Research Facilities
Our group hosts a number of state of the art experimental and analytic instruments and has access to research facilities at USU campus and USTAR Nanofabrication Center at University of Utah. We have advanced skills and techniques to handle solid materials and molecule (both organic and inorganic) synthesis and characterization.  

We offer technic services and solution consultation to external users (please contact Professor Liu directly).

Our broad technical capacities are illustrated in photos below. 
Synthesis Platform
Multifunctional glovebox
  • O2 (< 1 ppm) and water free (< 1 ppm) synthesis and operations
  • Temperature control: -196 to 150 C
  • Battery assembling
  • Integrated operando tests: UV-Vis, IR, E-chem, battery studies
Automatic solvent purification system:
  • THF, DME, Toluene, CH3CN, CH2Cl2, Pentane, Methanol
  • O2 free and water < 20 ppm
Manual distillation pots to generate highly pure organic solvents, O2 free and water < 10 ppm
Home designed Schlenk line (6 lines):
  • Water and O2 free synthesis 
  • Ar/N2 atmosphere operation
  • High vacuum operation
  • Integrated temperature control: -190 to 300 C
Tube furnace:
  • ​Solid (and gas) phase synthesis
  • Temperature control: up to 1500 C
Vacuum oven:
  • High vacuum operation
  • Temperature control: up to 200 C
  • Solid sample drying
Rotovap (3 units):
  • High vacuum and temperature control
  • Liquid sample drying
Drying oven (5 units):
  • Temperature control up to 300 C
  • Drying glassware, lab supplies, sold samples
  • Hydrothermal and solvent thermal synthesis
Temperature controller
  • Reaction temp control: -50 to 150 C
Electrochemical Testing Platform
Multifunctional potentiostats (5 units):
  • Physical Echem: CV, DPV, LSV, BE, CA, EIS etc.
  • Energy tests: batteries, fuel cells, electrocatalysis, and sensors
Rotation electrode controller
  • Physical Echem: RDE, RRDE
  • Electrochemical kinetics: diffusion coefficient, electron transfer rate, catalytic rates etc.
Conductivity meter and pH meter
Multi-channel battery testers (12 units, 96 channels):
  • Solid battery tests: 1 uA to100 mA, -5 to 5 V
  • Flow battery tests: 10 mA to 5 A, -5 to 5 V
  • Integrated temperature control: -50 to 200 C
Coin cell crimper:
  • Installed in glovebox
  • Easy assembling CR 2032 coin cells and other types
Home designed redox flow battery platform:
  • 5 units for 10 battery testing simultaneously 
  • Integrated temperature control: -50 to 200 C
  • Scalable modules