'January Scientist' Professor Kim Beom-jun Develops Durable Carbonized Particles

This Year's First Scientist Award Goes to Professor Kim Beom-jun of Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology

Professor Kim Beom-jun

[Asia Economy Reporter Hwang Junho] Professor Kim Beomjun of the Department of Biological and Chemical Engineering at the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) has been selected as the first 'Scientist of the Month' this year. He developed a structure that connects different polymers like chains to mass-produce carbonized particles with high durability, contributing to the development of next-generation fuel cells by utilizing this technology.

The Ministry of Science and ICT and the National Research Foundation of Korea announced on the 6th that Professor Kim will be awarded the Minister's Award and a prize of 10 million KRW.

Professor Kim's research team developed a platform for mass-producing highly durable carbonized particles using a membrane emulsion technique with high-performance separation membranes. The carbonized particles developed by the team have world-class durability and can achieve higher performance than existing products while using only about 1/20th of the expensive platinum previously required. The team also developed high-performance energy devices such as fuel cells using this technology. Their achievements were published in international journals including Environmental Science and the Journal of the American Chemical Society.

Professor Kim said, "The significance of this research lies in successfully developing high-performance fuel cells that meet performance, durability, and cost requirements," adding, "The related technology is expected to be applied not only to fuel cells but also to the development of various energy devices such as solar cells and secondary batteries in the future."

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