KYUDAI NEWS KYUSHU UNIVERSITY CAMPUS MAGAZINE Spring 2013 No.24

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It's a great pleasure to meet you. Dr. Bishop. I'd like to start by asking about your background. Thank you. I did my undergraduate degree in materials engineering at the New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology just south of Santa Fe, where I got my basic introduction to materials science. During that time I also worked on ceramics and oxide materials at a national laboratory in Albuquerque. After that, I wanted to contribute to finding new ways of producing energy and renewable energy and so with the basic knowledge that I had I moved to the University of Florida in Gainesville and started working on solid oxide fuel cells as part of a research group. The weather and climate there is very similar to Kyushu actually. I gained my Ph.D there and then moved to MIT as a post-doctoral researcher for a couple of years focusing on electro-ceramics, cathode properties, and oxygen exchange on the surface; overall a fundamental examination of fuel cells.This institute is very international and cutting-edge. There are, however, many such facilities in the US so why did you select I²CNER?Well I was last in Boston which was a fun city. After being a post-doc. for two years I started looking for faculty positions and then found I²CNER, which was very attractive due to being so internationally-oriented. I²CNER really brings in a lot of researchers from high performing institutions all over the world - MIT, Imperial College, ETH in Switzerland; a lot of these people are experts in my field. I get to spend a lot of time with them learning about fuel cells, including many interesting lunches together. So there was a lot to attract you to I²CNER? There are of course many other great institutions in the US - but it is still very much the United States experience. By coming to Japan I get to experience an entirely new type of research style, with perhaps even more interaction with international experts. Japan is the leading country when it comes to ceramics and fuel cells, so I thought it is a very good opportunity to come out here and see it first hand, and to stay out here for a few years. Could you talk a bit about your future research plans and vision? Basically to do as much as I can to promote fuel cells, by bringing down the cost and increasing their durability. I want to continue my research in academia while helping to educate our future scientists and engineers who will take us forward into a sustainable society and overcome the challenges of creating sustainable energy. Is there anything special or different about Japanese research and practices? Japanese researchers are definitely very hard-working. They are very focused and able to produce a lot of improvements on certain ideas, so in terms of overcoming a well-defined problem, Japan is extremely strong. What would you say is unique about I²CNER?We do have some very nice facilities here. One tool in particular is one of only four in the world; it is for analysing surface properties of fuel cells which is a boon for researchers. The international collaboration between specialists from all around the world and Japan is key to making the best use of these wonderful tools. Kyudai News No.2421Researchers from Throughout the WorldSean Bishop (U.S.A)Assistant Professor International Institute for Carbon-Neutral Energy Research (I2CNER)

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