Members of Research Group Bucher
Edith Bucher
Research Group Leader
Edith Bucher is Associate Professor at the Chair of Physical Chemistry at Montanuniverstitaet Leoben and has been working on the development of new materials for solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs) and solid oxide electrolyzer cells (SOECs) since 2000. She has been involved in the synthesis, characterization and optimization of mixed ionic-electronic conducting oxides and developed the methodology for the investigation of fundamental mass and charge transport properties. Since 2008, Edith Bucher's special research focus has been the development of long-term stable and high performance SOFCs, SOECs and RSOCs, which are expected to drive the broad market introduction of these highly efficient and sustainable energy technologies.
Since 2013, Edith Bucher is head of the research group "Functional ceramics for solid oxide fuel cells and solid oxide electrolyser cells". In cooperation with national and international research partners, fundamental questions concerning the material design, mass and charge transport properties, electrochemistry, and the detailed aging mechanisms of SOFCs/SOECs are being addressed. The know-how gained is incorporated into application-oriented research within the framework of funded projects in cooperation with scientific partners and industrial partners. The high visibility of the research in the scientific community is evidenced by more than 50 publications in international peer-reviewed journals and a high number of citations.
Andreas Egger
Senior Scientist
Andreas Egger is Senior Scientist at the Chair of Physical Chemistry of Montanuniversitaet Leoben and has more than 15 years of experience in the field of crystal structure, defect chemistry, and mass- and charge transport properties of mixed ionic-electronic conducting ceramics. He is author or co-author of 29 peer-reviewed scientific publications and a book chapter, and an internationally recognized expert in the field of development of materials for solid oxide cells and the kinetic and electrochemical characterization of materials and cells.
Mehmet Aksoy
PhD Student
Mehmet is currently working at the Chair of Physical Chemistry of Montanuniversitaet Leoben as doctoral student. His focus is on new electrodes for solid oxide electrolyser cells (SOECs), which are made from sustainable, uncritical, and cost-effective materials. Mehmet's research is embedded in the project "Design-SOEC" which aims at a knowledge-based design approach for SOECs with optimized core components and improved reliability, energy efficiency and lifetime.
Barbara Buxbaum
PhD Student
Barbara is currently working at the Chair of Physical Chemistry of Montanuniversitaet Leoben as doctoral student on high-temperature co-electrolysis of CO2 and H2O and the development of new materials for solid oxide electrolyser cells (SOECs). Synthesis and characterization of electrochemical cells should provide deeper insights into electrochemical behaviour and degradation mechanisms under conditions of co-electrolysis.
Sarah Eisbacher-Lubensky
Post-Doc
Sarah is currently working at the Chair of Physical Chemistry of Montanuniversitaet Leoben as Post-doctoral researcher on synthesis and electrochemical characterization of novel solid oxide electrolyzer cell anode materials. Her research focus is on A- and B-site substituted rare earth nickelates, aiming at a deeper understanding of the mass and charge transport properties of these compounds.
Former Members (Alumni)
Martin Hatzl
Martin obtained his Master’s Degree in Industrial Energy Engineering in October 2024. The title of his Master’s thesis, which he did in AG Bucher, is "Synthese und Charakterisierung neuartiger Hochentropie-Seltenerdnickelate als Luftelektrode für Festoxidzellen (Synthesis and characterization of novel high-entropy rare earth nickelates as air electrode for solid oxide cells)".
Christina Nader
Christina was part of the team as a Doctoral Student, Project Researcher and University Assistant from July 2021 to July 2024 focussing on the development of novel functional ceramics with protonic, oxygen ionic, and electronic conductivity. Her research aimed at the derivation of structure-property relationships and design guidelines for optimized triple-conducting materials with respect to applications in future technologies for electrochemical energy storage and conversion. The title of Christina's PhD thesis is "Fundamental structure-property relations of triple-conducting Ba(Ce,Fe,Acc)O3-δ ceramics ". She defended her thesis on 05.11.24 and passed with distinction. Christina's first job after her PhD led her to TDK.
Patrick Pretschuh
Patrick was part of the team as a Doctoral Student and University Assistant from July 2021 to June 2024 focussing on long-term stable solid oxide electrolysis cells for the efficient production of hydrogen. His research aimed at the development of novel anode materials and microstructures, which exhibit higher power densities and lower degradation rates than state-of-the-art electrodes over the longest possible operating range. The title of Patrick's PhD thesis is "High entropy perovskites as efficient and long-term stable air electrodes for solid oxide cells". He defended his thesis on 01.10.24 and passed with distinction. After his PhD, Patrick joined AT&S.
Phillip Geiersberger
Phillip obtained his Master’s Degree in Industrial Energy Engineering in June 2024. The title of his Master’s thesis, which he did in AG Bucher, is "Untersuchung von Stromsammlerschichten zur Maximierung der Leistungsfähigkeit von Hochtemperaturelektrolysezellen (Investigation of current collector layers to maximize the performance of solid oxide electrolysis cells )".
Jakob Plattner
Jakob obtained his Master’s Degree in Industrial Energy Engineering in October 2023. The title of his Master’s thesis, which he did in AG Bucher, is "Charakterisierung und Optimierung von La2Ni0.8Co0.2O4+δ als Luftelektrodenmaterial in Festoxid-Zellen (Characterization and optimization of La2Ni0.8Co0.2O4+δ as air electrode material in solid oxide cells)". Jakob's first job after his MSc lead him to ENEXSA GmbH in Raaba-Grambach, Austria.