MErgELab combines expertise on Materials with Electrochemical skills aiming at optimized materials and devices for production, conversion and storage of Energy. As “physical room”, hosted at DICCA – UNIGE, in Via all’Opera Pia 15, MErgELab was established in 2016, thanks to a 15 years old fruitful collaboration between CNR-ICMATE and DICCA on these topics. MErgELab can perform all steps from powder synthesis to pre industrial scale up of devices for energy.

Moreover, the prediction of transport properties and electrochemical performance in SOFC electrodes, is the approach MErgELab looks at for helping the experimental interpretation, in a close and fruitful collaboration with Department of Chemical Engineering Industrial Chemistry and Materials Science, University of Pisa (DICCISM-UNIPI).

MErgELab combines basic and applied research, carries out "third party" contracts in response to quality control needs of industrial companies and is characterized by an intense training activity for young Italian and international students of secondary school (stage), universities (students and doctoral students), Erasmus internships, etc.
The laboratory finally collaborates with other Italian and international companies operating in the field.

• MAIN COMPETENCES AND COLLABORATIONS:
  
  • Modeling of materials at multi scale: simulation of electrochemical behavior of devices by microstructural modeling (DICCISM-UNIPI)
  • Synthesis and processing of oxides: nanopowders, doping, infiltration, sintering (ISTEC, ISMN, Cambridge University)
  • Electrochemical characterization: electrolyte conduction mechanism, defect’s chemistry, electrode reactions, catalysts (UB – Université de Bourgogne, BAS – Bulgarian Academy of Sciences)
  • Process design: thermodynamic design, thermo/economical assessment (TPG-DIME-UNIGE)
  • Education: Ph.D (UNIGE), Erasmus (Cambridge University), Internship (UB – Université de Bourgogne, secondary school) , Master’s degree (UNIGE)