Overview
Background
Biography:
Tom Rufford is an Associate Professor in the UQ School of Chemical Engineering and chief investigator in the ARC Centre of Excellence for Green Electrochemical Transformation of CO2 (GETCO2). Tom completed his BE and PhD degrees in Chemical Engineering at the University of Queensland in 2000 and 2009, respectively. Tom’s PhD thesis investigated the use of porous carbon materials derived from waste coffee grounds for energy storage via hydrogen or supercapacitors on board electric vehicles. From 2001 to 2005 he worked as a process engineer and technologist on the crude distillation columns, naptha reformers and hydrogen purification plant at Shell’s Geelong Oil Refinery. From 2010 to late 2012, Tom was a research fellow at the University of Western Australia working on natural gas processing and LNG production research projects with the UWA’s Chevron Chair in Gas Process Engineering, Prof. Eric May. He returned to UQ as a teaching and research academic in December 2012.
Dr Rufford is a chartered member of the IChemE and Engineers Australia (chemical engineering).
Dr Rufford has published more than 80 scientific papers in international journals and an edited book on carbon materials. He has been a visiting researcher at the National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology in Tsukuba, Japan, and an Endeavour Research Fellow visiting the Institute of Metals Research of the Chinese Academy of Sciences in Shenyang, China.
Research:
Associate Professor Rufford conducts research on gas processing and purification for cleaner energy production and utilization. His research interests include electrochemical processes including energy storage and CO2 reduction, natural gas process engineering, porous carbons, and solid-fluid interactions in coal seam gas reservoirs. Current and recent projects include studies on electrochemical CO2 reduction, development of gas diffusion electrode materials, helium recovery and nitrogen rejection from natural gas, low permeability coals, and the capture of methane emissions from liquefied natural gas (LNG) production plants.
Teaching and Learning:
Tom teaches into the BE and BE/ME chemical engineering programs at UQ. He's taught core chemical engineering courses such as heat and mass transfer, unit operations, and the capstone design project courses CHEE4001 and CHEE7103. In 2024 he is teaching into CHEE3004 Unit Operations in Semester 1 and CHEE7103 BE/ME Design Project in Semester 2.
Availability
- Associate Professor Tom Rufford is:
- Available for supervision
Qualifications
- Bachelor (Honours) of Engineering, The University of Queensland
- Doctor of Philosophy, The University of Queensland
- Member, Institute of Chemical Engineers (IChemE), Institute of Chemical Engineers (IChemE)
Works
Search Professor Tom Rufford’s works on UQ eSpace
2023
Journal Article
Effect of dispersing solvents for an ionomer on the performance of copper catalyst layers for CO2 electrolysis to multicarbon products
Idros, Mohamed Nazmi, Wu, Yuming, Duignan, Timothy, Li, Mengran, Cartmill, Hayden, Maglaya, Irving, Burdyny, Thomas, Wang, Geoff and Rufford, Thomas E. (2023). Effect of dispersing solvents for an ionomer on the performance of copper catalyst layers for CO2 electrolysis to multicarbon products. ACS Applied Materials and Interfaces, 15 (45), 52461-52472. doi: 10.1021/acsami.3c11096
2023
Journal Article
Non-invasive current collectors for improved current-density distribution during CO2 electrolysis on super-hydrophobic electrodes
Iglesias van Montfort, Hugo-Pieter, Li, Mengran, Irtem, Erdem, Abdinejad, Maryam, Wu, Yuming, Pal, Santosh K., Sassenburg, Mark, Ripepi, Davide, Subramanian, Siddhartha, Biemolt, Jasper, Rufford, Thomas E. and Burdyny, Thomas (2023). Non-invasive current collectors for improved current-density distribution during CO2 electrolysis on super-hydrophobic electrodes. Nature Communications, 14 (1) 6579, 1-11. doi: 10.1038/s41467-023-42348-6
2023
Conference Publication
Reimagining assessment of the capstone chemical engineering design project with a specification grading approach
Rufford, Thomas E. (2023). Reimagining assessment of the capstone chemical engineering design project with a specification grading approach. CHEMECA 2023, Auckland, New Zealand, 1 - 3 October 2023. IChemE.
2023
Conference Publication
Challenges and opportunities for electrochemical CO2 conversion to reduce emissions from hard to decarbonise industrial processes
Rufford, Thomas E. (2023). Challenges and opportunities for electrochemical CO2 conversion to reduce emissions from hard to decarbonise industrial processes. The One-Day Sustainability and Indigenous Education Workshop - Pre-CHEMECA2023 event, Auckland, New Zealand, 1 October 2023. IChemE.
2023
Conference Publication
What materials do we need, and how much of them, for very large-scale CO2 electrolysis?
Rufford, Thomas E. (2023). What materials do we need, and how much of them, for very large-scale CO2 electrolysis?. The International Conference on Materials Innovation 2023 (ICMI 2023), Brisbane, QLD Australia, 22 - 25 August 2023. The University of Queensland.
2023
Conference Publication
Elucidating the effects of solvent-ionomer interactions on copper catalyst layers for CO2 electrolysis to multicarbon products
Idros, Mohamed Nazmi, Duignan, Timothy, Li, Mengran, Rufford, Thomas E., Wang, Geoff and Wu, Yuming (2023). Elucidating the effects of solvent-ionomer interactions on copper catalyst layers for CO2 electrolysis to multicarbon products. 35th Topical Meeting of the International Society of Electrochemistry, Gold Coast, QLD, Australia, 7-10 May 2023.
2023
Conference Publication
Anti-flooding GDE by in-situ electroreduction of graphene oxide for CO2 electrolysis
Wu, Yuming, Idros, Mohamed Nazmi and Rufford, Thomas (2023). Anti-flooding GDE by in-situ electroreduction of graphene oxide for CO2 electrolysis. 35th Topical Meeting of the International Society of Electrochemistry, Gold Coast, QLD, Australia, 7-10 May 2023.
2023
Conference Publication
Engineering data requirements for development and commercialisation of CO2 electrolyser technologies
Rufford, Thomas E. (2023). Engineering data requirements for development and commercialisation of CO2 electrolyser technologies. The 2nd International Conference on Data Driven Innovation and Carbon Neutrality, Online, 25 - 27 February 2023.
2023
Journal Article
Opportunities to reduce energy consumption and CO2 emissions from ironmaking blast furnace using CO2 electrolysis to CO for carbon recycling
Hu, Yichao, Rufford, Thomas E., Chen, Jian, Hao, Liangyuan, Li, Mengran, Qiu, Yinxuan, Garg, Sahil, Rudolph, Victor and Wang, Geoff (2023). Opportunities to reduce energy consumption and CO2 emissions from ironmaking blast furnace using CO2 electrolysis to CO for carbon recycling. Journal of Cleaner Production, 389 135997, 1-17. doi: 10.1016/j.jclepro.2023.135997
2023
Journal Article
High‐concentration electrosynthesis of formic acid/formate from CO2 : reactor and electrode design strategies
Kuang, Yizhu, Rabiee, Hesamoddin, Ge, Lei, Rufford, Thomas E., Yuan, Zhiguo, Bell, John and Wang, Hao (2023). High‐concentration electrosynthesis of formic acid/formate from CO2 : reactor and electrode design strategies. Energy and Environmental Materials, 6 (6) e12596. doi: 10.1002/eem2.12596
2023
Journal Article
Elucidating the effects of solvent-ionomer interactions on copper catalyst layers for CO2 electrolysis to multicarbon products
Idros, Mohamed Nazmi, Wu, Yuming, Duignan, Timothy T., Li, Mengran, Cartmill, Hayden, Maglaya, Irving, Burdyny, Thomas, Wang, Geoff GX and Rufford, Thomas E. (2023). Elucidating the effects of solvent-ionomer interactions on copper catalyst layers for CO2 electrolysis to multicarbon products.
2023
Journal Article
Organic molecules involved in Cu-based electrocatalysts for selective CO2 reduction to C2+ products
Chen, Ping, Wu, Yuming, Rufford, Thomas E., Wang, Lianzhou, Wang, Geoff and Wang, Zhiliang (2023). Organic molecules involved in Cu-based electrocatalysts for selective CO2 reduction to C2+ products. Materials Today Chemistry, 27 101328, 1-15. doi: 10.1016/j.mtchem.2022.101328
2022
Conference Publication
Considerations for the use of CO2 electrolysis in blast furnace ironmaking
Rufford, T. E., Wu, Y., Irdos, Md Nazmi, Hu, Yichao, Wang, Geoff, Garg, Sahil and Li, Mengran (2022). Considerations for the use of CO2 electrolysis in blast furnace ironmaking. Baosteel-Australia Joint Research and Development Centre Annual Conference, St Lucia, QLD Australia, 5 December 2022.
2022
Journal Article
How membrane characteristics influence the performance of CO<sub>2</sub> and CO electrolysis
Garg, Sahil, Giron Rodriguez, Carlos A., Rufford, Thomas E., Varcoe, John R. and Seger, Brian (2022). How membrane characteristics influence the performance of CO2 and CO electrolysis. Energy and Environmental Science, 15 (11), 4440-4469. doi: 10.1039/d2ee01818g
2022
Journal Article
Mitigating electrolyte flooding for electrochemical CO2 reduction via infiltration of hydrophobic particles in a gas diffusion layer
Wu, Yuming, Charlesworth, Liam, Maglaya, Irving, Idros, Mohamed Nazmi, Li, Mengran, Burdyny, Thomas, Wang, Geoff and Rufford, Thomas E. (2022). Mitigating electrolyte flooding for electrochemical CO2 reduction via infiltration of hydrophobic particles in a gas diffusion layer. ACS Energy Letters, 7 (9), 2884-2892. doi: 10.1021/acsenergylett.2c01555
2022
Conference Publication
Opportunities of blast furnace ironmaking to contribute to decarbonisation targets via carbon dioxide capture and utilisation.
Hu, Yichao, Hao, Liangyuan, Li, Mengran, Rufford, Tom and Wang, Geoff (2022). Opportunities of blast furnace ironmaking to contribute to decarbonisation targets via carbon dioxide capture and utilisation.. 8th European Coke and lronmaking Congress (ECIC) and the 9th International Conference on Science and Technology of Ironmaking (ICSTI), Bremen, Germany and Online, 30 August - 1 September 2022. Online: Steel Institute VDEh.
2022
Journal Article
Regulating the reaction zone of electrochemical CO2 reduction on gas-diffusion electrodes by distinctive hydrophilic-hydrophobic catalyst layers
Rabiee, Hesamoddin, Ge, Lei, Zhao, Jing, Zhang, Xueqin, Li, Mengran, Hu, Shihu, Smart, Simon, Rufford, Thomas E., Zhu, Zhonghua, Wang, Hao and Yuan, Zhiguo (2022). Regulating the reaction zone of electrochemical CO2 reduction on gas-diffusion electrodes by distinctive hydrophilic-hydrophobic catalyst layers. Applied Catalysis B: Environmental, 310 121362, 121362. doi: 10.1016/j.apcatb.2022.121362
2022
Journal Article
Urea-functionalized silver catalyst toward efficient and robust CO2 electrolysis with relieved reliance on alkali cations
Garg, Sahil, Li, Mengran, Hussain, Tanveer, Idros, Mohamed Nazmi, Wu, Yuming, Zhao, Xiu Song, Wang, Geoff G. X. and Rufford, Thomas E. (2022). Urea-functionalized silver catalyst toward efficient and robust CO2 electrolysis with relieved reliance on alkali cations. ACS Applied Materials and Interfaces, 14 (31), 35504-35512. doi: 10.1021/acsami.2c05918
2022
Conference Publication
Challenges and opportunities for high current density CO2 electrolysis
Rufford, Thomas E., Wu, Yuming, Garg, Sahil, Li, Mengran, Hu, Yichao, Idros, Mohamed Nazmi and Wang, Geoff (2022). Challenges and opportunities for high current density CO2 electrolysis. 2022 International Symposium on Clean Energy Materials, Gold Coast, QLD, Australia, 30 June - 2 July 2022.
2022
Conference Publication
Controlling flooding at high-current density in CO2 electrolysers
Rufford, Tom (2022). Controlling flooding at high-current density in CO2 electrolysers. E3C Electrochemical Cell Concepts Colloquium, Online, 14 May 2022.
Funding
Current funding
Supervision
Availability
- Associate Professor Tom Rufford is:
- Available for supervision
Before you email them, read our advice on how to contact a supervisor.
Supervision history
Current supervision
-
Doctor Philosophy
Accelerated stress testing and degradation mechanisms in CO2 electrolysis cell
Principal Advisor
-
Doctor Philosophy
Synthesis of Graphene Assisted Heterojunction Photocatalysts for Conversion of CO2 to Methanol
Principal Advisor
-
Doctor Philosophy
Controlling microenvironments to enable green fuels and scalable electrolysis
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Dr Christopher Leonardi, Dr Travis Mitchell
-
Doctor Philosophy
Modelling of thermal engineering management for hydrogen ironmaking in shaft furnace
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Dr Xiaodong Ma, Professor Geoff Wang
-
Doctor Philosophy
Low emission iron and steelmaking using hydrogen to pre-reduce lump ore
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Geoff Wang, Dr Helen Tang, Dr Xiaodong Ma
-
Master Philosophy
Optimization of structured cementitious composite for sustainability: Mechanical properties and thermal properties
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Associate Professor Vinh Dao, Dr Shujian Chen
-
Doctor Philosophy
Polymeric Photocatalysts for Solar-Driven Hydrogen Peroxide Production
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Dr Xiangkang Zeng
Completed supervision
-
2024
Doctor Philosophy
Understanding interaction between ionomers, particles and solvents in catalyst ink formulation for CO2 electrolysis to multicarbon products
Principal Advisor
Other advisors: Dr Tim Duignan
-
2023
Doctor Philosophy
Investigation of Electrolyte Flooding in a Carbon-based Gas Diffusion Electrode for CO2 Electrolysis to CO
Principal Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Geoff Wang
-
2021
Doctor Philosophy
Magnesium based clay stabilizers for swelling inhibition of smectites in coal seam gas reservoirs
Principal Advisor
-
2021
Doctor Philosophy
Optimizing Catalyst-electrolyte Interfaces for Selective Electrocatalytic CO2 Reduction to CO over Ag Electrodes
Principal Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Geoff Wang
-
2020
Doctor Philosophy
Design and Techno-economic Evaluation of Multi-stage Membrane Processes for Helium Recovery from Natural Gas
Principal Advisor
Other advisors: Associate Professor Simon Smart
-
2019
Doctor Philosophy
The Effects of Surface Chemistry, Mineral Content and Effective Pressure on Relative Permeability using Artificial Australian Coal Cores
Principal Advisor
Other advisors: Dr Lei Ge
-
2017
Doctor Philosophy
Novel Adsorbents for Natural Gas Separation and Purification
Principal Advisor
Other advisors: Associate Professor Greg Birkett, Professor John Zhu
-
2023
Doctor Philosophy
Carbon Footprint Mapping & Modelling for an Ironmaking Blast Furnace
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Geoff Wang
-
2019
Doctor Philosophy
The experimental study of counter-current two-phase flows in annuli
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Associate Professor Mahshid Firouzi
-
2019
Doctor Philosophy
Application of Electrohydraulic Discharge (EHD) Stimulation for Unconventional Reservoir Development
Associate Advisor
-
2019
Doctor Philosophy
Dynamics of anisotropic permeability in coal seam gas reservoirs
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Professor John Zhu
-
-
2018
Doctor Philosophy
Foam structured carbon monoliths for gas adsorption
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Dr Lei Ge, Professor John Zhu
-
2017
Doctor Philosophy
The Effect of Water Occlusion on Gas Production in Coal
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Associate Professor Karen Steel
-
2017
Doctor Philosophy
Design and Preparation of Novel Electrocatalysts for Oxygen Evolution Reaction
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Professor John Zhu
-
2016
Doctor Philosophy
Two-Dimensional Nanomaterials for Supercapacitors
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Lianzhou Wang
-
-
2012
Doctor Philosophy
Mesoporous materials supported catalysts for removal of nitric oxide using carbon monoxide as reducing agent
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Professor John Zhu
Media
Enquiries
For media enquiries about Associate Professor Tom Rufford's areas of expertise, story ideas and help finding experts, contact our Media team: