Research Profile - Department of Materials Science and Metallurgy ...

Derek Fray FREng FRS
Professor of Materials Chemistry
BSc Imperial College
PhD Imperial College
+44 (0) 1223 334306
djf25@hermes.cam.ac.uk
www.msm.cam.ac.uk/djf/
Sustainability, Sensors and Nanostructures
Our motivation is to apply materials chemistry to problems that
are scientifically interesting and technologically challenging.
Reduction of metal oxides
A novel electrochemical method is being investigated for the
reduction of metal oxides where the metal oxide or mixture of
metal oxides is the cathode in a bath of molten calcium chloride.
The oxygen ionizes, dissolves in the electrolyte, and is discharged
at the anode. This process has also being considered by NASA
for the production of oxygen on the moon from the moon regolith.
Two companies have been set up to exploit this technology.
Nanostructures
Carbon and sulfide nanotubes are being synthesized by novel
routes. These interesting materials are being investigated as
electrodes in supercapacitors and batteries.
Recycling
The world has finite resources and it is important to be able to
recycle waste products. Processes for treating galvanized scrap,
batteries and electronic scrap have been devised and are now
being developed industrially.
Development of sensors
It is important to be able to instantaneously measure species in
gases, liquids and solids. Sensors, based upon solid electrolytes
have been developed to measure hydrogen in molten aluminium,
hydrogen in steel and SO x
from power stations. Ion Science Ltd
and Environmental Monitoring and Control Ltd have been set up
to market these devices.
XY Yan & DJ Fray, “Electrosynthesis of NbTi and Nb 3
Sn superconductors
from oxide precursors in CaCl 2
-based melts” Adv. Funct. Mater. 15,
1757–1761 (2005).
C Schwandt & DJ Fray, “The titanium/hydrogen system as the solid-state
reference in high-temperature proton conductor-based hydrogen sensors”
J. Appl. Electrochem. 36, 557–565 (2006).
JKS Tee & DJ Fray, “Separation of copper from steel” Ironmaking &
Steelmaking 33, 19–23 (2006).
Y Li, VP Kotzeva & DJ Fray, “Electrochemical performance of CdS
nanomaterials synthesized by microemulsion techniques” Mater. Lett. 60,
2743–2746 (2006).
Surface of the moon
20 Research Profile