| Workshop | Registration Fee |
| Innovation for Sustainability 14 May 2026, 09:00 – 17:00 Istinye University (Vadi H Campus) | 0 USD |
Workshop Title:
Innovation for Sustainability
Date and place:
14 May 2026 / 09:00-17:00 / Istinye University (Vadi H Campus)
Workshop Abstract
This workshop focuses on recent advances in materials design, characterization, and first-principles modeling for solar-driven water splitting and energy conversion. Topics span electrocatalysis, photocatalysis, defect engineering, low-dimensional materials, and photoelectrochemical systems. By bringing together experimental and theoretical perspectives, the workshop aims to provide mechanistic insights and predictive strategies for next-generation materials enabling efficient and sustainable hydrogen production.
Workshop scopes include:
- Catalytic materials for hydrogen production and conversion
- Photocatalytic and electrochemical materials
- Membrane materials for hydrogen separation and electrochemical devices
- Materials interfaces and transport phenomena
- Defect engineering and materials tuning
- Low-dimensional and nanostructured materials
- Advanced materials characterization
- Computational and data-driven materials design
- Materials stability, durability, and scalability
Workshop Keynote Speaker
Professor Alvin B. Culaba, Ph.D.
De La Salle University Manila, Philippines
Talk Title:
Clean energy transition for the Philippines – Going nuclear
Talk Description:
Achieving net-zero emissions requires bold, science-based energy choices grounded in innovation and systems thinking. This paper examines the role of nuclear energy in accelerating the clean energy transition, particularly for rapidly developing and climate-vulnerable nations such as the Philippines. With global warming intensifying and the remaining carbon budget rapidly shrinking, current nationally determined contributions remain insufficient to meet the 1.5°C target under the Paris Agreement. For the Philippine where electricity demand is rising and indigenous natural gas reserves are declining, the transition to a low-carbon power mix is both urgent and strategic. An assessment of nuclear power as a reliable, large-scale, low-carbon energy source capable of enhancing energy security, price stability, and grid resilience is presented. It revisits the Bataan Nuclear Power Plant and explores future deployment pathways, including large reactors and small modular reactors (SMRs), within a comprehensive framework covering policy, regulation, financing, human capital, safety, and public acceptance. Ultimately, “going nuclear” is framed not merely as a technology choice, but as a systems readiness challenge for sustainable and secure energy futures.
Short Bio:
Professor Alvin B. Culaba, Ph.D. is the Vice President of the National Academy of Science and Technology, Republic of the Philippines and the Commissioner on Science & Technology, UNESCO National Commission of the Philippines. He had served as Philippine Energy Adviser (2007-2010) and as independent board member of the Philippine Electricity Market Corporation (2014-2016). As an expert panel member of the Philippine Joint Congressional Commission on Science, Technology, and Engineering (COMSTE) he assessed the S&T competitiveness of the energy sector and was commissioned to undertake energy policy studies that led to the crafting of the country’s energy twin-bill, the Biofuels Act of 2006 (RA9367) and the Renewable Energy Act of 2008 (RA9513). A leading researcher in energy and environmental sustainability, he is amongst the top 2% of the world’s scientist by Stanford-Elsevier. He sits as editorial board member and reviewer of prestigious international journals. He has delivered numerous keynotes and plenary lectures in international conferences and is a Visiting Scholar to universities in Asia, UK, and the USA. He was a former Executive Vice President of De La Salle University Manila, past Presidents of the National Research Council of the Philippines (NRCP) and the Philippine-American Academy of Science and Engineering (PAASE), USA. He is Distinguished Professor of Mechanical Engineering and Director and co-founder of the Center for Engineering and Sustainable Development Research (CESDR) at De La Salle University Manila.
Workshop Speakers:
Prof. Juliano Alves Bonaccin
University of Campinas (UNICAMP), Brazil
Talk Title:
Enhancement of the Catalytic Activity of Prussian Blue through Cyanide Vacancies
Talk Description:
Water oxidation is the rate-limiting step in overall water splitting. In this talk, Prussian Blue analogs are explored as efficient water oxidation catalysts under mild conditions (pH 7). Particular emphasis is placed on the creation of cyanide vacancies, their formation mechanisms, and their impact on catalytic activity and material properties.
Short Bio:
Juliano A. Bonaccin is Professor of Inorganic Chemistry at UNICAMP. His research focuses on water splitting, hydrogen production, electrocatalysis, nanomaterials, and electrochemical sensors. He has published over 100 papers, holds 7 patents, and serves as Associate Editor of the Journal of the Brazilian Chemical Society.
Dr. Pichaya Pattanasattayavong
Vidyasirimedhi Institute of Science and Technology (VISTEC), Thailand
Talk Title:
Role of Iron in Solar-Driven Water-Splitting Silicon Photoanodes
Talk Description:
This presentation examines the critical role of Fe in Ni-modified Si-based MIS photoanodes for oxygen evolution. The impact of Fe on interfacial energetics, band bending, photovoltage, and catalyst stability is discussed, providing new insights into high-performance PEC water-splitting systems.
Short Bio:
Pichaya Pattanasattayavong is Assistant Professor at VISTEC. His research focuses on opto-electronic materials and photoelectrochemical energy conversion. He is the recipient of multiple international awards and leads several competitive research projects.
Dr. Masoud Shahrokhi
University of Ostrava, Czech Republic
Talk Title:
First-Principles Design of Photocatalysts: From 3D and 2D Materials to Z-Scheme Heterojunctions
Talk Description:
This talk presents a first-principles framework for evaluating key descriptors governing photocatalytic water splitting in bulk and low-dimensional materials. Electronic structure, optical response, band alignment, excitonic effects, and HER/OER energetics are discussed across isolated systems, conventional heterostructures, and Z-scheme architectures.
Short Bio:
Masoud Shahrokhi is a computational materials scientist specializing in DFT and many-body methods (GW/BSE). He has published ~75 papers in leading journals and has been listed among the world’s top 2% scientists for four consecutive years (2021–2025).
Prof. Maurizia Palummo
University of Rome Tor Vergata, Italy
Talk Title:
Atomistic Insights into the Opto-Electronic Properties of Novel 2D and Layered Materials
Talk Description:
Using parameter-free first-principles simulations, this talk explores excited-state and opto-electronic properties of emerging 2D and layered materials. Topics include excitonic effects, band-gap renormalization, light–matter interaction, and tuning strategies via doping and chemical substitution.
Short Bio:
Maurizia Palummo is Full Professor of Theoretical Condensed Matter Physics at the University of Rome Tor Vergata. She is an expert in DFT, GW, and BSE methods, a Yambo developer, and author of over 150 scientific publications.
Dr. M. Hussein N. Assadi
RIKEN Center for Emergent Matter Science (CEMS), Japan
Talk Title:
Theory-Guided Design of Functional Materials for Energy Conversion
Talk Description:
This talk highlights the role of first-principles modeling in understanding and engineering functional materials for energy applications. Emphasis is placed on defect physics, dopant energetics, and structure–property relationships relevant to water splitting and energy conversion technologies.
Short Bio:
M. Hussein N. Assadi is a theoretical physicist and computational materials scientist at RIKEN. His work bridges fundamental theory and experimentally relevant materials, contributing to the rational design of next-generation energy materials.
Prof. Selmiye Alkan Gürsel
1Sabanci University, Faculty of Engineering & Natural Sciences, Turkiye
2Sabanci University Nanotechnology Research and Appliaction Center, Turkiye
Talk Title:
Bridging Materials Science and Hydrogen Technologies: Membranes and Catalysts for Fuel Cells and Electrolyzers
Talk Description:
This presentation highlights membrane and catalyst innovations linking materials science to hydrogen technologies and global efforts to overcome fuel cell and electrolyzer limitations. Cost-effective radiation-grafted and electrospun membranes are presented alongside catalyst strategies targeting PGM reduction, including graphene-supported Pt for ORR and transition-metal-doped IrO₂ for acidic OER.
Short Bio:
Selmiye Alkan Gürsel is Professor of Materials Science and Nanoengineering at Sabancı University. Her research focuses on hydrogen technologies, fuel cells and electrolyzers, advanced polymer membranes, electrocatalysis, graphene-based materials, and lithium-ion batteries. She leads and contributes to major national and international research initiatives advancing green hydrogen and electrochemical energy technologies.
Prof. Dr. Raquel Giulian
Institute of Physics, Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Brazil
Talk Title:
Antimonide Nanofoams Induced by Ion Irradiation
Talk Description:
Semiconductors are commonly implanted or irradiated with heavy ions to increase the number of defects in the matrix and enhance specific electrical and optical properties. A very peculiar effect is observed upon irradiation of antimonides, in the nuclear or electronic stopping power regime: the formation of a porous, sponge-like structure with nanometric dimensions. The nanometric foams induced in these compounds by ion irradiation exhibit giant surface-to-bulk ratio, which can be very good for the development of devices which rely on surface reactions, like gas detectors. Here we show the ion irradiation effects on ternary compound films containing In, Ga, Al and Sb deposited by magnetron sputtering. Samples were irradiated with 8 MeV Au+3 (16 MeV Au+7) ions, at room temperature, with ion fluences ranging from 1012−1014 cm−2. The atomic composition and structure of porous films were probed as a function of irradiation fluence by Rutherford backscattering spectrometry, scanning electron microscopy and x-ray diffraction analyses. Variations in the relative concentration of In, Ga and Al in the ternary antimonide compounds allow variations of lattice parameters and bandgap and also influence the ion irradiation-induced porosity. The structural modifications induced by ion irradiation are discussed. The thermoelectric properties of the materials, before and after irradiation, were also investigated.
Short Bio:
Raquel Giulian graduated in Physics from the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil (UFRGS) in 2003, and received a Master degree in Physics from the same university in 2005. During the academic year of 2005 she was a research assistant at the Department of Electronic Materials Engineering at the Australian National University (ANU). In 2009 she received a Ph.D. degree at the same university working under the supervision of Professor Mark C. Ridgway. She worked with modification of semiconductors in the two subsequent years of her post-doctoral fellowship, also at the ANU. She is currently an Assistant Professor at UFRGS, working with ion beam synthesis of porous semiconductors. She supervised more than 40 students, including undergraduate, Masters, PhDs and postdocs. She has published 67 research papers, 1 book and in 2013 she was awarded the L’Oreal prize For Women in Science in Brazil. She was also an affiliated member of the Brazilian Academy of Science (2015-2019). She is currently working with ion implantation, particle induced x-ray emission (PIXE), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Rutherford backscattering spectrometry (RBS), X-ray diffraction (XRD), x-ray absorption spectroscopy (EXAFS and XANES) and x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS).
