Bernard Jan Bladergroen

After my Masters in Chemical Engineering at the University of Twente in the Netherlands I joined the University of the Western Cape (UWC) in 1998 as a PhD student (water purification) and continued as a postdoctoral fellow in hydrogen separation (2003), hydrogen production (2004) and was appointed as research manager for industrial contract research in 2005, followed by a senior lecturer appointment in 2006. From 2007 Prof Bladergroen accepted his role as the deputy director of the South African Institute for Advanced Materials Chemistry (SAIAMC) at UWC. The institute (99 people, 40% staff and 60% post graduate students) is serving the energy sector with the development and demonstration of state of the art technology. Prof Bladergroen has co-authored over 30 publications in peer reviewed journals and patents and has been involved in a wide variety of projects ranging from energy storage by means of hydrogen and batteries (Li-ion, Na-Metal halide), hydrogen production, hydrogen compression and a range of membrane separation technologies. Prof Bladergroen is the vice-chair on the International Association for Hydrogen Energy Youth Division and founding member of the South African Hydrogen Association. Prof Bladergroen is currently heading the Energy Storage Innovation Laboratory (ESIL) which was launch in May 2015. ESIL was created as a platform to commercialize emerging technologies in partnership with local businesses