The Ertl Lecture Award, established in 2008 to honor the scientific legacy of Nobel Laureate Gerhard Ertl - UniSysCat's spiritus rector - is an annual distinction recognizing outstanding achievements in catalysis research. The prize not only recognizes excellent research, but also promotes the exchange of pioneering ideas in the field of catalysis. The 2025 awardee Prof. Dr. Héctor D. Abruña exemplifies this vision with his groundbreaking work in this field.
Prof. Dr. Héctor Daniel Abruña is the director of the Energy Materials Center and Émile M. Chamot Professor of Chemistry at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York, where he and his team are developing new materials for fuel cells and batteries. The chemist Abruña has been very influential in the advancement of innovative techniques to study electrochemical interfaces, using electrochemical techniques as well as X-ray microscopy and spectroscopy methods. His research has significantly improved our understanding of fuel cells, batteries and molecular electronics.
In the course of his outstanding career, Abruña has received several awards, including the Faraday Medal (electrochemistry) from the Royal Society of Chemistry, the Allen J. Bard Award in Electrochemical Science and the Enrico Fermi award from the U.S. Government. He became a member of the National Academy of Sciences and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, reflecting his significant contributions to the scientific community. Moreover, he is also strongly involved in education and outreach projects, for example through partnerships with universities in his home country of Puerto Rico and a materials research and education program that enables underrepresented groups to conduct energy-related research at the Cornell High Energy Synchrotron Source.
This year's Gerhard Ertl Lecture Award is well deserved - UniSysCat heartily congratulates the esteemed catalysis researcher and pioneer of clean energy technologies Prof. Abruña!
In 2008, the three Berlin universities (Humboldt-Universität, Technische Universität and Freie Universität) and the Fritz Haber Institute of the Max Planck Society established the Gerhard Ertl Lecture Award, sponsored since then by BASF, in memory of Gerhard Ertl's work. In 2025, the award is given for the 18th time by a commission made up of members of the Berlin universities, namely Joachim Sauer (HU Berlin and former UniCat member), UniSysCat group leader Matthias Drieß (TU Berlin) and Eckart Rühl (FU Berlin and the directors of the Fritz Haber Institute. Gerhard Ertl advises the commission on the final selection of candidates.
The award ceremony will take place on December 10, 2025 at the Fritz Haber Institute, where Prof. Abruña will give a lecture on his latest research work. Guests are cordially invited!