Live Mölmen first in graduate school to defend her doctoral thesis
Live Mölmen, was the first to successfully defend her doctoral thesis among the industrial doctoral students within the research school Smart Industry Sweden. The defense took place at the School of Engineering (JTH) at Jönköping University on June 16.
Live Mölmens doctoral thesis is called ”Durability Evaluation of PEM Fuel Cell Components” and is about research is about improving the electrification of vehicles through fuel cells. Fuel cells generate electricity from chemical reactions that are amplified by a catalyst. Hydrogen fuel cells are one of the solutions for the electrification of vehicles, especially heavy duty vehicles where long range and fast refueling are important. But for fuel cells to pay off, cost-effective materials and manufacturing methods must be used. At the same time, all materials must be resistant to the fuel cell’s internal environment, which with high temperature, acidic pH and electrical potential is demanding for common materials such as steel and nickel.
After the defense, Live Mölmen went to Trondheim to meet her family and now a vacation awaits her before she returns to her job at RISE (Reserach Insitute of Sweden), where she has been employed throughout her doctoral period. The difference now is that she will work as a researcher.
“RISE is a very exciting workplace where you meet many companies and get to work with issues from several different perspectives,” she says.
After spending the spring writing her doctoral thesis and preparing for its presentation, Live felt ready to prove to her defense opponent and the examining committee how well she knew her subject and how much she deserved her doctorate.
“I feel satisfied and they seemed satisfied as well,” says Live Mölmen.
Peter Thorvald, director of the research school, was present during the defense.
“It was an enjoyable defense, but also a little sad that Live has finished, because it means she’s disappearing from the graduate school. We’re starting to enter a phase where we don’t see many new faces, but that’s the nature of things. It was fun to be there and support Live,” says Peter Thorvald.
He mentions that Live was one of the research school’s senior doctoral students and that she was already well ahead when it started.
“She was very open at our meetings. She helped the other PhD students and showed them the way forward, which she has continued to do now when she was the first among the industrial doctoral students to defend her doctoral thesis”, says Peter Thorvald.
The defense opponent for Live Mölmen was Professor Frode Seland, from the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU). The members of the assessment committee were: Assistant Professor Johan Ahlström from Chalmers University of Technology, Professor Jens Oluf Jensen from Technical University of Denmark and university lecturer Naureen Ghafoor from Linköping University. The chairman of the defense was docent Jenny Bäckstrand from JTH.