Dr. Sudhagar Pitchaimuthu Associate Professor
School of Engineering & Physical Sciences, Institute of Mechanical, Process & Energy Engineering, Heriot-Watt University, Riccarton, UK
Office: DB 2.67
Phone:
Email: S.Pitchaimuthu@hw.ac.uk
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sudhagar-pitchaimuthu-ph-d-frsc-a3933237/
Biography:
Sudhagar joined RCCS in June 2021. In 2009, he graduated with a PhD in Physics from Bharathiar University, India. From 2009-13, he worked as a Research Assistant under Prof. Yong Soo Kang at the Center for Next Generation Dye-sensitized Solar Cells at Hanyang University, South Korea. Concurrently since 2011, he served as a visiting scientist to the Department of Applied Physics, University of Jaume I, Spain. In 2013, he received the prestigious JSPS award, and worked as a JSPS Research Fellow under Prof. Akira Fujishima at the International Photocatalytic Research Center, Tokyo University of Science. In 2016, he moved to the UK as Junior Research Fellow at Queen’s University Belfast, before being awarded the Sêr Cymru II-Rising Star Fellowship by the European Regional Development Fund through the Welsh Government in 2017, where he led the “Multifunctional Photocatalyst & Coating” research group at SPECIFIC, Materials Research Centre, College of Engineering, Swansea University.
Sudhagar is a Fellow of the Royal Chemical Society (FRSC).
To date, he has secured approximately £800,000 grant income as either PI or Co-I from different funding agencies. He has published more than 100 articles in peer-reviewed international journals, contributed to six book chapters, and has presented more than 50 articles at international conferences. He is the Founder and Chair of the ANEH Conference Series. Sudhagar has delivered more than 40 invited talks around the globe, and is active in engaging in public and outreach events. He has organised four international conferences, three workshops, and is Guest Editor for the Materials Letters journal.
Sudhagar’s research on “tea leaf mediated quantum dots” in cancer cell diagnosis and treatment (ACS Applied Nano Materials. 2018, 1, 1683−1693) received world attention through popular media (BBC News, Nature Outlook, Popular Science, The Independent, and Advances Wales). In addition, his recent project “COVID waste turn into hydrogen fuel” (acted as co-investigator) featured in BBC news. Sudhagar serves as a panellist for “Role of Indian Diaspora in Capacity Building for Affordable Solar Power” (Pravasiya Bharthiya Divas) led by the Honourable Prime Minister of India. He has also been invited as an expert for the Co-Funded Brain Circulation Scheme 2 Kick-off meeting by the Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey (TUBITAK), Ankara, Turkey. Furthermore, he has been recognised by the Ministry of Education, Croatia, and invited to share his opinion on “Challenges and advantages in research mobility across the continents” at the “Young researchers in a highly skilled landscape” conference, which was organised by European Commission, Horizon 2020
Research Interests:
Sudhagar’s main research areas are Photoelectrochemistry, Photocatalysis, Nanomaterials, Solar Energy, Electrochemical CO2 recycling.
Publications:
- Ben Jones, Katherine R. Davies, Michael G. Allan, S. Anantharaj, Ian Mabbett, Trystan Watson, James R. Durrant, Moritz F. Kuehnel, Sudhagar Pitchaimuthu. Photoelectrochemical Concurrent Hydrogen Generation and Heavy Metal Recovery from Polluted Acidic Mine Water. Sustainable Energy & Fuels (advanced article 2021).
- Sengeni Anantharaj, Sudhagar Pitchaimuthu, Suguru Noda. A review on recent developments in electrochemical hydrogen peroxide synthesis with a critical assessment of perspectives and strategies. Advances in Colloid and Interface Science 287, 2021, 102331.u
- Vempuluru Navakoteswara Rao, Sudhagar Pitchaimuthu, Parnapalle Ravi, Marappan Sathish, Dr. Hyungkyu Han, Prof. Shankar, Muthukonda Venkatakrishnan. Retorting Photocorrosion and Enhanced Charge Carrier Separation at CdSe Nanocapsules by Chemically Synthesized TiO2 Shell for Photocatalytic Hydrogen Fuel Generation. ChemSusChem 2020,12, 3139-3152.
- Hong Duc Pham, Sagar M. Jain, Meng Li, Sergei Manzhos, Krishna Feron, Sudhagar Pitchaimuthu, Zhiyong Liu, Nunzio Motta, Hongxia Wang, James R. Durrant and Prashant Sonar. Dopant-free novel hole-transporting materials based on quinacridone dye for high-performance and humidity-stable mesoporous perovskite solar cells. Journal of Material Chemistry A 2019,7, 5315-5323.
- Kavitha Shivaji, Suganya Mani, Ponnusamy Ponmurugan, Catherine Suenne De Castro, Matthew Lloyd Davies, Mythili Gnanamangai Balasubramanian, and Sudhagar Pitchaimuthu, Green-Synthesis-Derived CdS Quantum Dots Using Tea Leaf Extract: Antimicrobial, Bioimaging, and Therapeutic Applications in Lung Cancer Cells. ACS Applied Nano Materials. 2018, 1, 1683−1693.
