Igor Rahinov, Professor

Contact Info

The Open University of Israel -OUI Department of Natural Sciences One University Road P.O.B. 808 Ra’anana 43107, Israel
Office:972-9-7781759 Fax:972-9-7780661 Email:igorra@openu.ac.il or rahinov@gmail.com
Born:1975

Additional Information

My CRIS profile

Areas of Interest

Electronically non-adiabatic dynamics in molecule-metal surface scattering
Flame-assisted synthesis of nanoparticles
Ultrasensitive laser-based methods of reactive flow diagnostics
Molecular and ion beams

Igor Rahinov, Professor

Prof. Igor Rahinov is a Professor of Chemistry at the Department of Natural Sciences of The Open University of Israel -OUI as of 2010. Born 1975 (former USSR). He obtained his B.Sc. in Chemistry (magna cum laude) from the Tel Aviv University in 2000, where he also earned his Ph.D. in Chemical Physics (summa cum laude) under supervision of Prof. Sergey Cheskis in 2006, studying chemistry of nitrogen-containing combustion intermediates with ultrasensitive laser absorption spectroscopy techniques. He then joined the group of Prof. Alec Wodtke at UC Santa Barbara as Fulbright postdoctoral fellow till 2009 to investigate the complex dynamics of energy interplay occurring in the process of molecule-metal surface scattering. After internship at the Weizmann Institute of Science (2009–2010), where his research focused on cluster dynamics in electrostatic ion traps (with Prof. Daniel Zajfman), he has joined the Department of Natural Sciences at OUI. He has served as a Head of the Department of Natural Sciences from 2014 to 2017 and serves as a President of Israel Vacuum Society (IVS) since 2017. Prof. Rahinov is as recipient of Trotzky (2003) and The Don and Sara Marejn (2006) Foundations Awards, Fulbright Fellowship for postdoctoral studies (2006-2007) and Weizmann Institute of Science Dean of Faculty of Physics honorary postdoctoral fellowship (2009). His research interests concern nanomaterial formation from the gas phase (e.g. flame-assisted synthesis), fundamental aspects of molecule-surface interaction and laser diagnostics of reactive flows Research Interests

 Molecule-surface interaction
 Gas – phase synthesis of functional nanomaterials
 Laser diagnostics of reactive flows
 Smart combustion and alternative fuel technologies
 Molecular and ion beams

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Academic Appointments

2016-2022	Associate Professor, Department of Natural and Life Sciences, The Open University of Israel
2014-2017	Head, Department of Natural and Life Sciences, The Open University of Israel
2011-2016	Senior Lecturer, Department of Natural and Life Sciences, The Open University of Israel
2010 – 2011	Guest Senior Lecturer, Department of Natural and Life Sciences, The Open University of Israel
2009 – 2010	Intern, Department of Particle Physics and Astrophysics, Weizmann Institute of Science, group of Prof. Daniel Zajfman. Research topic: Dynamics of ionic clusters in electrostatic ion beam traps
2006 – 2009	Fulbright post-doctoral scholar at Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of California, Santa Barbara, with Prof. Alec M. Wodtke Research topic: Scattering of laser-prepared molecules from metal surfaces

Education

1997 – 2000	B.Sc., Chemistry, Tel Aviv University (magna cum laude)
2000 – 2006	Ph.D., Chemical Physics, Tel-Aviv University, direct program (summa cum laude) Dissertation: "Laser absorption spectroscopy study of nitrogen-containing radicals in flame environment" Supervisor: Prof. Sergey Cheskis

Other Academic Activities

Membership and service in professional societies

• President of the Israel Vacuum Society (IVS)
•        Vice-chair of the Israeli Section of the International Combustion Institute
•        Board Member and Secretary of the Board, Israel Vacuum Society,
• Member, Management Committee – COST Action CM1404 Chemistry And Molecular Sciences And Technologies: Chemistry of Smart Energy Carriers and Technologies (SMARTCATS)
•        Member of the Material Research Society
•        Member of the Israel Chemical Society

Reviewing articles for peer-reviewed journals
Applied Physics B: Lasers and Optics; Proceedings of the Combustion Institute; Energy and Fuels; Chinese Optics Letters; Expert Systems with Applications., Physical Chemistry Letters

Reviewing grant proposals
German – Israeli Foundation for Scientific Research and Development (GIF)., United States- Israel Binational Science foundation (BSF), Ministry of Science and Technology (MOST)

Organization of Scientific Conferences
2013 The 31st Israel Vacuum Society Conference, IVS 2013, Herzeliya, Israel Member of the Organizing Committee
&
Session Chair: "Nanostructures"

2015
The 29th Annual Symposium of the Israeli Section of the Combustion Institute, Dec 2015 Dan-Panorama Hotel Tel Aviv
Coordinator of the Organizing Committee (awarded by 25,000 NIS grant from the Ministry of National Infrastructures, Energy and Water Resources to support the Symposium)
&
Session Chair: "Flame diagnostics"

2016-

The 30th Annual Symposium of the Israeli Section of the Combustion Institute, Dec 2016 Dan-Panorama Hotel Tel Aviv
Coordinator of the Organizing Committee
&
Session Chair: - Chair of the "Chemical Aspects, Pollution Abatement and Combustion Synthesis" session

2017

The 31st Annual Symposium of the Israeli Section of the Combustion Institute, Dec 2017 Dan-Panorama Hotel Tel Aviv
Coordinator of the Organizing Committee (awarded by 10,000 NIS grant from the Ministry of National Infrastructures, Energy and Water Resources to support the Symposium)

Academic Administration

2014-2017	Head, Department of Natural and Life Sciences
2014-2017	Member, University Teaching Committee
2014-2017	Member, Department Heads Forum
2013-present	Member, Academic Transfer Committee ("Afikey maavar")
2013-present	Member, Academic Senate
2010-present	Member, Academic Subcommittee for Natural Sciences
2010-present	Member, Faculty Council
2016	Member, Professional Committee for promotion of a faculty member to Senior Lecturer Rank at the Sapir Academic College
2015-2016	Member, Committee for Evaluation of the Teaching Coordination Structure at the Open University
2014-2015	Member, Search Committee for recruiting a new faculty member of the M.Sc. Program "Biological Thought"
2014-2015	Member, Committee for Strategic and Academic Development of the Open University
2013	Committee for Virtual & Long Distance labs integration in the study curriculum
2013	Member, Search Committee for recruiting the Head of the Natural and Life Sciences Laboratories at the Open University
2011-2017	Numerous Search Committees for recruiting Course Coordinators at the fields of Chemistry, Physics and Biology at the Open University
2017	Head, Search Committee for recruiting Senior Faculty Member in Earth Sciences at The Open University
2017	Head, Professional Committee for promotion of a faculty member to the Rank of Associate Professor at the Open University
2017	Member, Senate Advisory Committee to the University President for Deans Selection and Appointment
2016-2017	Member, Committee for the Policy of Academic Courses Development

Awards and Scholarships

2009	The Dean of Faculty of Physics Post-Doctoral Fellowship, Weizmann Institute of Science
2006 – 2007	Fulbright Post-Doctoral Fellowship
2006	The Don and Sara Marejn Foundation Award for outstanding achievements in PhD studies
2003	The Trotzky scholarship for outstanding achievements in PhD studies
1998	The memorial scholarship for outstanding undergraduate academic achievements, Tel Aviv University
1998 and 2000	The Dean's academic excellence list, Faculty of Exact Sciences, Tel Aviv University

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Articles in Refereed Journals

1. Derzy I, Lozovsky VA, Ditzian N, Rahinov I, Cheskis S, "Absorption spectroscopy measurements of NH and NH2 absolute concentrations in methane/air flames doped with N2O," Proceedings of the Combustion Institute, 28: 1741-1748, 2000.

2. Lozovsky VA, Rahinov I, Ditzian N, Cheskis S, "Laser absorption spectroscopy diagnostics of nitrogen-containing radicals in low-pressure hydrocarbon flames doped with nitrogen oxides," Faraday Discussions, 119: 321-335, 2001.

3. Rahinov I, Ditzian N, Lozovsky VA, Cheskis S, "Intracavity laser absorption spectroscopy measurements of CN using red system A-X. Simultaneous observation of CN, NH2, HNO and 1(CH2) in low pressure hydrocarbon flames doped with nitrogen oxides," Chemical Physics Letters, 352 (3-4): 169-175, 2002.

4. Rahinov I, Ditzian N, Goldman A, Cheskis S, "NH2 radical formation by ammonia pyrolysis in a temperature range of 800-1000 K," Applied Physics B-Lasers and Optics, 77 (5): 541-546, 2003.

5. Rahinov I, Goldman A, Cheskis S, "Intracavity laser absorption spectroscopy and cavity ring-down spectroscopy in low-pressure flames," Applied Physics B-Lasers and Optics, 81 (1): 143-149, 2005.

6. Rahinov I, Ditzian N, Goldman A, Cheskis S, "Intracavity laser absorption spectroscopy of NH2 in methane/air flames doped with N2O, NO, and NH3," Proceedings of the Combustion Institute, 30: 1575-1582, 2005.

7. Goldman A, Rahinov I, Cheskis S, "Molecular oxygen detection in low pressure flames using cavity ring-down spectroscopy," Applied Physics B-Lasers and Optics, 82 (4): 659-663, 2006.

8. Rahinov I, Goldman A, Cheskis S, "Absorption spectroscopy diagnostics of amidogen in ammonia-doped methane/air flames," Combustion and Flame, 145 (1-2): 105-116, 2006.

9. Goldman A, Rahinov I, Cheskis S, Lohden B, Wexler S, Sengstock K, Baev VM, "Fiber laser intracavity absorption spectroscopy of ammonia and hydrogen cyanide in low pressure hydrocarbon flames," Chemical Physics Letters, 423 (1-3): 147-151, 2006.

10. Rahinov I, Goldman A, Cheskis S, "Intracavity Laser Absorption Spectroscopy for flame diagnostics," Israel Journal of Chemistry, 47 (2): 131-140, 2007.

11. Rahinov I, Cooper R, Yuan C, Yang XM, Auerbach DJ, Wodtke AM, "Efficient vibrational and translational excitations of a solid metal surface: State-to-state time-of-flight measurements of HCl(v=2,J=1) scattering from Au(111)," Journal of Chemical Physics, 129 (21), 214708, 2008.

12. Cooper R, Rahinov I, Yuan C, Yang XM, Auerbach DJ, Wodtke AM, "Efficient translational excitation of a solid metal surface: State-to-state translational energy distributions of vibrational ground state HCl scattering from Au(111)," Journal of Vacuum Science & Technology A, 27 (4): 907-912, 2009.

13. Cooper R, Rahinov I, Li ZS, Matsiev D, Auerbach DJ, Wodtke AM, "Vibrational overtone excitation in electron mediated energy transfer at metal surfaces," Chemical Science, 1 (1): 55-61, 2010.

14. Matsiev D, Li ZS, Cooper R, Rahinov I, Bartels C, Auerbach DJ, Wodtke AM, "On the temperature dependence of electronically non-adiabatic vibrational energy transfer in molecule-surface collisions," Physical Chemistry Chemical Physics, 13(18), 8153-8162 2011

15. Rahinov I., Cooper R., Matsiev D., Bartels C., Auerbach D.J., Wodtke A.M., “Quantifying the break-down of the Born-Oppenheimer approximation in surface chemistry” Physical Chemistry Chemical Physics, 13(28),: 12680-12692, 2011

16. Hevrony A., Golan H, Fialkov A., Rahinov I., Tsionsky V., Markovich G., Cheskis S. "In-situ measurement of the mass concentration of flame-synthesized nanoparticles using quartz-crystal microbalance”– Measurement Science and Technology, 22, 115102 (8pp), 2011

17. Rahinov I., Toker Y., Heber O., Strasser D., Rappaport M., Schwalm D., Zajfman D."Lifetime measurements in an electrostatic ion beam trap using image charge monitoring", Review of Scientific Instruments, 83 033302, 2012

18. Cooper R., Bartels C., Kandratsenka A., Rahinov I., Shenvi N., Golibrzuch K., Li ZS., Auerbach D. J., Tully J.C., Wodtke A.M."Multiquantum Vibrational Excitation of NO Scattered from Au(111): Quantitative Comparison of Benchmark Data to Ab Initio Theories of Nonadiabatic Molecule-Surface Interactions" Angewandte Chemie, 51 (20), 4954-4958, 2012

19. R. Cooper, Z. Li, K. Golibrzuch, C. Bartels, I. Rahinov, D. J. Auerbach, and A. M. Wodtke "On the determination of absolute vibrational excitation probabilities in molecule-surface scattering: Case study of NO on Au(111)" , The Journal of Chemical Physics 137, 064705, 2012

20. Y. Toker, I. Rahinov, D. Schwalm, U. Even, O. Heber, M. L. Rappaport, D. Strasser, and D. Zajfman "Blackbody-induced radiative dissociation of cationic SF6 clusters" Physical Review A 86, 023202, 2012

21. C. Bartels, K. Golibrzuch, A. Kandratsenka, R. Cooper, I. Rahinov, D. J. Auerbach, and A. M. Wodtke “Vibrational excitation and relaxation of NO molecules scattered from a Au(111) surface”, AIP Conf. Proc. 1501, pp. 1330-1339; doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/1.4769695, 28TH INTERNATIONAL SYMPOSIUM ON RAREFIED GAS DYNAMICS, 2012

22. K. Golibrzuch, A. Kandratsenka, I. Rahinov, R. Cooper, D. J. Auerbach, A. M. Wodtke, C. Bartels , „An Experimental and Theoretical Study of “Multi-quantum Vibrational Excitation: NO(v = 0 → 1, 2, 3) in Collisions with Au(111)”, Journal of Physical Chemistry A, 117(32) pp 7091-7101, 2013

23. A. Fomin, M. Poliak, I. Rahinov, V. Tsionsky, S. Cheskis, „Combined particle mass spectrometer – Quartz crystal microbalance apparatus for in situ nanoparticle monitoring during flame assisted synthesis”, Combustion and Flame, 160, 2131-2140 2013

24. K. Golibrzuch, P. R. Shirhatti, J. Altschaeffel, I. Rahinov, D.J. Auerbach, A. M. Wodtke, C. Bartels, “State-to-State Time-of-Flight Measurements of NO Scattering from Au(111): Direct Observation of Translation-to-Vibration Coupling in Electronically Nonadiabatic Energy Transfer”, Journal of Physical Chemistry A, , 117 (36), pp 8750–8760, 2013

A Fomin, M Poliak, V Tsionsky, S Cheskis, I Rahinov, A method for nanoparticle characterization by laser induced detuning of quartz crystal microbalance (LID-QCM), Sensors and Actuators B: Chemical 202, 861-865, 2014

26. K Golibrzuch, PR Shirhatti, I Rahinov, A Kandratsenka, DJ Auerbach, AM Wodtke, C Bartels, The importance of accurate adiabatic interaction potentials for the correct description of electronically nonadiabatic vibrational energy transfer: A combined experimental and theoretical study of NO (v= 3) collisions with a Au (111) surface, The Journal of Chemical Physics 140 (4), 044701, 2014

27. I Rahinov, A Fomin, M Poliak, S Cheskis, Absorption electronic spectrum of gaseous FeO: in situ detection with intracavity laser absorption spectroscopy in a nanoparticle-generating flame reactor, Applied Physics B, 117: 317-323, 2014

28. K Golibrzuch, PR Shirhatti, I Rahinov, DJ Auerbach, AM Wodtke, C.Bartels, Incidence energy dependent state-to-state time-of-flight measurements of NO (v=3) Incidence energy dependent state-to-state time-of-flight measurements of NO (v= 3) collisions with Au (111): the fate of incidence vibrational and translational energy, Physical Chemistry Chemical Physics 16 (16), 7602-7610, 2014

29. M. Poliak, A. Fomin, V. Tsionsky, S. Cheskis, I. Wlokas, I. Rahinov, "On the mechanism of nanoparticle formation in a flame doped by iron pentacarbonyl", Physical Chemistry Chemical Physics, 17, 680-685, 2015

30. I. Rahinov, M. Poliak, A. Fomin, V. Tsionsky, S. Cheskis, "New Perspectives in Monitoring the Flame Synthesis of Iron Oxide Nanoparticles: Addressing Solid and Gas-Phase Diagnostics Challenges" MRS Proceedings, vol 1747, pp mrsf14-1747-hh01-09, Cambridge University Press, 2015

31. S. Kluge, L. Deng, O. Feroughi, F. Schneider, M. Poliak, A. Fomin, V. Tsionsky, S. Cheskis, I. Wlokas, I. Rahinov, T. Dreier, A. Kempf, H. Wiggers, C. Schulz, "Initial reaction steps during flame synthesis of iron-oxide nanoparticles", CrystEngComm, vol 17 (36), pp- 6930-6939, 2015

32. A. Fomin, T. Zavlev, I. Rahinov, S. Cheskis "A fiber laser intracavity absorption spectroscopy (FLICAS) sensor for simultaneous measurement of CO and CO2 concentrations and temperature" Sensors and Actuators B: Chemical, vol 210, pp 431-438, 2015

33. A. Fomin, T. Zavlev, V. A Alekseev, A. A Konnov, I. Rahinov, S. Cheskis "Intracavity laser absorption spectroscopy study of HCO radicals during methane to hydrogen conversion in very rich flames", Energy & Fuels, vol 29(9), pp 6146-6154, 2015

34. A. Fomin, T. Zavlev, I. Rahinov, V. A Alekseev, A. A Konnov, V. M Baev, Sergey Cheskis, "Fiber Laser Intracavity Spectroscopy of hot water for temperature and concentration measurements", Applied Physics B, vol 121(3), pp 345-351, 2015

35. A.Fomin, T. Zavlev, V.Tsionsky, I. Rahinov, S. Cheskis "Pulsed Flame for Syngas Production via Partial Methane Oxidation", Flow, Turbulence and Combustion, Vol 96 (2), pp 363-375, 2016

36. P. R. Shirhatti, J. Geweke, C. Steinsiek, C. Bartels, I. Rahinov, D. J. Auerbach, A. M. Wodtke "Activated Dissociation of HCl on Au (111)", The Journal of Physical Chemistry Letters 7(7), 1346-1350, 2016

37. A. Fomin, T. Zavlev, V. Alexeev, I. Rahinov, S. Cheskis, A. Konnov "Experimental and modelling study of 1CH2 in premixed very rich methane flames" Combustion and Flame, 171, 198-210, 2016

38. J. Geweke, P. R. Shirhatti, I. Rahinov, C. Bartels, A. M. Wodtke "Vibrational energy transfer near a dissociative adsorption transition state: State-to-state study of HCl collisions at Au(111)" The Journal of Chemical Physics 145, 054709, 2016

39. I. Rahinov, Y. Toker, K. Hansen, D. Schwalm, O. Heber, and D. Zajfman " The effect of a localized charge on the structure and stability of Van-Der Waals clusters" The European Physical Journal D- (Atomic, Molecular, Optical and Plasma Physics) 70(12), 260, 2016

40. Z. Fradkin, D. Strasser, O. Heber, M.L. Rappaport, M. Sharon, B.A. Thomson, I. Rahinov, Y. Toker and D. Zajfman, "Protein and peptide cross sections and mass spectra in an electrostatic ion beam trap", Journal of Instrumentation (JINST), Vol. 12, May 2017 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1088/1748-0221/12/05/P05008

41. V. Samu; T. Varga; I. Rahinov; S. Cheskis; T. Turányi "Determination of rate parameters based on NH2 concentration profiles measured in ammonia-doped methane−air flames FUEL, 212, 679-683, 2018

42. P.R. Shirhatti, I. Rahinov, K. Golibrzuch, J. Werdecker, J. Geweke, J. Altschäffel, S. Kumar, D.J. Auerbach, C. Bartels, and A.M. Wodtke "Observation of the adsorption and desorption of vibrationally excited molecules on a metal surface" Nature Chemistry (DOI:10.1038/s41557-018-0003-1), 2018

Articles in Refereed Conference Proceedings

1. A. Fomin, M. Poliak, I. Rahinov, V. Tsionsky, and S. Cheskis, Mechanism of flame synthesis of iron oxide nanoparticles -in Proceedings of the European Combustion Meeting – 2013, June 25-28, 2013, Lund, Sweden, p. Paper P4-52, (ISBN 978-91-637-2151-9).

2. A. Fomin, M. Poliak, I. Rahinov, V.A.Alekseev, A.A. Konnov, V. Tsionsky, S. Cheskis On the mechanism of partial methane oxidation, 4th Annual Meeting of the COST action CM0901 Detailed Chemical Models for Clean Combustion, Perugia, Italy. p.34 (2013)

3. A. Fomin , T.Zalev, V. Tsionsky, I. Rahinov, S. Cheskis, Methane oxidation under fuel-rich conditions using pulsed-flame setup, 4th Annual Meeting of the COST action CM0901 Detailed Chemical Models for Clean Combustion, Perugia, Italy. p.36 (2013)

4. A.Fomin, I. Rahinov, V.A.Alekseev, S. Cheskis, A.A. Konnov, Validation of chemical mechanism in rich methane flame using laser absorption spectroscopy diagnostics, 4th Annual Meeting of the COST action CM0901 Detailed Chemical Models for Clean Combustion, Perugia, Italy. p.121 (2013)

5. A.Fomin, T.Zavlev, I.Rahinov, S.Cheskis, Partial methane oxidation for syngas production. Pulsed flame concept, Proc. SPIC14, Towards Sustainable Combustion, November 19-21,2014,Lisboa,Portugal

6. M.Poliak, A.Fomin, V.Tsionsky, S.Cheskis, I. Wlokas, I. Rahinov, Combination of molecular beam sampling and laser-based techniques for studies of flame-assisted material synthesis: the case of Iron Oxide, in Proceedings of the European Combustion Meeting – 2015, March 25- April 2, 2015, Budapest, Hungary

7. A. Fomin; T. Zavlev; V. Tsionsky; I. Rahinov; S. Cheskis, Fiber Laser Intracavity Absorption Spectroscopy measurements of combustion product concentration and temperature, in Proceedings of the European Combustion Meeting – 2015, March 25- April 2, 2015, Budapest, Hungary

8. I. Rahinov, I. Wlokas, M. Poliak, A. Fomin, V. Tsionsky. S. Cheskis, In-line and in-situ diagnostics of particle formation mechanism in flame reactor: combustion synthesis of iron oxide, in Proceedngs of 8th International Conference for Conveying and Handling of Particulate Solids, Tel Aviv, Israel, May 2015

9. A. Fomin, Y. Sharabi, I. Rahinov, V. Tsionsky, S. Cheskis "Partial Methane Oxidation Via Mild Combustion" Proceedings of the European Combustion Meeting – 2017, April 18- April 21, 2017, Dubrovnik, Croatia

10. V. Samu, T. Varga, I. Rahinov, S. Cheskis, T. Turanyi "Determination of Rate Coefficients Based on NH2 Concentration Profiles Measured in Methane-Ammonia Flames" Proceedings of the European Combustion Meeting – 2017, April 18- April 21, 2017, Dubrovnik, Croatia

11. A. Fomin, S. Kluge, P. Fjodorow, A. Pilipody, J. Sellmann, L. Deng, S. Cheskis, A. Kempf, C. Schulz, H. Wiggers, I. Wlokas, I. Rahinov "Intracavity Laser Absorption Spectroscopy Measurements of Gas-Phase Iron Oxide During Nanoparticle Flame Synthesis", Proceedings of the European Combustion Meeting – 2017, April 18- April 21, 2017, Dubrovnik, Croatia

Participation in Scholarly Conferences

March 2018 - Jerusalem Nonadiabatica 2018 -Theory of nonadiabatic processes, Fritz Haber Center for Molecular Dynamics, Institute of Chemistry, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem; Session Chair and poster session presentation "Observation of anomalously slow vibrational relaxation during molecular adsorption and desorption on a metal surface"

Dec 2017 - The 31st Annual Symposium of the Israeli Section of the Combustion Institute, Dec 14th, 2017 Dan-Panorama Hotel Tel Aviv, Israel " Nanomaterial Formation and Gas-Phase Chemistry in Buoyancy-Opposed Nanoparticle Synthesis Reactor" - lecture

Oct 2017 - 3rd General Meeting & Workshop on Smart Energy Carriers in Industry of SMARTCATs Action of COST (European Cooperation in Science and Technology), J. Heyrovsky Institute of Physical Chemistry, Prague Czech Republic "Measurements and simulations of iron nanoparticle and gas-phase FeO formation in buoyancy-opposed nanoparticle synthesis reactor" - lecture

May 2017 - Seminar on Production and Chemical Conversion of Natural Gas, Ministry of National Infrastructures, Energy and Water Resources, Jerusalem, Israel "Biogas and Natural Gas to Fuel Technologies using MILD Combustion" – invited lecture

April 2017 - 8th European Combustion Meeting 2017, Dubrovnik, Croatia "Intracavity Laser Absorption Spectroscopy Measurements of Gas-Phase Iron Oxide During Nanoparticle Flame Synthesis" –poster session presentation

March 2017 - Chemistry Colloquium, Department of Chemistry, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat-Gan, Israel "On the validity of Born-Oppenheimer approximation in dynamics of energy exchange at gas-solid interface" –invited lecture

March 2017 - 3rd Conference of Scientific Cooperation between Lower Saxony and Israel, Hannover, Germany: "Studies of energy transfer in interaction of nitrogen oxide and carbon monoxide molecules with model catalyst films of Vanadia" – poster session presentation

March 2017 - 3rd Conference of Scientific Cooperation between Lower Saxony and Israel, Hannover, Germany: "Observation of the intrinsic dynamic precursor state to adsorption via state selected molecule surface scattering experiments" – poster session presentation

Jan 2017 - Workshop: From Ultrafast to Ultraslow Dynamics in Molecules and Clusters, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel "Observation of the intrinsic dynamic precursor state to adsorption via state selected molecule surface scattering experiments" – poster session presentation

Dec 2016 - The 30th Annual Symposium of the Israeli Section of the Combustion Institute, Tel Aviv, Israel, - Chair of the "Chemical Aspects, Pollution Abatement and Combustion Synthesis" session

Nov 2016 - 2nd General Meeting and Workshop on Smart Energy Carriers in Industry of SMARTCATs Action of COST (European Cooperation in Science and Technology), Instituto Tecnico Superior, Lisbon, Portugal "Laser-based and Molecular Beam Sampling Diagnostics for Studies of Combustion Synthesis: from Nanomaterial Fabrication to Syngas Production" – lecture

Sept 2016 - Materials Science and Engineering Congress, Darmstadt, Germany "State-to-state energy transfer in interaction of nitrogen oxide molecules with films of Vanadium Dioxide" – lecture

Aug 2016 - The 36th International Symposium on Combustion, Seoul, South Korea, "Iron oxide nanoparticle formation in methane-oxygen synthesis flame under variable flow conditions" - poster session presentation

May 2016 - Symposium on Dynamics at Surfaces, Schloss Ringberg, Germany, "Gas-phase high-temperature synthesis of catalytic materials" – invited lecture

March 2016 - Optics Seminar, Department of Physics, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat-Gan, Israel "Unraveling the basic steps of surface chemistry with lasers and molecular beams" –invited lecture

Feb 2016 - The 81st Annual Meeting of The Israel Chemical Society "Scattering of ground state and vibrationally excited NO molecules from vanadium dioxide films: bridging the gap between single crystals and complex model catalysts" – poster session presentation

Dec 2015 - The 29th Annual Symposium of the Israeli Section of the Combustion Institute, Tel Aviv, Israel, - Chair of the "Flame Diagnostics" session

Nov 2015 - The 1st Sino-German Young Scientist Symposium on Structures & Dynamics at Surfaces, Beijing, China: "Who by fire: combustion synthesis of nanomaterials and complex surfaces – mechanism, diagnostics and applications" - lecture

Sept 2015 - Departmental Seminar: Laser Laboratorium Goettingen (LLG), e.V, University of Goettingen, Germany "Gas-phase high-temperature synthesis of catalytic materials: unraveling the detailed mechanism" – invited lecture

Aug 2015 - Gordon Research Conference – Dynamics at Surfaces, Salve Regina University, Newport, RI, US, "Direct observation of a hot molecular precursor on a metal surface: trapping/desorption of vibrationally excited molecules" - poster session presentation

May 2015 - 8th International Conference for Conveying and Handling of Particulate Solids (CHoPs 2015) " In-Line and In-Situ Diagnostics of Particle Formation Mechanism in Flame Reactor Combustion Synthesis of Iron Oxide Nanoparticles", Tel Aviv, Israel – lecture

March 2015 - 2nd Conference of Scientific Cooperation between Lower Saxony and Israel, Hannover, Germany: "Vibrational excitation in HCl (v=0,1) collisions with Au(111) surface" – poster session presentation

March 2015 - 2nd Conference of Scientific Cooperation between Lower Saxony and Israel, Hannover, Germany: "Electronically nonadiabatic effects in molecule-surface encounters: bridging the gap between single crystal surfaces and complex model catalysts" –poster session presentation

Feb 2015 - The 80th Annual Meeting of the Israel Chemical Society "Nanomaterials from the gas phase: mechanism of iron oxide particle formation during flame assisted synthesis" – poster session presentation

Dec 2014 - 28th Israeli Combustion Symposium, Tel Aviv, Israel " Laser diagnostics and molecular beam sampling methods for studies of fundamental processes in combustion devices: from gas-phase nanoparticle synthesis to syngas production" – lecture

Dec 2014 - 2014 Material Research Society (MRS) Fall Meeting; MRS Symposium on Flame and High Temperature Nanoparticle Synthesis, Boston, MA, US "New Perspectives in Monitoring Flame Synthesis of Iron Oxide Nanoparticles: Addressing Gas and Solid Phase Diagnostics Challenges" – lecture

Oct 2014 - University of Duisburg-Essen, departmental seminar at the Institute for Combustion and Gasdynamics – Reactive fluids, Duisburg, Germany "Flame synthesis of Iron Oxide Nanoparticles: diagnostics of gas and solid phase and insights into the mechanism" –lecture

June 2014 - 18th ETH conference on Combustion Generated Nanoparticles, Zurich, Switzerland, "Diagnostics of Combustion Synthesis of Iron Oxide Nanoparticles: From Gas Phase Intermediates to Solid Particulates" – poster session presentation

Sept 2013 - The 31st Israel Vacuum Society Conference, IVS 2013, Herzeliya, Israel " Particle Mass Spectrometry - Quartz Crystal Microbalance approach to in-situ quantification of nanoparticle formation in reactive flows" – poster session presentation

Aug 2013 - Gordon Research Conference – Dynamics at Surfaces, Salve Regina University, Newport, RI, US, " Reactive flow fabrication of size-selected nanoparticles: a testing ground and preparation platform for heterogeneous catalysis and gas-surface scattering studies" – poster session presentation

Dec 2012 - 26th Israeli Combustion Symposium, Tel Aviv, Israel "Combined Particle Mass Spectrometry - Quartz Crystal Microbalance for in-situ monitoring of combustion synthesis of nano-materials" - lecture

Oct 2012 - University of Duisburg-Essen, departmental seminar at the Institute for Combustion and Gasdynamics – Reactive fluids, Duisburg, Germany "Combined Particle-Mass-Spectrometry Quartz Crystal Microbalance for in-situ monitoring of nanoparticle formation in reactive flows" - lecture

March 2012 - VIIIth Prague Workshop on PhotoInduced Molecular Processes, PIMoP 2012, Prague, Czech Republic, "Towards production of nanoparticles for catalytic and gas surface scattering applications: in-situ nanoparticle diagnostics in reactive flows" - lecture

Sept 2011 - Georg August University of Goettingen, Goettingen, Germany, Dynamics on Surfaces departmental seminar, "Towards size-controlled fabrication of nanoparticles in reactive flows for gas-surface scattering and catalytic applications"- lecture

Oct 2010 - Aarhus - Weizmann - HUJI workshop on photo-physical properties of retinal and other molecules, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel "Mass-selective multi-species lifetime measurements in EIBT: Application to SF6-based clusters" –lecture

Jan 2009 - Gordon Research Conference on Molecular Energy Transfer, Ventura CA, US, "A molecular energy transfer in collisions of HCl with Au(111) surface" – poster session presentation

Feb 2008 - UCSB-MPG Workshop on Inorganic Materials for Energy Conversion, Storage and Conservation – UCLA Lake Arrowhead, Conference Center, CA, US "Molecular beam study of energy transfer in collisions of HCl with Au(111) surface" poster session presentation

Jul 2004 - 30 International Symposium on Combustion "Diagnostics and Sensors"-session, Chicago, US "Intracavity laser absorption spectroscopy of NH2 in methane/air flames doped with N2O, NO, and NH3" –lecture

1. Gas-phase fabrication of nanomaterials

Gas-phase high-temperature/flame synthesis is an important tool for production of a plethora of metal/metal oxide materials, which play important role in heterogeneous catalysis. It is becoming increasingly clear is that the 21st century with its growing demands to achieve 100% selectivity of the desired product molecule in multipath reactions (“green chemistry”) and develop renewable energy based processes, calls for intelligent design of smart catalytic materials based on detailed understanding of the mechanism governing the formation of condensable matter from the gas phase. Therefore, input gained from well-controlled experiments, is a necessary pre-requisite for production of functional materials with tailored functionalities. However, the high-temperature particle–laden environment imposes considerable challenges on in-situ diagnostics and methods addressing both solid and gas phase products and intermediates are required. In our work we have applied combination of molecular beam sampling and laser-based techniques nanoparticle formation in flame synthesis reactor. These experiments deliver data able to make contact with outputs of detailed kinetic modeling.

2.Molecule Interaction with Electronically Modified Surfaces: towards next generation of heterogeneous

The importance of heterogeneous catalysis for humankind can hardly be overestimated. Its application range from pollution abatement to food industry. Unfortunately, even today, in most cases we are lacking detailed molecular level understanding of these processes. Understanding the fundamental steps of gas surface interaction is crucial for intelligent design of better catalysts. The current project, supported by based on collaboration between the University of Goettingen, Germany and The Open University of Israel (OUI) aims to expand the state-of-the-art unique experimental approaches to the investigation of fundamental molecular interactions used in the field of gas-surface scattering dynamics to the investigation of fundamental molecular interactions at complex catalytic surfaces. The project focuses on modulating the extent of the coupling between energy stored in the bonds of the impinging gas molecules and the surface electrons, which can potentially lead to ability to modulate the properties of heterogeneous catalysts. Two types of catalytically relevant surfaces are of interest: To address this issue the current project will focus on two catalytically relevant surfaces of key importance: Vanadium Dioxide films and gold nanoparticles. The availability of EHP states will be varied in a controlled fashion by: (1) temperature variation in the vicinity of so called "Mott transition" for the Vanadium dioxide films and (2) tuning metallic/nonmetallic behavior of gold NPs by changing their size. In this collaboration, catalytic surfaces with special electronic properties are fabricated by gas-phase high temperature methods in Israel (by flame synthesis and chemical vapor deposition). These samples are subsequently subjected to quantum –state- resolved scattering experiments with carbon and nitrogen oxides in Goettingen. The correlations established in these experiments will provide insights for better catalyst design and will guide further theoretical development.

3. Syngas production via fuel rich combustion of methane

The primary aim of this project (Funded by the Ministry of National Infrastructures, Energy and Water Resources) conducted in collaboration with Tel Aviv University is to develop a novel technology based on oxidation of biogas and natural gas for conversion to syngas (mixture of H2 and CO), suitable for the subsequent conversion to liquid hydrocarbons (by Fischer-Tropsch or similar process). The substitution of oil for transportation by biogas and natural gas is very compelling: biogas is a renewable energy source originating from biomass; natural gas is not a renewable energy source per se, but contrary to oil, new natural gas deposits are being continuously discovered around the globe, several of those in Israel. This project addresses the syngas production, which is, to date, the most challenging and expensive step of the process of gas conversion to liquid fuel suitable for transportation, known as GTL. The research methodology includes kinetic experiments in a plug flow reactor, where the temporal coordinate is conveniently represented by the spatial coordinate (distance between the mixing and observation points). The kinetic studies are supported by intensive computational effort. The insight gained from kinetic studies in plug flow reactor will be implemented in optimization of operational parameters in the next phase of the project realized in a jet stirred reactor (JSR), which can serve as a prototype of commercially applicable device for syngas production from natural gas and biogas. The research employs various state of the art methods of laser spectroscopy combined with chemiluminescence sensing and gas-chromatography.

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Supervision of Graduate Students

2012-present

Marina Poliak (towards PhD, graduation expected - 2017). Thesis: "Investigating of the mechanism governing iron oxide nanoparticle formation in flames", co-supervision with Prof. Sergey Cheskis, School of Chemistry, Tel Aviv University

2015-present

Anita Pilipody (towards PhD, graduation expected – Nov 2019). Thesis: "Gas-phase high-temperature synthesis of catalytic materials" co-supervision with Prof. Sergey Cheskis, School of Chemistry, Tel Aviv University

Teaching Responsibility for Open University Courses

 Molecular Dynamics of Chemical Processes (20557)
 Laboratory: Physical Chemistry (20289)
 Laboratory: General Chemistry (20234)
 Overview of Nanomaterials (20917)
 Thermodynamics (20483)
 Thermodynamics for physicists (20482)
 Instrumental Chemical Analysis (20911)
 Lasers: Principles and Applications (20912)
 Basics of Solid State Chemistry (20555)
 Introduction To Surface Science (20935)

Development of the Open University Study Materials (in Hebrew)

Laboratory: Physical Chemistry (20289)

Unit 5 – Study Guide “Calorimetry”, 2011 (with V. Itah and I. Tuvi-Arad)

Unit 3 – Study Guide "Vacuum Techniques", 2012

Unit 6 – Study Guide "Conductance of Solutions", 2013- (with V. Itah)

Unit 7 - Study Guide "Spectroscopy: Spectrum of Hydrogen and Deuterium Atom; UV-VIS absorption and fluorescence of molecules" (57 pages) (with V. Itah), 2016

Lasers: Principles and Applications (20912) – study guide and laboratory guide, 2013

Thermodynamics (20483) and Thermodynamics for Physicists (20482) – course development and scientific editing of the Hebrew translation of the book "Physical Chemistry: Thermodynamics" (by Horia Metiu) (with Dr. Varda Ittah), 2015

Physics Lab C (20916)- Unit 5 - "Optical Spectroscopy" (with Prof. Johnathan Granot and Dr. Omer Korech) -2015

Development of new study programs

2011-2015 : B.Sc. in Chemistry (with other faculty members)

Other teaching experience

2000-2006 Instructor of 2nd and 3rd year undergraduate students at Physical
Chemistry Laboratory (spectroscopy, vacuum techniques and chemical kinetics experiments) at the School of Chemistry, Tel Aviv University

2001-2006 Instructor of 3rd year undergraduate students at Advanced Physical Chemistry Laboratory (Laser Spectroscopy experiments) at the School of Chemistry, Tel Aviv University

2009-2010 Instructor at the Weizmann Institute of Science:
• Dr. Bessie F. Lawrence International Summer Science Institute (ISSI)
• Annual Kupcinet-Getz International Science School (Undergraduate Summer Program)
• Rothschild-Weizmann Program for Excellence in Science Teaching

PhD Students

Marina Poliak (towards PhD, graduation expected - 2018). Thesis: "Investigating of the mechanism governing iron oxide nanoparticle formation in flames", co-supervision with Prof. Sergey Cheskis, School of Chemistry, Tel Aviv University
Anita Pilipody (towards PhD, graduation expected –2019). Thesis: "Gas-phase high-temperature synthesis of catalytic materials" co-supervision with Prof. Sergey Cheskis, School of Chemistry, Tel Aviv University

Research Associates

Dr. Vladimir Tsionsky

Postdoc

Dr. Alexey Fomin (PhD - Tel Aviv University) (presently at Intel). Post-doctoral research topic: Partial methane oxidation during MILD combustion

Dr. Matthieu R. Lalanne (PhD - Freie Universität Berlin,). Post-doctoral research topic: Mechanism of Nanomaterial synthesis in buoyancy-opposed flame reactor

Jan 2016-Dec 2018	Ministry of National Infrastructures, Energy and Water Resources : " Biogas and Natural Gas to Fuel Technologies using MILD Combustion" 500,000 NIS (with Prof. Sergey Cheskis, Tel Aviv University)
April 2015 –March 2018	The Ministry of Science and Culture of the State of Lower Saxony, Germany & Volkswagen Foundation; Joint Lower Saxony-Israel Research Projects " Molecule Interaction with Electronically Modified Surfaces: Towards Next Generation of Heterogeneous Catalysts" 296600 EUR (with Prof. Alec Wodtke, University of Goettingen, Germany)
July 2014	The Open University of Israel Research Grant " Addressing fundamental aspects of heterogeneous nanocatalysis: state-resolved study of molecular interactions with size-selected nanoparticles" 20000 NIS
January 2012 – December 2014	Ministry of Energy and Water Resources : " The first step in natural gas conversion to liquid fuel: partial oxidation of methane" (with Prof. Sergey Cheskis, Tel Aviv University)
July 2011	The Open University of Israel Research Encouragement Grant "Heterogeneous catalysis on nanoscale: link between size-dependent electronically nonadiabatic coupling and catalytic activity" 20000 NIS
November 2010	The Open University of Israel Research Fund: "Electron-driven Chemistry of Nano-catalysis" 100000 NIS