OREANDA-NEWS. November 03, 2015.  Among the laureates of the international nanotechnology prize RUSNANOPRIZE 2015 are Yury Gogotsi, Distinguished University Professor at Drexel University (USA), Director of the A.J. Drexel Nanotechnology Institute, and Patrice Simon, Professor at Paul Sabatier University (France). The grand award ceremony was held as part of the Open Innovations Forum.

The prize was awarded for the definition of the fundamental principles and creation of carbon nanomaterials for electrochemical supercapacitors which are actively used in energy, automotive and other industries.

Maxwell Technologies Inc. (USA) was awarded for the successful production implementation and commercialization of nanostructured carbon materials as well as for the implementation of the developed principles in supercapacitors mass production.

In 2006 professors Y. Gogotsi and P. Simon presented the fundamental principles of ions behavior in a self-contained system, ion desolvation in pores below 1 nm and intercalary capacity in longitudinal pores of two-dimensional metal carbides. Prior to Gogotsi and Simon’s research the developers counted on increasing the surface area and using the nanocomposites based on carbon monoxide to gradually improve battery capacity performance. This continued until Dr. Simon and Dr. Gogotsi proposed a new solution to the problem. They produced nanoporous carbon compounds with predetermined parameters and monodisperse pores of 1 to 10 nm and studied their ability to adsorb ions in the supercapacitor’s electrodes. Their findings contradicted the previous knowledge: when the pore size is decreased down to 1 nm and less, the capacity performance improves.

The aftermath of the research’s commercialization reflects its particular significance as the capacitors have gained a considerable competitive edge on the market.

This research has led to a true breakthrough in the field of energy storage solutions serving as an incentive to form and subsequently develop the supercapacitors’ market, the volume of which is estimated to be USD 1 bln at year-end 2014, while its predicted volume will average USD 3.5 bln in 2020 (according to 2014 Market Research Media Report).

Yury Gogotsi and Patrice Simon are recognized as international experts in applying nanotechnology to energy storage. Dr. Gogotsi was part of the team that discovered a family of fundamentally new two-dimensional nanomaterials, MXenes. He found and described new forms of carbon, such as conical and polygonal crystals, and uncovered a previously unknown metastable phase of silicon. Professor Patrice Simon is an expert in the fields of Material Sciences and Electrochemistry. He is in charge of French Network on Electrochemical Energy Storage including 17 laboratories and 15 companies which are working on creating a new generation of batteries and supercapacitors.

Maxwell Technologies Inc. is a world leader in the production of supercapacitors and was the first to make significant progress in commercialization of the nanostructured carbon materials’ properties. The company launched mass production of the supercapacitors used in automotive, transport, energy and telecommunications industries as well as in the production of industrial and consumer electronics. Other solutions of the company, such as radiation-resistant microelectronics, are widely implemented in the aerospace industry. Maxwell Industries Inc. has the rights to or is in the process of patenting more than 100 unique projects. The company employs more than 450 people in the USA, Switzerland, Germany, China and Korea.

“Nanoindustry is a field that strongly influences the lifestyle and the way of thinking in modern society. That is why it is paramount to hold these events especially in times of crisis. I believe that their goal is, above all, to show the business community that Russian nanoindustry is actively developing and involving more and more projects and businesses. And this means that our country has a potential to develop and grow further in socially significant fields in spite of the current economic difficulties”, commented Ilya Abrosimov, Vice President and Director of Corporate Banking Department at Otkritie Financial Corporation Bank.

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The Fund for Infrastructure and Educational Programs was established in 2010 in accordance with federal law № 211-FZ On Reorganization of the Russian Corporation of Nanotechnologies. Its purpose is to develop innovative infrastructure for nanotechnology, including realizing educational programs and infrastructure projects earlier begun by RUSNANO.

The chairman of the Supervisory Council, the fund’s highest governing body, is Dmitry Livanov, minister of education and science of the Russian Federation. As stipulated in the charter of the fund, the council determines the priority areas of the fund’s endeavors, sets its strategies, and establishes its budget. Anatoly Chubais, RUSNANO CEO, is chairman of the Management Committee. The fund’s CEO is Andrey Svinarenko.

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The RUSNANOPRIZE was established in 2009 by Russian Nanotechnologies Corporation, which is one of the world’s largest investment companies in the innovation industry. The prize is awarded to both Russian and foreign nationals. Four of the eight winners in the five-year history of the award have been foreign designers.

The RUSNANOPRIZE aims to promote:

  • integration of the needs of business with the interests of the scientific community;
  • broader public awareness of developments and practical applications in the field of nanotechnology;
  • the encouragement of experimental and applied research and development in nanotechnology and their use in industry;
  • international cooperation in this field;
  • public recognition of the role of the individual scientists, developers and teams that carry out scientific research.

The RUSNANOPRIZE 2014 is sponsored by Otkrytiye Financial Corporation.

For more information, please visit rusnanoprize.ru