Shivangni Pundir was awarded a Rideal Travel Bursary to attend the Electrochem 2026 at university of York, UK. Here she tells us about her highlights from the conference.
"I got the opportunity to participate in Electrochem 2026 at university of York, UK, held from 23-25 August 2026. The conference was genuinely insightful experience, exposing me to the different applications of electrochemistry used to study electrocatalyst, electrolysis, batteries, interfaces, metal recovery, biological mechanisms etc, connecting me to the wider research community. Plenary lectures were outstanding, Particularly the one delivered Prof. Mari Lundström, winner of faraday medal, whose discussion on metal recovery using pulse techniques combined with electrodeposition techniques was both illuminating and inspiring, sparking a new interested in this field. I attended a wide range of talks spanning from batteries to biosensors and found the days passing remarkably quickly given how engaged I was throughout.
"I also contributed to the conference by presenting my research, in the presence of my supervisor Dr. Stephen Lyth, through a talk titled “Synthesis of M-N-C Electrocatalysts for the Hydrogen Evolution Reaction.” In this talk, I discussed my research into the activity and durability of a series of M-N-C electrocatalysts. These are synthesised via the thermal decomposition of sodium ethoxide to form microporous carbon foams with extremely large surface area (>2000 m2/g). This is then coated with carbon nitride via thermal decomposition of dicyandiamide and decorated with metal sites via thermal reduction of various metal salts.
"The resulting electrocatalysts are labelled Fe-N-C, Ni-N-C, Co-N-C, and Sn-N-C. These are formulated into electrocatalysts inks and evaluated for their activity towards the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) in both acidic and alkaline media and compared with commercial catalyst benchmarks. I characterised these material using a range of techniques, including adsorption/desorption analysis, raman spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and scanning electron microscopy, alongside electrochemical techniques such as cyclic voltammetry, linear sweep voltammetry, chronoamperometry, and chronopotentiometry. Through these methods, I was able to demonstrate how my material performs by comparing current retention, overpotential requirements, and degradation behaviour. Presenting my work was a rewarding experience, and I received valuable feedback and encouraging comments from the audience.
"The conference also gave me the opportunity to learn about exciting work from larger research groups at University of Warwick and University of Oxford, who are utilising synchrotron techniques to study atomic-level mechanisms in electrocatalysts. This was thought provoking and shaped new possibility about how I might apply similar techniques to my own research.
"Beyond the technical sessions, I was able to reconnect with familiar faces and meet new attendees during the conference dinner and networking sessions. Seeing how rapidly the field is advancing was genuinely motivating and reinforced my excitement.
"A particular highlight was a lighthearted magnetic dart game organised by Alvatek, with a sensit smart potentiostat as the prize, ultimately won by my supervisor, Dr. Stephen Lyth. Overall, this conference reaffirmed my growing passion for electrochemistry and its many applications. This experience was made possible through the generous support of the Rideal travel bursary, awarded by SCI and Royal Society of Chemistry, Whose contribution supported my attendance and gave a meaningful boost to my confidence as an early-career researcher."
Shivangni Pundir
PhD student
University of Strathclyde
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