Gravitation grant for electrochemical processes large-scale energy transition

The Ministry of Education, Culture and Science has awarded a Gravitation grant to ANION, the research programme that Professor Moniek Tromp of the Zernike Institute for Advanced Materials (Faculty of Science and Engineering, UG) is a partner in. ANION, Advanced Nano-electrochemistry Institute Of the Netherlands, will study the electrochemical processes that are important for large-scale energy transition. Tromp has been awarded 2.9 million euros for her research in ANION.

A total of seven consortia with top scientists from various Dutch universities have received a Gravitation grant. The University of Groningen (UG) is a partner in two consortia.

ANION: Advanced Nano-electrochemistry Institute Of the Netherlands

Large-scale energy transition requires efficient electrochemical processes for generating, converting and storing energy. Existing electrochemical processes are inadequate to meet the grand challenges ahead. There is insufficient knowledge of the processes occurring at the smallest scale. In the ANION research programme, chemists and physicists will lay the foundation for new efficient electrochemical technologies designed to drastically reduce humanity's carbon footprint. In addition to the UG, the universities of Leiden, Utrecht, Twente, the UvA and AMOLF also participate in ANION.

From advanced spectroscopy to new concepts

Using advanced spectroscopy, Tromp will look in detail at electrodes and their properties, including, for example, the role of confinement, porosity and charge on reactions and processes on a very small scale. It’s very fundamental research, but it can result in completely new concepts for batteries, electrocatalysis and electrochemistry.

Gravitation grant

The Ministry of Education, Culture and Science uses the Gravitation programme to stimulate top  research in the Netherlands. It is aimed at scientific consortia that rank among the world's top in their field. NWO was asked to carry out the selection procedure for Gravitation, which set up an independent committee of international top scientists to do the assessment. The ministry has also awarded a Gravitation grant to Green Tissue Engineering that Professor Marleen Kamperman, also from the Zernike Institute for Advanced Materials, is a partner in.

About Moniek Tromp

Moniek Tromp is a Professor of Materials Chemistry at the University of Groningen. Since 2023, she is Captain of Science of the Top Sector Chemistry. Alongside her work as a professor, Moniek Tromp is also the figurehead of the Battery Competence Cluster NL and scientific director of the Zernike Institute for Advanced Materials. She has worked on materials chemistry throughout her international scientific career, from catalysis to electrochemistry and batteries, with an emphasis on developing techniques to better understand the properties and functioning of materials and systems (down to the atomic level), some of which is very fundamental, but many of which are in collaboration with companies.