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Nuwan Attanayake

Attanayake.jpg

Temple University
Department of Chemistry  
Beury Hall 241
1901 N. 13th Street
Philadelphia 19122

Phone: (215) 204-3736
Email: nuwan@temple.edu

Bio
Undergraduate: BSc (Chemistry Special), University of Peradeniya, Sri Lanka 2014
Undergraduate supervisor: Prof. A.D.L.C. Perera
Undergraduate research: Preparation and use of activated carbon derived from coconut coir as a low cost material for desalination.
Graduate school: Temple University (Joined in Fall 2014)
Graduate supervisor: Prof. Daniel Strongin

Research interests:

  • Heterogeneous catalysis for solar water splitting cells, modification of metal oxide nano-sheets as water oxidation catalysts. 
  • Looking at the chemistry of arsenite oxidation to arsenate on birnessite (manganese oxide mineral) in the presence of light.    

Publications

  • Akila C. Thenuwara, Samantha L. Shumlas, Nuwan H. Attanayake, Elizabeth B. Cerkez, Ian G. McKendry, Laszlo Frazer, Eric Borguet, Qing Kang, Michael J. Zdilla, Jianwei Sun, and Daniel R. Strongin, "Copper-Intercalated Birnessite as a Water Oxidation Catalyst." Langmuir 31.46 (2015): 12807-12813.
  • Akila C. Thenuwara, Elizabeth B. Cerkez, Samantha L. Shumlas, Nuwan H. Attanayake, Ian G. McKendry, Laszlo Frazer, Eric Borguet, Qing Kang, Richard C. Remsing, Michael L. Klein, Michael J. Zdilla and Daniel R. Strongin "Nickel Confined in the Interlayer Region of Birnessite: an Active Electrocatalyst for Water Oxidation." Angewandte Chemie International Edition (2016).DOI10.1002/anie.201601935
  • Akila C. Thenuwara, Samantha L. Shumlas, Nuwan H. Attanayake, , Ian G. McKendry Yaroslav V. Aulin, Qiao Qiao, Yimei Zhu, Eric Borguet, Michael J. Zdilla, and Daniel R. Strongin. "Intercalation of Cobalt into the Interlayer of Birnessite Improves Oxygen Evolution Catalysis." ACS Catalysis (2016) DOI: 10.1021/acscatal.6b01980
  • Samantha L Shumlas; Soujanya Singireddy, Akila C Thenuwara; Nuwan H Attanayake; Richard J Reeder, and Daniel R Strongin “Oxidation of arsenite to arsenate on birnessite in the presence of light” Geochemical Transactions,17.1 (2016): 5
  • A.M. N. H. Attanayake, M. N. S. Kottegoda, A. D. L. C. Perera, “ Removal of Sodium ions from saline water using laboratory prepared activated coir” Peradeniya University International Research Sessions (iPURSE) 2014