Eguna: 2026/02/18
Ordua: 15:00
Lekua: Adela Moyua Aretoa

There is an urgent need for sustainable energy and chemical feedstocks. Here, I will present our work on the application of conjugated materials in three areas. Photocatalytic water hydrogen production provides clean fuel,1-4 and carbon dioxide reduction provides essential chemicals from a greenhouse gas,4-6 The talk will provide a broad overview of the area of photocatalysis and the application of conjugated polymers in this area showcasing new opportunities, such as preparing photoactive films and 3D printing photoactive composites.

Biodata:

He obtained his PhD in 2013 from The University of Manchester developing catalytic systems and their application in the synthesis of organic field-effect transistors in particular polytrarylamines. He moved to the University of Liverpool to pursue postdoctoral work in the area of conjugated microporous polymers initially working on solution processible materials. He then focused on using the extended conjugation of these materials by studying their ability to act as photocatalysts for water splitting. He was promoted to a Research Lead position within the same group leading a team that worked on solar water splitting used a range of organic photocatalysts. He joined the Department of Pure and Applied Chemistry at the University of Strathclyde in June 2020 as an independent researcher with the goal of developing scalable systems for environmental applications initially particularly focusing on solar fuels generation and was promoted to senior lecturer (associate professor) in 2024. He has published 78 peer-reviewed publications and given 89 invited seminars. He is the secretary of the RSC Photophysics & Photochemistry Special Interest Group and an advisory board member of the Solar Chemicals Network UK.

E-mail: Sebastian.sprick@strath.ac.uk