Rate My Professor Trung Van Nguyen

Trung Van Nguyen is a Professor of Chemical and Petroleum Engineering at the University of Kansas. He received his B.S. in Chemical Engineering from North Carolina State University in 1981, an M.S. from Texas A&M University in 1985, and a Ph.D. from Texas A&M University in 1988. His research interests encompass fuel cells, batteries, interfacial phenomena, and mathematical modeling of electrochemical systems. Current efforts focus on electrochemical storage technologies, including fuel cells and flow batteries tailored for wind and solar energy integration, molecular structures of supersaturated electrolytes, and solid-liquid storage innovations for redox flow batteries.

Professor Nguyen has advanced the understanding and performance of proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs) through pioneering models addressing water and heat management, two-phase flow in cathodes, multicomponent transport in porous electrodes, and three-dimensional effects of liquid water flooding. Key publications include 'A water and heat management model for proton-exchange-membrane fuel cells' (1993), 'Two-phase flow model of the cathode of PEM fuel cells using interdigitated flow fields' (2000), 'A two-dimensional, two-phase, multicomponent, transient model for the cathode of a proton exchange membrane fuel cell using conventional gas distributors' (2001), and recent contributions such as 'Electrochemical Properties and Performance of Supersaturated Vanadium (IV) and V(V) Electrolytes' (2023), 'Vanadium Electrolyte Densification and Gel Formation Processes' (2023), and 'A Solid/Liquid High-Energy-Density Storage Concept for Redox Flow Batteries and Its Demonstration in an H2-V System' (2022). From 2007 to 2009, he served as the inaugural Director of the Energy for Sustainability program at the National Science Foundation while also directing the Catalysis and Biocatalysis program. His honors include the Bellows Scholar award (2016) and Miller Scholar award (2015) from the University of Kansas School of Engineering, as well as the Madison and Lila Self Faculty Scholar designation (2002-2005). These achievements underscore his substantial influence on sustainable energy storage and conversion technologies.