Humboldt Fellows at HZB Institute for Solar Fuels

Grants for two researchers are funded by the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation

Alexander R. Uhl, UBC Okanagan School of Engineering in Kelowna, Canada, aims to develop with Roel van de Krol from the HZB Institute for Solar Fuels an efficient and inexpensive photoelectrolyser for producing hydrogen using sunlight.

Dr. Alexander R. Uhl from the UBC Okanagan School of Engineering in Kelowna, Canada, has been collaborating with Roel van de Krol on a joint research project since 2023. As a Humboldt Fellow, he will now be able to continue this project at HZB over the next ten months. ‘HZB has earned an international reputation in the field of solar fuels and catalysis, and I am looking forward to deepening our collaboration,’ he says. They aim to develop a photoelectrolysis device with light-sensitive photoelectrodes that uses sunlight to split water molecules into their components and produce green hydrogen. ‘Our goal is to develop a robust, scalable, and cost-effective solution based on low-cost and abundant materials,’ says Uhl. 

Alexander R. Uhl earned his doctorate from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich (ETH) and conducted research at universities in Canada, USA, Sweden, and at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Lausanne (EPFL). Since 2019 he is a professor at the Okanagan School of Engineering, University of British Columbia, Canada. His achievements include developing printed solar cells, tandem cells, and photoelectrochemical cells.

Kayode Adesina Adegoke is a renowned chemist, affiliated with LAUTECH SDG 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities Research Group), Department of Pure and Applied Chemistry, Ladoke Akintola University of Technology, Ogbomoso, Nigeria. He is collaborating with Matthew Mayer to investigate the degradation of electrocatalysts during electrochemical CO₂ reduction. The Alexander von Humboldt Fellowship enables him to stay at Helmholtz Zentrum Berlin up to 24 months.

Adegoke’s research has led him from Nigeria to South Africa, where he has earned his doctorate in chemistry at the University of Pretoria in 2020. He has worked as a researcher and lecturer in University of Johannesburg, First Technical University, Ibadan Nigeria, and Walter Sisulu University, South Africa and as visiting researcher to School of Chemical Engineering, Newcastle University, United Kingdom, sponsored by the Analytical Chemistry Trust Fund, Developing World Scholarship under the Royal Society of Chemistry. He has already published more than 100 scientific papers in international high-impact journals.

During his Alexander von Humboldt-Fellowship at HZB, he plans to investigate the degradation mechanisms of electrocatalysts during electrochemical CO₂ reduction under industrially relevant conditions. ‘A key question is how structural, morphological, and electronic changes influence activity, selectivity, and long-term stability’, he explains. Furthermore, he aims to establish a unified stability evaluation protocol for benchmarking CO₂ reduction reaction catalysts.

He chose to join HZB for its interdisciplinary environment with state-of-the-art facilities for in situ/operando characterisation, advanced electrochemical analysis, and electrolyser testing.  ‘I wanted to work with Matthew Mayer because of his outstanding work on advanced materials, electrocatalysis, and nanostructured interfaces for energy conversion. This complements my own expertise in nano-architectured electrocatalysts for CO₂ reduction very well’, he says. ‘The Mayer group has experience with industrially relevant CO₂ electrolysis systems, and stability evaluation protocols, which aligns perfectly with the objectives of my ECO₂Stable project.’

Asked for his further plans, he adds: ‘I am excited about building long-term partnerships between Germany and my home institution in sustainable energy research. Most of all, I look forward to contributing meaningfully to the global effort to convert CO₂ into valuable chemicals while deepening my professional independence as an AvH Fellow.’

Further information:

• Information about the Humboldt-Fellowship for Prof. Dr. Alexander Roland Uhl
• Information about the Humboldt-Fellowship for Dr. Adesina Kayode Adegoke
• Research in the fields of Green Fuels & Chemicals at Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin (HZB)

Contact:

Dr. Antonia Rötger
Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin für Materialien und Energie
Press Officer
+49 30 8062-43733
antonia.roetger(at)helmholtz-berlin.de

HZB press releases of 2 March and 18 March 2026