Dr. Rafał Panek’s research internship at the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) in South Africa

In September and October 2022 Dr. Rafał Panek completed one month research
internship at the prestigious scientific unit of the Council for Scientific and
Industrial Research (CSIR) in Pretoria (South Africa) in the Hydrogen South
Africa and Carbon Capture and Utilization group led by Dr. Nicholas Musyoka.
The internship was part of the LIDER/19/0072/L-9/17/NCBR/2018 project financed
by the National Center for Research and Development. During the internship,
Rafał conducted research on the sorption capabilities of ultrapure zeolites
(Na-X, Na-A and Na-P1) and mesoporous silica materials (MCM-41) in terms of CO₂
capture and hydrogen storage.

The extensive experience of the research group from South Africa in the field of hydrogen economy i.e. production, storage and conversion as well expertise in CO2 capture and utilisation, which are areas that largely cover the topic of the research project, undoubtedly contributed to the efficient implementation of the planned research. In addition, the visit was an opportunity to learn about the research capabilities of the CSIR laboratory and to strengthen cooperation and exchange of experience, which in the future may result in applying for joint research projects in this area.