SOREC2 closed its first year with the consortium meeting

SOREC₂ project organized its first consortium meeting on 9 and 10 November. The meeting was held at ICFO, which is the project’s leading institution. As it was the first in-person event of the project, the consortium members had the opportunity to interact directly amongst them since the start of the project since the kick-off meeting celebrated last in January was online.

Prof. Dr. Jordi Martorell, researcher at ICFO and project’s coordinator, welcomed the 35 attendees reflecting on the swift passage of time since the project started in November 2022. The primary goal of the meeting was to review and share the progress and accomplishments of the various work packages during the first year. Furthermore, participants engaged in strategic discussions to define the roadmap for the project’s second year.

Day One: technical Dialogues and Collaborative Insights

The first day of the meeting centered on technical discussions, featuring presentations from the leaders of the three work packages dedicated to developing the SOREC₂ CO₂ conversion technology. Representatives from WP2 (ICFO and SAULE) provided a detailed overview of their work on the photonic structures powering the SOREC2 conversion device. WP3, led by UAB, delved into the diverse approaches for developing the WOC on the photoanode and the cathode materials based on the latest results of CALTECH.

UNIFE, the leading partner of WP4, presented some preliminary results in the synthesis of catalyst cathodes. VITSOLC also took part in this section of the meeting by presenting its role within the consortium and outlining some of the challenges of the up-scaling process. The first day concluded with a social dinner, fostering informal networking amongst the project’s partners.

Day Two: Shaping the Path Forward

The second day featured presentations from WP5 (Exploitation led by ICFO and DBT), WP6 (Communication, Dissemination, and Outreach), and WP1 (Management), outlining their respective contributions and defining the next steps for the upcoming months.

Finally, Jordi Martorell closed the meeting by emphasizing the importance of the upcoming review meeting, which will probably take place next summer, and identified it as one of the most important milestones for the project’s future success.

“The different approaches explored in this initial phase should now align to meet the milestones outlined in the project’s proposal”, concluded Martorell.