Dr René Böttcher received this prestigious award, this year presented personally by Prof. Nasser Kanani, for his work on the electrodeposition of aluminium and aluminium alloys from ionic liquids, with particular emphasis on excellence in theoretical and practical achievements and aspects of sustainability.
Dr Böttcher's work makes excellent contributions to a better understanding of the complex thermodynamics and electrochemical kinetics of aluminium and its alloys in chloroaluminate-based ILs. This fundamental gain in knowledge is complemented by concrete proposals for the implementation of technical processes for aluminium electroplating. Dr Böttcher has skilfully combined electrochemical and materials science methods. His work forms a rich source of high-quality scientific information, such as the stability of construction materials or very detailed investigations into rate-determining steps in charge transfer reactions with several electrons. These and other results form an excellent basis for the technical realisation of environmentally friendly galvanic processes in ILs. Concrete applications arise for the sustainable corrosion protection of aviation steels. Aluminium alloys could thus replace the toxicologically questionable cadmium coatings. Dr Böttcher impressively demonstrated the great potential of ionic liquids for sustainable electrochemical processes in specific applications.
Link to the dissertation:: https://www.db-thueringen.de/servlets/MCRFileNodeServlet/dbt_derivate_00053633/ilm1-2021000117.pdf
Source: Dr. René Böttcher