Massimiliano Lo Faro is currently the leader of the SOFC research plan and activities at CNR-ITAE. He is particularly interested in the development of materials and components for Solid Oxide Electrochemical Cells (SOCs) that operate between 400 °C and 800 °C. In his research over the past two decades, he has demonstrated that i) fuel cells can generate power with high efficiency (SOFCs) using directly dry biofuels, ii) hydrogen or synthetic fuels can be generated by electrolyzing H2O or co-electrolyzing H2O and CO2 (SOECs), and iii) Fe-air batteries can be used to store electricity with excellent round-trip efficiency and at very low cost.Over the course of his career, he has been a visiting scientist and lecturer abroad for short-medium periods. CNPq granted him a grant to spend two months per year at the University of Sao Paulo as a "Special Visiting Researcher" for four years (processo nº402180/2012-7). The FAPESP granted him two contracts 2018/02172 -7 (2018) and 2022/00818-2 (2022) for spending a bimester at the University of Sao Carlos, two short-term mobility financed by CNR for a period of 21 days at the University of Thessaly in 2005 and at U of Lille in 2021, one in Mexico (U. of Zacates and CIDETEQ) in 2009 and one in Lubjana in 2019 both financed by MAECI, one in Sofia in 2020 financed by a bilateral agreement between CNR-BAS. In recognition of his research on solid oxide electrochemical cells, he received the H2Roma Award (2012) and three Dokiya Fund Awards (2009, 2007, 2005).His membership in scientific organizations includes ISE, ECS, and SCI. From 2010 to 2012, he served as the chair of SCIGiovani. Among various conferences organized, he was chair of GEI2012, HYPOTHESIS XIV, ROUNDTABLE on HYDROGEN in LATIN-AMERICA-2019, ICH2P-2021, and the Italy-Brazil R2B workshop-2021. Orazio Barbera is currently a permanent researcher at CNR-ITAE (National Research Council of Italy – Institute for Advanced Energy Technologies). He graduated from Politecnico di Milano in 1994 in Mechanical Engineering and received a PhD in Materials for Environment and Energy from the University of Tor Vergata, Rome, in March 2017. Dr Barbera has 19 years experience developing electrochemical power generation and storage technologies based on low-temperature fuel cells and batteries and focusses on hydrogen/methanol fuel cells, metal-air batteries, and photoelectrochemical cell engineering.In this field, Dr Barbera has developed a reliable methodology for fuel cell stack and batteries design and test. Prototyping is the direct expression of this research activity; it allows the technology to transfer from the lab scale to practical use. Numerous prototypes of fuel cell stacks for stationary, marine, space, and portable applications have been designed, manufactured, and tested. He designed, manufactured, and tested lab-scale metal-air batteries. This has allowed him to study behaviour and validate the general methodology for the executive plans. He was graduated in 2002 in Aerospace Engineering at Politecnico of Turin, where he also obtained his qualification to practice as an Engineer in 2003. Since December 2013, he is a permanent researcher at CNR-ITAE (National Research Council of Italy – Institute for Advanced Energy Technologies) where focused his research in the field of power and chemicals generation by electrochemical technologies such as batteries, fuel cells and electrolysers. Particular attention was devoted to the thermal fluid dynamic analysis of flow field distributors in PEM Fuel cells. In fact, uniform distribution of reactants in fuel cells as well as in the electrolysers, is a key point for optimal and durable performance of such devices. Development of specific measurement in experimental cells has allowed to confirm numerical results through experimental data. Production of hydrogen through assisted photoelectrochemical devices was another topic toward Dr. Giacoppo has focused his interests. Design and modelling of an innovative photoelectrochemical cell for water splitting was part of his most recent research.Teaching and dissemination activities are another important aspect of his scientific curriculum. He has held seminars on the hydrogen technologies and applied engineering to electrochemical devices at universities, schools and public institutions.
