Gu, Zhengrong, Associate Professor (Tenured)
Agricultural and Biosystem Engineering Dept., South Dakota State University
Lecture for Students and Teachers
Title: Biorenewable Graphene and Biorefinery
Time: May. 19, 2015,14:30 am.
Place: 203Room, School of Food and Biological Engineering
Introduction to Associate Gu, Zhengrong:
Dr. Gu has intensive experience (more than 18 years) in materials science (specified in carbon nano-materials) and biochemical engineering (specified in bio-separation of recombinant therapeutic proteins). Before joining SDSU, Dr. Gu had lead developing therapeutic recombinant protein designation, expression and purification processes in both industrial (GE LifeScience) and academic (UIUC) environment. As a biochemical engineer and material scientist, Dr. Gu’s career research is focusing on science of preparing functional nanomaterial and application of innovative materials in biomedical and electrochemical areas.
Since joined South Dakota State University, Dr. Gu has established internationally and nationally recognized research programs in multiple bio-refinery areas, including bio-renewable carbon materials, separation processes of biorefinery, innovative catalysts in biorefinery and combustion properties of bio-dust. innovative bioseparation processes and hydrothermal conversion of lignin to bio-products, low temperature disinfection techniques for temperature sensitive food. Dr. Gu obtained (after 2009) more than four million dollars research funding as PI and Co-PI (as PI of more than 2 million dollars US Federal Competitive funding). Since 2011, Dr. Gu’s group achieved significant progress in advanced carbon materials preparation and its electrochemical application. Dr. Gu’s seminal contributions to understanding the mechanism of preparing biorenewable 3D graphene has attracted collaboration from Maxwell Technology Inc., Calgon Carbon Inc., MeadWestvaco Corp., USDA Forest Service and PNNL (Pacific Northwest National Laboratory).
Dr. Gu has published more than 40 journal articles, 2 pending US patents, and more than 70s presentations and conference articles in national, international and regional conferences.
Abstract:
Biorenewable graphene and application in energy storage and catalysis, and advanced biorefinery technology. (Birenewable graphene from fermentation residues as advanced energy materials) Nitrogen-doped graphene (N-doped graphene), which is produced from corn ethanol fermentation residues with a facile preparation method, is an extremely attractive material for energy storage in supercapacitor due to the high specific capacitance and low producing cost. The scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy results demonstrate that the biorenewable graphene contains crumpled nanosheets and few-layer porous graphene nanostructure, XRD and Raman spectroscopy of the material also indicate the distinctive graphene diffraction peaks. The XPS of the renewable graphene shows that nitrogen e.g. pyrrolic-N and pyridinic-N was formed during the fabrication process. The cyclic voltammetry, galvanostatic charge/discharge and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy indicates excellent performance, e.g. high specific capacitance of 324 F/g and low inner resistance of 0.1 U, were obtained.
(School of Food and Biological Engineering)
