The Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Technologies Office announced that Dr. Tanya Agarwal of Los Alamos National Laboratory is the winner of the 2024 Postdoctoral Recognition Award for her work in advancing ionomer durability in membranes and electrodes.
Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Technologies Office
May 7, 2024
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The U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Technologies Office (HFTO) today announced that Dr. Tanya Agarwal of Los Alamos National Laboratory is the winner of the 2024 Postdoctoral Recognition Award for her work in advancing ionomer durability in membranes and electrodes. The award was presented at the DOE Hydrogen Program's 2024 Annual Merit Review and Peer Evaluation Meeting in Arlington, Virginia.
HFTO’s annual Postdoctoral Recognition Award identifies postdoctoral fellows from DOE national laboratories with outstanding contributions in the research, development, and demonstration (RD&D) of hydrogen and fuel cell technologies.
Dr. Agarwal successfully resolved a long-standing issue with the migration of cerium, the most promising antioxidant for fuel cell membranes—this work has been replicated by groups internationally for membrane and bipolar plate durability and has generated interest from industry as well. Dr. Agarwal primarily contributes to the HFTO Million Mile Fuel Cell Truck (M2FCT) consortium, in both the areas of durability and materials development, and supports industrial research projects.
Runners-up:
- Andrew Rowberg, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, for his research into model-driven engineering of materials for solid-oxide electrolysis and solid-state hydrogen storage.
- Rebecca Hamlyn, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, for her investigation of complex composite electrode interface approaches with operando ambient pressure x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (AP-XPS).
- Kui Li, Los Alamos National Laboratory, for his exploration of novel materials and approaches for fuel cells and electrolyzers.
Honorable mentions:
- Sarah Blair, National Renewable Energy Laboratory.
- Melissa Kreider, National Renewable Energy Laboratory.
- Guanzhi Wang, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory.
Learn more about the award recipients and how their critical work is helping to build and advance the clean hydrogen economy.