can be optimized for high-flux membranes for desalination and renewable energy technologies such as electrode materials for dye-sensitized solar cell and ultracapacitor energy storage devices1

For the fabrication of such devices, the method of layer-by-layer self-assembly2 of oppositely charged nanoparticles, nanotubes (functionalized) and polymers will be employed. This method allows fabricating nanoporous films with controlled thicknesses in the range of a few hundred nanometers to several micrometers suitable for the applications. The film structures and their properties will be analyzed along with the performances of the devices, so that conclusions with respect to the relevant structure-property relationships could be drawn. 

References

1. Lee, S. W.; Kim, B.-S.; Chen, S.; Yang, S.-H.; Hammond, P. T. "Layer-by-Layer Assembly of All Carbon Nanotube Ultrathin Films for Electrochemical Applications". Journal of the American Chemical Society 2009, 131, 671-679.
2. Lutkenhaus, J. L.; Hammond, P. T. "Electrochemically Enabled Polyelectrolyte Multilayer Devices: from Fuel Cells to Sensors". Soft Matter 2007, 3, 804-816.