Department of Inorganic Chemistry, Analytical Chemistry and Electrochemistry RCH1

In May and June 2026, Maciej Gdala and Łukasz Gardas, students actively involved in the research activities of the Electrochemistry Group, represented the Silesian University of Technology at two prestigious international conferences dedicated to electrochemistry and surface engineering.

The first event was the 249th ECS Meeting, held on May 24–28, 2026, in Seattle, USA. During the conference, the students presented the results of research conducted within the project focused on the surface modification of copper alloys using plasma electrolytic oxidation (PEO). Maciej Gdala presented a poster entitled “Pulsed Bi-Polar Plasma Electrolytic Oxidation of Copper-Based Substrates: Chemical Composition & Surface Properties”, while Łukasz Gardas presented “Electrocatalytic Potential of Copper Alloys Treated by Plasma Electrolytic Oxidation”. Their contributions addressed topics including the chemical composition of oxide coatings, surface properties, and the electrocatalytic potential of PEO-treated materials.

The second conference was the 41st ISE Topical Meeting, held on June 7–10, 2026, in Belgrade, Serbia. At this event, Maciej Gdala presented the poster “Evaluation of the Corrosion Performance of Copper-Zinc and -Nickel Alloys Treated by Plasma Electrolytic Oxidation Technology”, while Łukasz Gardas presented “Towards Greener Synthesis of Photocatalysts: Plasma Electrolytic Oxidation of Cu-Zn-Ni Alloy Materials”. The presented research focused on the corrosion resistance and photocatalytic properties of materials produced using PEO technology.

Participation in both conferences provided an excellent opportunity not only to disseminate research results obtained at the Faculty of Chemistry of the Silesian University of Technology, but also to establish new scientific contacts, develop communication skills, and gain insight into the latest trends in electrochemistry research.

The presented results were obtained within the project “Evaluation of the Possibility of Improving the Surface Properties of Copper Alloys with Zinc and Nickel Additions via Plasma Electrolytic Oxidation”, carried out under the supervision of Dr. Maciej Sowa and Dr. Marta Wala-Kapica.

The project is funded by the Ministry of Science and Higher Education under Action 01.05 “Skills in Higher Education” of the European Funds for Social Development Programme (FERS) 2021–2027 as part of the programme “Support for Students in Enhancing Their Competences and Skills (2nd Call)”.
Offer No.: N190

Funding amount: PLN 48,464.12
Project duration: January 7 – September 30, 2026.

More info about the project: https://www.polsl.pl/rch1/ban/ 

Photos: M. Gdala, Ł. Gardas