Dr Denisa Jurcakova
Research Fellow
ARC Centre of Excellence for Functional Nanomaterials
Level 5
AIBN Building No. 75
Corner College and Cooper Roads
The University of Queensland
St Lucia Qld 4072
p: 61 7 3346 3830
f
: 61 7 3346 3973
e: d.jurcakova@uq.edu.au
Research focus
Dr Jurcakova's research focuses on the field of carbon and nanotechnology, specialising in nanostructured carbon for sustainable energy applications. Particularly, her research is focused on the development of new carbon materials for high-performance supercapacitors and the fundamental understanding of the combined effect of the carbon porous structure and surface functionalities on electrochemical performance.
Brief bio
After receiving a Master in Science (Chemistry) degree in 1998 from the Comenius University in Bratislava, Slovakia, Dr Jurcakova was awarded a Japanese Government Postgraduate scholarship and moved to Japan. She studied under the supervision of Prof Asao Oya, one of the pioneers in carbon science in Japan. During her PhD studies she developed a method for CNTs production by spinning the polymer blends, which has been patented in Japan, USA, and Europe with the total of 8 patents.
Following her postgraduate studies, she joined the Energy Storage Materials Group at the National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST), Tsukuba Japan as an AIST and the Japan Society for Promotion of Science (JSPS) fellow to work on the development of new, nitrogen-enriched carbons for high-performance supercapacitors. During this time, she published several high-impact papers and co-invented two Japanese patents.
Since joining the University of Queensland in 2006, Dr Jurcakova continues to study the effect of surface functionalities on carbon on its electrochemical performance in order to develop carbons for supercapacitors for different applications including the hybrid vehicle. The fundamental understanding between the optimal porous structure and electrochemically active surface functional groups is one of the highest priorities. Her current research activities have been acknowledged by the British Carbon Society when she was awarded the 2008 Brian Kelly Award. She has been a reviewer for the following journals: Journal of American Chemical Society, Chemistry of Materials, Langmuir, Carbon, Journal of Colloid and Interface Science, ACS Nano, Electrochimica Acta and Electrochemistry Communications.
Currently Dr Jurcakova leads the supercapacitor project of the NIRAP Queensland-China Alliance in Nanomaterials for Clean Energy Technologies..
Current projects
National and International Research Alliances Program NIRAP- Queensland-China Alliance in Nanomaterials for Clean Energy Technologies 2008-2011
Collaborations
Professor Teresa J Bandosz, City College of New York, Department of Chemistry
Dr. Alexey Glushenkov and Professor Ying Chen, Institute for Technology, Research & Innovation, Deakin University
Dr Alexander Puziy, National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine
Professor Zhaoxiang Wang, Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences
Dr Masaya Kodama, AIST, Japan
Selected publications
D. Hulicova-Jurcakova, A. Puziy, O. Poddubnaya, F. Garcia, J. Tascon, M. Lu. Highly stable performance of supercapacitors from phosphorus-enriched carbons, J Am Chem Soc 2009, 31 (14), 5026-5027
D. Hulicova-Jurcakova, M. Seredych, G. Q. Lu, T. J. Bandosz. Combined effect of nitrogen- and oxygen-containing functional groups of microporous activated carbon on its electrochemical performance in supercapacitors, Adv Funct Mater 2009, 19 (3) 438-447
D. Hulicova-Jurcakova, M. Kodama, S. Shiraishi, H. Hatori, Z. H. Zhu, G. Q. Lu. Nitrogen-enriched nonporous carbon electrodes with extraordinary supercapacitance, Adv Funct Mater 2009, 19 (11) 1800-1809
A. Glushenkov, D. Hulicova-Jurcakova, D. Llewellyn, M. Lu, Y. Chen. Structure and capacitive properties of porous nanocrystalline VN prepared by temperature-programmed ammonia reduction of V2O5, Chem Mater 2009, in press
T.E. Rufford, D. Hulicova-Jurcakova, E. Fiset, Z. Zhu, G. Q. Lu. Double-layer capacitance of activated carbons from waste coffee beans in organic electrolyte. Electrochem Commun 2009, 11, 974-977
T.E. Rufford, D. Hulicova-Jurcakova, Z. Zhu, G. Q. Lu. Nanoporous carbon electrode from waste coffee beans for high performance supercapacitors, Electrochem Commun 2008, 10 (10), 1594-1597
Hulicova, D.; Kodama, M.; Hatori, H. Electrochemical Performance of Nitrogen-Enriched Carbons in Aqueous and Non-Aqueous Supercapacitors. Chem Mater 2006, 18 (9), 2318-2316
Hulicova, D.; Yamashita, J.; Soneda, Y.; Hatori, H.; Kodama, M. Supercapacitors Prepared from Melamine-based Carbon. Chem Mater 2005 17(5), 1241-1247
Hulicova, D.; Hosoi, K.; Kuroda, S.; Oya, A. Carbon Nanotubes Prepared from Three-layered Copolymer Microspheres of Acrylonitrile and Methylmethacrylate. Carbon 2005, 43, 1246-1253
Hulicova, D.; Oya, A. Polymer Blend Technique as a Method to Design Fine Carbon Materials. Carbon 2003, 41, 1443-1450
Hulicova, D.; Hosoi, K.; Kuroda, S.; Abe, H.; Oya, A. Carbon Nanotubes Prepared by Spinning and Carbonizing Fine Core-shell Microspheres. Adv Mater 2002, 14, 452-455
Professional associations
Australian Research Nanotechnology Network
Currents student projects
Novel graphitic mesoporous carbon materials for next generation carbon catalyst supports and carbon electrodes – Mr Ching Yuan (Tom) Cheng, PhD candidate
Carbon materials for supercapacitors – Ms Erika Fiset, PhD candidate
Coffee-derived carbons for supercapacitors- Ms Manon Bergez-Lacoste, Occupational Trainee, France and Mr. Keith Low, individual inquiry, 4th year Chem Eng student, UQ
Student projects available
None at this time