Completed Projects

Clean and Vertically-Integrated Pure/Applied Hydrogen Energy Research (CIPHER) for Next Generation Power Systems

Project CIPHER will develop hydrogen and fuel cell-related technologies by addressing key areas in energy research, combining computational and experimental approaches from the molecular scale, to materials and cell level scale, to device level scale, and to energy system scale. Specifically, the project aims to:

Develop and discover novel materials for electrocatalysts of fuel cells, hydrogen generators, and other energy storage technologies.

• Develop a DC/DC converter prototype for hybrid power systems

• Explore advanced simulations and modelling on hybrid energy systems to evaluate the techno-economical potential of large-scale electrical energy storage systems.

• Provide science-based policy-enabling recommendations to government agencies in the area of renewable energy integration, energy storage, and rural electrification.

Principal Investigators:

Prof. Joey D. Ocon (PH Team)

Assoc. Prof. Po-Ya Abel Chuang, Ph.D. (UC Team)

Funding Agency

Collaborator

Advanced Cathodes for Next Generation Batteries (NextGen)

The Project NextGen: Advanced Cathode Materials for Next Generation Batteries is one of the three projects under the Advanced Batteries Center (ABC) of the Philippines. Program ABC is funded by the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) through the Niche Centers in the Regions (NICER) for R&D Program. NextGen focuses on the identification, synthesis, and testing of novel cathode materials based on earth-abundant elements (Ni, Fe) for high energy density batteries for next generation batteries (Li-ion, Na-ion, Mg-ion, multi-ion).

To meet the ever growing performance requirements for energy storage technologies, research on new materials is headed towards capacity enhancement and improving the energy and/or power density of storage technologies, while producing cost-effective, non-toxic, and sustainable batteries. Thus, Project NextGen is motivated to discover novel high energy density cathode materials that lead to sustainable battery chemistries with exciting new properties!

This project aims to develop advanced high iron or nickel content cathodes for next-generation batteries (i.e., Li-ion, Na-ion, Mg-ion, multi-ion) to promote the use of conflict-free elements and enable non-lithium-based ion batteries. Specifically, this project will:

• Explore discovered iron- or nickel-based compounds, which have not been utilized for battery applications, in material databases.

• Synthesize and characterize novel iron- or nickel-based inorganic compounds with tailor-made properties for use as cathodes.

• Fabricate and test cells utilizing the synthesized cathode materials.

• Establish the Joint NICER Laboratory, an advanced battery research center.

Principal Investigator:

Prof. Joey D. Ocon, PhD

Funding Agency

Monitoring Agency

Department of Science and Technology (DOST) of the Philippines through the DOST Science for Change Program (S4CP) Niche Centers in the Region (NICER) for R&D Advanced Batteries Center (ABC) Program

Philippine Council for Industry, Energy and Emerging Technology Research and Development (PCIEERD)

Cooperating Agencies

UP Diliman Department of Chemical Engineering

Technological Institute of the Philippines

20. ElectriPHI: Systematic, Multi-disciplinary, and Data-driven Electrification Planning in Off-Grid Islands in the Philippines

Project Leader/Principal Investigator: Prof. Joey D. Ocon, Ph.D.

Funding Agency: UP Office of the Vice President for Academic Affairs - Emerging Interdisciplinary Research (EDIR) Program

Duration: April 18, 2022 – April 17, 2024

19. Project PROTEUS

Project Leader/Principal Investigator: Prof. Joey D. Ocon, Ph.D.

Co-Project Leader: Lawrence A. Limjuco, Ph.D.

Duration: September 1, 2022 – August 31, 2023

Funding Agency: National Research Council of the Philippines (DOST-NRCP)

18. CIPHER: Clean and Vertically-Integrated Pure/Applied Hydrogen Energy Research for Next Generation Power Systems

Project Leader/Principal Investigator: Prof. Joey D. Ocon, Ph.D.

Funding Agency: Commission on Higher Education - Philippine California Research Institutes

Duration: April 18, 2022 – April 17, 2024

17. Project AURORA: Advanced Utilization and Research On Renewable Ammonia

Project team:

EMPA team:

Principal Investigator: Artur Braun, Ph.D.

Postdoctoral Researcher: Kwanele Kunene, Ph.D., and Nikolay Ryzhkov, Ph.D.

PH team:

Asian Collaborator: Prof. Joey Ocon, Ph.D. and Assoc. Prof. Julie Anne D. del Rosario, Ph.D.

Postdoctoral researcher: DJ Donn Matienzo, Ph.D.

PhD researcher: Glennise Faye C. Mejica, M.Eng

Funding Agency: Research Partnership Grant ASEAN 2022 (RPG-ASEAN 2022)

Duration: April 2023 - March 2024

16. Electrochemical-Thermal Coupled Thermal Runaway Multiphysics Model for Lithium-Polymer Battery

Project Leader/Principal Investigator: Assoc. Prof. Julie Anne D.R. Paraggua

Funding Agency: UP Outright Research Grant, UP Diliman Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research and Development (UPD OVCRD)

Duration: November 3, 2022 to November 2, 2023

Amount: P300,000 (6,000 USD)

15. Ion- and Surface-sensitive Interactions During Oxygen Evolution Reaction in Alkaline Media

Project Leader/Principal Investigator: Assoc. Prof. Julie Anne D.R. Paraggua

Funding Agency: UP Enhanced Creative Work and Research Grant, UP Office of the Vice-President for Academic Affairs (OVPAA)

Duration: July 1, 2020 to December 21, 2021

Amount: P500,000 (10,000 USD)

14. Electrocatalytic Reduction of Carbon Dioxide to Formate Using Nano-structured Tin Oxide
Project Leader/Principal Investigator: Assoc. Prof. Julie Anne D.R. Paraggua

Funding Agency: UP Enhanced Creative Work and Research Grant, UP Office of the Vice-President for Academic Affairs (OVPAA)

Duration: April 27, 2015 to October 27, 2016

Amount: P500,000 (10,000 USD)

13. NEXUS: Energy-Water Sustainability in Off-grid Islands

Project Leader/Principal Investigator: Prof. Joey D. Ocon, Ph.D.

Funding Agency: Department of Science and Technology (Grants to Outstanding Achievements in Science and Technology)

Duration: January to Dec 31, 2022

12. ChlorGen: On-Site Hypochlorite Disinfectant Generation via Brine Water Electrolysis

Project Leader/Principal Investigator: Prof. Joey D. Ocon, Ph.D.

Funding Agency: UP Engineering Research and Development Foundation Inc. (UP ERDFI)

Duration: March to July 2020

Amount: PhP 300,000.00 (6,260.60 USD)

11. ElectriPHI: Electrification Planning in Small Off-Grid Islands in the Philippines

Project Leader/Principal Investigator: Prof. Joey D. Ocon, Ph.D.

Funding Agency: Energy Research Fund, UP Office of the Vice-President for Academic Affairs (UP OVPAA)

Duration: October 2019 to June 2020

Amount: PhP 7,468,911.40 (146,000 USD)

10. Design and Development of Novel Electrode and Cell Architecture of a Biodegradable Transient Battery

Project Leader/Principal Investigator: Prof. Joey D. Ocon, Ph.D.

Funding Agency: UP PhD Incentive Award, UPD Office of the Vice-Chancellor for Research and Development (OVCRD)

Duration: July 2018 to June 2019

Amount: PhP 300,000.00 (6,000 USD)

9. Zinc-Air Battery: Oxygen Electrocatalyst Research and Prototype Design and Development

Project Leader/Principal Investigator: Prof. Joey D. Ocon, Ph.D.

Funding Agency: Emerging Inter-Disciplinary Research Grant (EIDR), UP Office of the Vice-President for Academic Affairs (UP OVPAA)

Duration: February 2018 to January 2020

Amount: PhP 2,434,400.00 (48,500 USD)

8. EnerPHIL: Energiewende on the Philippine Islands

PH Collaborator: Prof. Joey D. Ocon, Ph.D.

Funding Agency: German Federal Ministry of Education and Research’s Partnerschaften für nachhaltige Problemlösungen in Entwicklungsländern – Forschung für Entwicklung Funding Scheme

Duration: August 2017 to October 2018

Amount: PhP 8,000,000.00 (124,878 Euro)

7. Jolt: A Stackable Multi- Functional Battery Energy Storage for Household Solar and Emergency Applications

Project Leader/Principal Investigator: Prof. Joey D. Ocon, Ph.D.

Funding Agency: Department of Science and Technology - Philippine Council of Industry, Energy, and Emerging Technology Research and Development (DOST-PCIEERD)

Duration: May 2017 to March 2018

Amount: PhP 6,926,267.28 (138,505 USD)

6. Leadium: Hybrid Battery Energy Storage System for Solar Application

Co-Project Leader: Prof. Joey D. Ocon, Ph.D.

Funding Agency: PHINMA Energy Corporation

Duration: January 2017 to April 2018

Amount: PhP 9,964,100.00 (199,282 USD)

5. GREEN POWER (IIID-2015-09) Project 2, Electricity Production in Polymer Electrolyte Membrane Fuel Cells

Project Leader/Principal Investigator: Prof. Joey D. Ocon, Ph.D.

Funding Agency: Commission on Higher Education - Philippine California Advanced Research Institutes (CHED-PCARI), in collaboration with University of California Merced

Duration: June 2016 to May 2018

Amount: PhP 59,778,360.00 (1,195,567 USD)

4. Development of High Performance Germanium Anodes for Lithium-ion Batteries and Metal-air Batteries

Project Leader/Principal Investigator: Prof. Joey D. Ocon, Ph.D.

Funding Agency: UP PhD Incentive Award, UPD Office of the Vice-Chancellor for Research and Development (OVCRD)

Duration: August 2016 to July 2017

Amount: PhP 300,000.00 (6,000 USD)

3. Corrosion Kinetics and Passivation Behaviour of Engine Steel in Ethanol- Gasoline (E-10) Blends in the Philippines

Project Leader/Principal Investigator: Prof. Joey D. Ocon, Ph.D.

Funding Agency: Enhanced Creative Writing and Research Grant (ECWRG), UP Office of the Vice- President for Academic Affairs (OVPAA)

Duration: April 2016 to September 2017

Amount: PhP 500,000.00 (10,000 USD)

2. Electrocatalytic Conversion of Greenhouse Gas Carbon Dioxide (CO₂) into High Value Chemicals on Nanostructured Copper-Gold Electrodes

Project Leader/Principal Investigator: Prof. Joey D. Ocon, Ph.D.

Funding Agency: Grants for Outstanding Achievements in Science & Technology, Department of Science and Technology (DOST)

Duration: February 2016 to January 2017

Amount: PhP 523,600.00 (10,460 USD)

1. Market and Technology Assessment of Electrical Energy Storage for Renewable Energy in the Philippines

Project Leader/Principal Investigator: Prof. Joey D. Ocon, Ph.D.

Funding Agency: UP Center for Integrative and Development Studies (UP CIDS)

Duration: April 2016 to December 2016

Amount: PhP 723,000.00 (14,460 USD)