The transformative potential of battery technologies, emerging storage solutions, and their impact on renewable energy, transportation, and industry is rapidly evolving. Experts in battery technology research and innovation will discuss the latest research developments, their application and impacts in terms of industry efficiency and potential economic benefits.
Speakers
Professor Maria Forsyth FTSE FAA
Alfred Deakin Professor, Deputy Director, and Chair Electromaterials and Corrosion Sciences of the Institute for Frontier Materials, Deakin University. Ikerbasque Visiting Professorial Fellow at the University of the Basque Country, Spain
Professor Forsyth has worked at the forefront of energy materials research for the past 30 years and has consistently made breakthrough discoveries, including in polymer electrolytes, ionic liquids, and organic plastic crystals; with applications including novel fuel cell design and battery storage. Maria serves on research, training and implementation bodies including the Future Battery Industry CRC; and ARC Industrial Transformation Training Centre in Future Energy Storage Technologies (storEnergy). She is a Fellow of the Australian Academy of Science; of ATSE and the Royal Australian Chemical Institute. She has received many awards including the Victorian Prize for Science and Innovation (2017) and the 2020 Victorian Honour roll for Women.
Professor Matthew Hill
Professor and Deputy Head, Chemical and Biological Engineering Monash University and Senior Principal Research Scientist, Manufacturing CSIRO
Professor Hill has developed a platform technology for a group of materials known as Metal Organic Frameworks (MOFs). These are the world’s most porous materials – they are almost entirely made of holes. One teaspoon of a MOF may have as much surface area as an entire football field hidden inside it. This groundbreaking technology allows smart, selective capture, release, separation, and storage of molecules with applications including in energy storage, batteries ,and separation of CO2 from an exhaust stream. Matthew won the 2014 Australian Prime Minister’s Prize for Science and received the 2019 Solomen Award for substantial ability to foster research- industry collaboration and knowledge translation for the benefit of Australia.
Moderator
Professor Sandra Kentish FTSE
Chair, ATSE Victoria Division Committee & Redmond Barry Distinguished Professor, University of Melbourne
Sandra is a Project Leader within the ARC Hub for Digital Bioprocess Development, the Dairy Innovation Research Hub, and the Future Fuels Co-operative Research Centre, and a Non-Executive Director of the Bionics Institute. She was Head of the School of Chemical and Biomedical Engineering (2016-2022) at the University of Melbourne and has broad interests in industrial separations, particularly the use of membrane technology for energy, food, and water applications. She was the Discipline Leader in the CRC for Greenhouse Gas Technologies (CO2CRC) for Membrane Technology from 2003-2015. Professor Kentish was named one of Australia’s Most Innovative Engineers by Engineers Australia in 2017 and a Woman of Influence by the Australian Financial Review in 2018. She was elected to ATSE in 2019. Professor Kentish has received awards for teaching excellence, and the Grimwade Prize in Industrial Chemistry,