Nico Torino

PhD student, Chemical and Biological Engineering, Environmental Inorganic Chemistry

Nico Torinos research project investigates oxide crystalline phases.
Focus is put on the connection between crystal structure, and the proton and oxide ion conducting properties, in order to widen our knowledge about materials for SOFC systems and ceramic gas separation membranes, the main technologies concerned with the development of the materials object of this investigation.
Both work on the principle of ionic transport through a ceramic membrane but in the case of gas separation membranes ionic transport is also accompanied by the electronic one. Therefore two different kind of materials are concerned: ionic conductors and mixed ionic-electronic conductors.
In particular, protonic conductors are at the centre of my synthesis and characterisation work. This kind of materials can provide a way to circumvent the main issues associated with classic oxide ions conductors in SOFC systems, by lowering the operating temperature of those devices.
In order to do so, the transport properties of complex oxides, such as pyrochlores and perovskites, are investigated, and tuned by conveniently doping them.

Published: Mon 21 Dec 2015.