Dr. Aleksandar R. Žerađanin, a Group Co-Leader at the Max Planck Institute for Chemical Energy Conversion (MPI CEC) and a distinguished electrochemist joins the Energy News Advisory Board, bringing over 15 years of research expertise in advancing electrocatalysts for hydrogen production and energy systems.
His work, straddling fundamental science and industrial applicability, addresses critical bottlenecks in green hydrogen scalability, from catalyst instability to cost barriers.
Žerađanin’s career spans premier European research hubs including some prominent advisors and collaborators (Prof. Robert Schlögl, Prof. Wolfgang Schuhmann, Prof. Karl J.J. Mayrhofer, etc.). With a PhD in Electrochemistry from Ruhr University Bochum (2009-2012), he has led projects funded by BMBF, EU, etc. at the intersection of material science and energy conversion since. His tenure at MPI für Eisenforschung (2012–2015) focused on mitigating metal/oxide catalyst dissolution—a key durability hurdle in commercial electrolyzers. At the Forschungszentrum Jülich IEK-11 (2016-2017), MPI für Eisenforschung (2018,) and Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft Bremen (2019) he focused on strategies for efficiency improvement of hydrogen generation.
At MPI CEC, where he co-leads a research group since 2020, Žerađanin oversees experimental and theoretical studies on electrocatalyst design for water electrolysis and fuel cell reactions, supervising postdoctoral researchers, PhD candidates, and master students.
Beyond hydrogen, Žerađanin’s work spans electrochemical CO₂ reduction and industrial process optimization. At Forschungszentrum Jülich, he designed catalysts for syngas production from CO₂, challenging the Faradaic efficiencies of existing benchmarks. Earlier, at Ruhr University Bochum, he enhanced gas-evolving electrodes for chlorine production, significantly reducing energy use in chlor-alkali plants. Such cross-sector insights inform his advocacy for integrating hydrogen systems with carbon capture and industrial decarbonization roadmaps.
Žerađanin’s appointment underscores Energy News’ focus on bridging innovation and market realities. With 95% of global hydrogen still fossil-derived, his work exemplifies the multidisciplinary collaboration needed to accelerate green hydrogen’s niche-to-mainstream transition.
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