Materials Horizons Emerging Investigator Series: Dr Ewa Wierzbicka, Military University of Technology, Poland
Abstract
Our Emerging Investigator Series features exceptional work by early-career materials science researchers. Read Ewa Wierzbicka's Emerging Investigator Series article ‘Ultra-stable self-standing Au nanowires/TiO2 nanoporous membrane system for high-performance photoelectrochemical water splitting cells’ (https://doi.org/10.1039/D2MH00718E) and find out more about her in the interview below.
Dr Ewa Wierzbicka graduated in Chemistry from Jagiellonian University in Krakow, Poland with a Doktor/PhD degree in 2016. During her PhD studies, the scopes of conducted research were related to the development of synthesis, characterization, and application of nanostructured materials based on metals or metal oxides. Her PhD dissertation concerned the application of obtained Au nanostructural material as an electrochemical epinephrine sensor. In 2017 she started work as a postdoctoral researcher at the Department of Materials Science and Metallurgical Engineering, Complutense University of Madrid, Spain in the international ALMAGIC. The project was financed by the European Commission from the Clean Sky 2, Horizon 2020 programme, focused on the development of innovative alternatives to chromium(VI) coatings for aluminum and magnesium alloys. Next, she worked at the University of Erlangen–Nuremberg, Germany, Department of Materials Science in the field of photocatalysis, mostly H2 evolution on TiO2. Later, she continued the work on materials synthesis for application in photoelectrocatalysis in the framework of the Humboldt Research Fellowship at the Humboldt University of Berlin. From May 2022, she is leading a research project at the Military University of Technology in Warsaw, Poland sponsored by The Polish National Agency for Academic Exchange and National Science Centre. Her current research is focused on varied forms of TiO2 synthesis/modification (nanopowders, anodic nanoporous layers, single crystals) by metal doping, formation of core–shell metal–semiconductor junctions, surface reduction by high-temperature hydrogen annealing, or light-induced effects.
Read Ewa Wierzbicka's Emerging Investigator Series article ‘Ultra-stable self-standing Au nanowires/TiO 2 nanoporous membrane system for high-performance photoelectrochemical water splitting cells’ ( https://doi.org/10.1039/D2MH00718E ) and read more about her in the interview below:
MH: Your recent Materials Horizons Communication reports a core–shell structure of self-standing titania nanotubes filled with Au nanowires as an innovative platform for efficient photoelectrochemical water splitting. Has your research evolved from your first article to this most recent article and where do you see your research going in future?
EW: I cannot say this research directly evolved from my previous studies, but it is rather a result of different experiences collected from different research groups. For my PhD (UJ, Poland), I was working on aluminum anodizing and self-standing Au nanowires preparation for application in electroanalysis. After my first Postdoctoral stay (UCM, Spain) during which I was working on corrosion protection methods, I switched to photocatalytic and photoelectrochemical hydrogen evolution (FAU, Germany). Later, I was granted a Humboldt Fellowship to do my research (HU Berlin, Germany) in the field of materials synthesis for photo- and photoelectro-catalysis. This allowed me to verify my scientific ideas with the great support of other researchers that I had the pleasure to work with on that project. Now I have quite a defined plan for the future direction of my research since I received funding from The Polish National Agency for Academic Exchange and National Science Centre to continue this project in Poland at MUT for the next three years. I am looking forward to seeing the effect of the next steps of this project.
MH: What aspect of your work are you most excited about at the moment?
EW: I want to continue studies on hydrogen production since I believe hydrogen will soon become the major chemical fuel, and demand for it is going to increase very quickly. As an alternative energy carrier, it will not only deliver energy but also limit the negative impact of carbon dioxide on the environment. I believe global changes are the effects of the cumulative effort of a scientific society, and it is exciting to work in this field and be a small part of this upcoming change.
MH: In your opinion, what are the most important questions to be asked/answered in this field of research?
EW: I believe there is still a lot to do in the field of green hydrogen production. Improving efficiency or stability is important, but the most difficult will be commercialization including transferring small-scale production to the large-scale and lowering production and exploitation costs to make this technology available for industrial applications. At some point, after running out of fossil fuels, switching to hydrogen and using renewable energy sources are unavoidable. I hope we will be prepared for this moment and will avoid any serious energy crisis.
MH: What do you find most challenging about your research?
EW: Making new materials especially nanosized is quite difficult. I must admit that operating sensitive systems for the synthesis of nanostructured materials such as thin films requires a lot of practice and extreme carefulness. There is a lot of interaction between trying some new modification and verifying resulted properties before the material is ready. I think many researchers meet a similar difficulty, that the rate of failure to success is quite high in everyday work. Therefore, besides being smart and hardworking you must be very resilient and not give up easily.
MH: In which upcoming conferences or events may our readers meet you?
EW: I am planning to join the 2023 Materials Research Society (MRS) Spring Meeting & Exhibit from April 10 to 14 in San Francisco, California as well as the 2023 Fall Meeting of the European Materials Research Society (E-MRS) which will take place 2023 in Warsaw (Poland) from September 18 to 21.
MH: How do you spend your spare time?
EW: To be honest, I do not have a lot of spare time. I try to take a break a few times a year, and my go-to choice is traveling. Getting to know new cultures and new people, and tasting local cuisine gives me a powerful kick and motivation for the next few months. After the pandemic period and my return to my home country, I am very happy to spend time with my family and friends. It gives me a lot of positive energy. Every day after work, I do simple things that allow me to relax such as watching movies, playing board games, and listening to music.
MH: Can you share one piece of career-related advice or wisdom with other early career scientists?
EW: I think it is necessary to collect experiences from different research groups, learn different approaches and be open to new subjects. It costs quite an effort initially, but it will surely pay back in time.
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