Queen Mary University of London (QMUL) is proud to announce the official launch of its Green Energy Hub, including a new state-of-the-art laboratory alongside existing materials chemistry and testing labs designed to accelerate breakthroughs in green energy technologies. The new facility represents a significant investment of almost £3 million from the QMUL Faculty of Science and Engineering and is set to become a cornerstone in research into sustainable energy solutions.

Spanning an impressive 195 square meters, the Green Energy Hub is a comprehensive laboratory equipped with advanced wet chemistry facilities, including extraction hoods for materials preparation and processing. The lab features ample space for both benchtop experiments and large, free-standing equipment, as well as a dust-free device testing laboratory, fostering an environment where innovation can thrive.

The Green Energy Hub aims to unite researchers from various disciplines to tackle the complex challenges associated with green energy. By bringing together experts working on complementary technologies such as batteries, electrolysers for green hydrogen production, and photovoltaics, the hub will catalyse the development of new ideas and novel solutions. These researchers are working across many different types of materials, synthesis and production techniques – a multidisciplinary approach to encourage new ideas and innovative, novel solutions to current challenges.

The hub will act as a central nexus, linking multiple existing labs across the School of Engineering and Materials Science. These include the advanced materials chemistry lab, the electrical and device testing lab, the thermoelectric materials development lab, the heat transfer lab, and the electrochemistry and photochemistry testing lab. Together, these "spokes" of the hub will drive forward research and innovation in green energy technologies.

"Our goal with the Green Energy Hub is to create a vibrant, collaborative space where diverse research groups can come together to push the boundaries of what's possible in green energy," said Professor Joe Briscoe, Professor or Energy Materials and Devices at QMUL. "Developing low-cost, sustainable solutions for energy conversion and storage is crucial for achieving our Net Zero ambitions and ensuring a future for energy technologies. The Green Energy Hub is designed to address current challenges and pave the way for groundbreaking advancements."

The Green Energy Hub will allow existing research to expand, including:

• Prof Ana Sobrido’s research into developing sustainable electrodes for redox flow batteries to enhance energy storage solutions, particularly targeted at grid-level storage.
• Prof Joe Briscoe’s European Research Council’s grant-funded project advancing novel solar energy technologies utilising ferroelectric materials for improved efficiency.
• Dr Maria Crespo’s work developing sustainable battery chemistries to create more environmentally friendly energy storage options.
• Dr Xuekun Lu’s techniques employing advanced in situ and in operando analysis for better understanding and optimising battery performance.

The Green Energy Hub team are planning research into producing state-of-the-art photovoltaic devices using the added investment of half a million pounds in a new glovebox – thermal evaporator system to be housed in the laboratory; the development of novel materials to convert CO2 into fuels using sunlight – so-called artificial photosynthesis; developing new in-situ and in-operando measurement techniques to understand the operating mechanisms of green energy technologies. Importantly, the aim is to build new collaborations and ideas across technologies to develop new ways to combine green energy technologies in the most effective ways.

By consolidating expertise and resources in one innovative facility, the Green Energy Hub aims to foster a critical mass of knowledge and creativity, positioning QMUL at the forefront of green energy research and development.