School of Chemical & Materials Engineering (SCME)
Faculty Muhammad Aftab Akram

Muhammad Aftab Akram

Associate Professor
  • School of Chemical & Materials Engineering
  • 0518865215
Summary

Dr. Aftab Akram is a distinguished researcher and academic in the field of Metallurgical and Materials Engineering. He earned his MS & PhD in Materials and Surface Engineering from SCME NUST and his academic excellence was recognized with the Presidential Gold Medal. Dr. Akram served the Department of Materials Engineering at SCME, NUST from 2017 till 2022. He has made significant contributions to research, publishing over 75 research articles with a cumulative impact factor exceeding 350. His work has garnered more than 2,500 citations, with an H-index of 30 and an i-10 index of 57. A leader in research funding acquisition, Dr. Akram secured 13 million PKR under the HEC NRPU scheme for his project on “Fabrication, Characterization, and Testing of Nanostructured Devices for Efficient Energy Storage and Conversion.” In addition to this, he has won six other funded projects from HEC and Industry as a Principal Investigator (PI), along with 50 million PKR in Co-PI funding for various initiatives. Dr. Akram has presented his work at international conferences in the USA, Poland, Thailand, China, and France, showcasing his expertise on a global platform. He actively contributes to academia as an editor and reviewer for several reputed international research journals. He is a dedicated member of the American Chemical Society (ACS) and The Minerals, Metals & Materials Society (TMS), USA, demonstrating his commitment to professional development in his field. His exceptional research and teaching performance have been recognized with multiple honors, including the ‘SCME Best Researcher Award’ (2018-19).

Academic Background
PhD (Solar Cells) NUST, Islamabad September 20, 2010 - January 18, 2017
Honours and Awards
Reviewer Certificate • Applied Surface Science [I.F = 5.155] • Materials Science and Engineering B [IF = 3.507] • Optik International Journal for Light and Electron Optics [I.F = 1.914] • Open Physics [I.F = 1.005] • Journal of Porous Materials [I.F = 1.947] • Physica E: Low-dimensional Systems and Nanostructures [I.F = 3.176] • Chinese Journal of Chemistry [I.F = 2376] • Guest Editor: Frontiers in Materials [I.F = 2.689]
Best Researcher Award Best Researcher Award SCME October 06, 2020
President's Gold Medal President's Gold Medal for best in academics, 7th PG Convocation NUST April 19, 2012
Publications
Mixed morphology ternary composites of ZnCo2O4/WS2/COOH-CNTs for high performance supercapacitor application September 10, 2025 Journal of Alloys and Compounds - Volume:1039, Article Number 182876
ZnO Nanoparticles as a Catalyst for Water Purification December 10, 2024 Zinc Oxide Nanoparticles - Fundamentals and Applications - Chapter 3, Pages 1-47
Boosted Hydrogen evolution reaction based on synergistic effect of graphene, MoS2 and RuO2 ternary electrocatalyst November 26, 2024 International Journal of Hydrogen Energy - Volume 92, Pages 1423-1438
A key parametric study of ultrasonic exfoliation of 2D TiB2 using DI water as a unique medium April 30, 2024 Heliyon - Volume 10, Issue 8, Article Number e29417
Investigating the Electrical and Optical Properties of Nickle and Strontium Co-Doped CsPbBr3 Nanocrystals: Potential Absorber Material for Perovskite Solar Cells March 14, 2024 Transactions on Electrical and Electronic Materials - Pages 1-12
Design and development of porous CoCrFeNiMn high entropy alloy (Cantor alloy) with outstanding electrochemical properties January 05, 2024 Journal of Alloys and Compounds - Volume 970, Article Number 172633
Design and development of NbTiVZr porous high entropy alloys for energy applications December 15, 2023 Journal of Energy Storage - Volume 73, Part C, Article Number 109131
Low-temperature processed natural hematite as an electron extraction layer for efficient and stable perovskite solar cells August 01, 2023 Surfaces and Interfaces - Volume 40, Article Number 103003
Facile synthesis of a multifunctional ternary SnO2/MWCNTs/PANI nanocomposite: Detailed analysis of dielectric, electrochemical, and water splitting applications February 10, 2023 Electrochimica Acta - Volume:441,
Improved Electrical Properties of Strontium Hexaferrite Nanoparticles by Co2+Substitutions November 25, 2022 ACS Omega - Volume 7, Issue 48, Pages 43432-43439
Cellulose acetate based sustainable nanostructured membranes for environmental remediation November 01, 2022 Chemosphere - Volume 307, Part 1, Article Number 135736
A highly efficient A-site deficient perovskite interlaced within two dimensional MXene nanosheets as an active electrocatalyst for hydrogen production October 31, 2022 International Journal of Hydrogen Energy - Volume 47, Issue 88, Pages 37476-37489
Design of Multilayered 2D Nanomaterial Composite Structures for EMI Shielding Analysis September 28, 2022 ACS Omega - Volume 7, Issue 40, Pages 35586-35594
Nano-architectured Cobalt selenide Spheres Anchored on Graphene Oxide sheets for Sodium Ion Battery Anode August 29, 2022 Frontiers in Materials - Volume 9, Article Number 950673
MOF-Derived AlCuSe2 Embedded in a Carbon Matrix for an Economical Anode of Lithium-Ion Battery August 22, 2022 ACS Omega - Volume 7(34), Pages 30440-30446
The Potential Effect of Annealing Mesostructured Titanium Dioxide Electrode in a Closed Box Furnace on the Concentration of Lead (II) Iodide Solution Required for Optimal Performance of Mesoscopic Perovskite Solar Cells June 12, 2022 Crystals - Volume 12, Issue 6, Article Number 833
Systematic Investigation of Structural, Morphological, Thermal, Optoelectronic, and Magnetic Properties of High-Purity Hematite/Magnetite Nanoparticles for Optoelectronics May 11, 2022 Nanomaterials - Volume 12, Issue 10, Article Number 1635
Controlling the Wettability of ZnO Thin Films by Spray Pyrolysis for Photocatalytic Applications May 07, 2022 Materials - Volume 15, Issue 9, Article Number 3364
Investigating the physicochemical response of CdS quantum-dots deposition over SiO2-incorporated TiO2 photoanodes for solar cells March 05, 2022 Colloids and Surfaces A: Physicochemical and Engineering Aspects - Volume 636, Article Number 128131
Morphological, structural, thermal and optical properties of Zn/Mg-doped TiO2 nanostructures for optoelectronic applications February 01, 2022 Optics and Laser Technology - Volume 146, Article Number 107566
Ultrahigh performance asymmetric supercapacitor devices with synergetic interaction between metal organic frameworks/graphene nano platelets and redox additive electrolyte January 25, 2022 Journal of Alloys and Compounds - Volume 891, Article Number 161961
Aluminum Doping Effects on Interface Depletion Width of Low Temperature Processed ZnO Electron Transport Layer-Based Perovskite Solar Cells January 05, 2022 Frontiers in Chemistry - Volume 9, Article Number 795291
Facile synthesis of iron-nickel-cobalt ternary oxide (FNCO) mesoporous nanowires as electrode material for supercapacitor application January 04, 2022 Journal of Materiomics - Volume 8, Issue 1, Pages 221-228
Incorporation of Zr-doped TiO2 nanoparticles in electron transport layer for efficient planar perovskite solar cells August 01, 2021 Surfaces and Interfaces - Volume 25, Article Number 101299
Study of magnetic and dielectric properties of ZnFe2O4/CoCr2O4 nanocomposites produced using sol-gel and hydrothermal processes June 05, 2021 Journal of Alloys and Compounds - Volume 865, Article Number 158953
Outlining the beneficial photocatalytic effect of ZnS deposition in simplistically developed iron oxide nanocomposites of different stoichiometry March 15, 2021 Applied Physics A-Materials Science and Processing - Volume 127, Article Number: 251
Facile formation of SnO2–TiO2 based photoanode and Fe3O4@rGO based counter electrode for efficient dye-sensitized solar cells March 01, 2021 Materials Science in Semiconductor Processing - Volume 123, Article Number 105545
Binder-free pseudocapacitive nickel cobalt sulfide/MWCNTs hybrid electrode directly grown on nickel foam for high rate supercapacitors February 01, 2021 Materials Science and Engineering: B - Volume 264, Article Number 114898
In Situ Synthesis of a Polyaniline/ Fe–Ni Codoped Co3O4 Composite for the Electrode Material of Supercapacitors with Improved Cyclic Stability January 07, 2021 ACS Omega - Volume 6(2), Pages 1190-1196
Metal/metal oxide thin film electrodes for supercapatteries December 08, 2020 Advances in Supercapacitor and Supercapattery: An Innovations in Energy Storage Devices - Chapter 8, Pages 175-198
Strategic design of Cu/TiO2-based photoanode and rGO-Fe3O4-based counter electrode for optimized plasmonic dye-sensitized solar cells November 01, 2020 Optical Materials - Volume 109, Article Number 110267
Preparation and Characterization of PANI@NiO Visible Light Photocatalyst for Wastewater Treatment October 27, 2020 ChemistrySelect - Volume 5, Issue 40, Pages 12618-12623
Enhanced Mechanical Properties of Functionalized BN nanosheets-Polymer Composites September 26, 2020 Journal of Polymer Research - Volume 27, Article Number 310
TASiW‐12 modified SnO2 Electron Transport Layer for Efficient and Stable Perovskite Solar Cells September 16, 2020 Solar RRL - Pages 1-10
Significantly improved photo- and electro-chemical performance of CuS.PbS nanocomposites for dye degradation and paintable counter electrodes September 01, 2020 Journal of Photochemistry and Photobiology A: Chemistry - Volume 400, Article Number 112720
Synthesis and Characterization of PVA/Starch Hydrogel Membranes Incorporating Essential Oils Aimed to be Used in Wound Dressing Applications August 25, 2020 Journal of Polymers and the Environment - Pages 1-19
TiO2 Mesocrystals Processed at Low Temperature as the Electron‐Transport Material in Perovskite Solar Cells July 24, 2020 ChemSusChem - Volume13, Issue19, Pages 5256-5263
3D Hierarchically Mesoporous Zinc-Nickel-Cobalt Ternary Oxide (Zn0.6Ni0.8Co1.6O4) Nanowires for High-Performance Asymmetric Supercapacitors June 15, 2020 Frontiers in Chemistry - Volume 8, Article Nunber 487
Carbon Fibers Embedded with Iron Selenide (Fe3Se4) as Anode for High-Performance Sodium and Potassium Ion Batteries June 03, 2020 Frontiers in Chemistry - Volume 8, Article Number 408
Effects of Ag doping on compact TiO2 thin films synthesized via one step sol-gel route and deposited by spin coating technique June 01, 2020 Journal of Materials Science: Materials in Electronics - Volume 31, Pages 7172–7181
Graphene-ferrites interaction for enhanced EMI shielding effectiveness of hybrid polymer composites January 06, 2020 Materials Research Express - Volume 7, Number 1, Article Number 016304
TiO2@NbSe2 decorated nanocomposites for efficient visible-light photocatalysis November 01, 2019 Applied Nanoscience - Vol:9, Pages:1915-1924
A new insight into solar paint concept: regeneration of CuS nanoparticles for paintable counter electrodes in QDSSCs October 01, 2019 APPLIED PHYSICS A-MATERIALS SCIENCE & PROCESSING - Volume: 125 Issue: 10 Article Number: 716
Comparative study of Ag, Sn or Zn doped TiO2 thin films for photocatalytic degradation of methylene blue and methyl orange September 06, 2019 Materials Research Express - Volume 6, Issue 10, Article Number 106435
A Compact Review on Physical Vapor Deposition Techniques of Thin Films September 02, 2019 Journal of Thin Films, Coating Science Technology and Application - Volume 6, Issue 2
EMI shielding properties of polymer blends with inclusion of graphene nano platelets September 01, 2019 Results in Physics - Volume 14, Article Number 102365
Simplistic wet-chemical coalescence of ZnO with Al2O3 and SnO2 for enhanced photocatalytic and electrochemical performance August 02, 2019 Journal of Materials Science: Materials in Electronics - Volume 30, Issue 15, Pages 14508-14518
Surface degradation study of magnesium tested in simulated body fluid May 23, 2019 Bio-Medical Materials and Engineering - Volume 30, Issue 3, Pages 341-348
Orange/Red Photoluminescence Enhancement Upon SF6 Plasma Treatment of Vertically Aligned ZnO Nanorods May 23, 2019 Nanomaterials - Volume: 9, Issue: 5, Article Number: 794
Photocatalytic and Photostability Behavior of Agand/or Al-Doped ZnO Films in Methylene Blue and Rhodamine B under UV-C Irradiation March 20, 2019 Coatings - Volume: 9, Issue: 3, Article Number: 202
Multiple energy applications of quantum-dot sensitized TiO2/PbS/CdS and TiO2/CdS/PbS hierarchical nanocomposites synthesized via p-SILAR technique February 01, 2019 Chemical Physics Letters - Volume 717, Pages 69-76
Fabrication of Cellulose Acetate/Cellulose-HA Composite Films for Bone Fixation September 01, 2018 Key Engineering Materials - Volume 778, Pages 325-330
Effect of Ethane-1,2-Diamine on Growth of ZnO Nanorods and Cyclohexane Sensing by Current-Voltage Characteristics Investigations September 01, 2018 Key Engineering Materials - Volume 778, Pages 126-131
Microstructural Evaluation of Inductively Sintered Aluminum Matrix Nanocomposites Reinforced with Silicon Carbide and/or Graphene Nanoplatelets for Tribological Applications July 01, 2018 METALLURGICAL AND MATERIALS TRANSACTIONS A-PHYSICAL METALLURGY AND MATERIALS SCIENCE - NULL
Surface plasmon mediated optical properties of ZnO/Au/TiO2 nanoheterostructure rod arrays May 01, 2018 Materials Science and Engineering B-Advanced Functional Solid-State Materials - NULL
Flexible, thin films of graphene-polymer composites for EMI shielding March 28, 2017 Materials Research Express - Volume: 4, Number: 3, Article Number: 035605
Uniaxial Drawing of Graphene-PVA Nanocomposites: Improvement in Mechanical Characteristics via Strain-Induced Exfoliation of Graphene August 24, 2016 Nanoscale Research Letters - Volume 11, Article Number: 377
Arrays of CZTS sensitized ZnO/ZnS and ZnO/ZnSe core/shell nanorods for liquid junction nanowire solar cells March 16, 2016 Solar Energy Materials and Solar Cells - Volume 146, Pages 121-128
Formation of Al-doped ZnO thin films on glass by sol-gel process and characterization February 01, 2016 Applied Nanoscience - Volume: 6, Issue: 2, Pages: 235-241
Reaction Time and Film Thickness Effects on Phase Formation and Optical Properties of Solution Processed Cu2ZnSnS4 Thin Films February 01, 2016 Journal of Materials Engineering and Performance - Volume 25, Issue 2, Pages 457-465
Quantum confinement and size effects in Cu2ZnSnS4 thin films produced using solution processed ultrafine nanoparticles January 01, 2016 Materials Science in Semiconductor Processing - Volume 41, Pages 420-427
Instant Microwave Synthesis of Titania Nanoflowers for Application in DSSCs July 29, 2015 Advanced Materials Research - Volume 1119, Pages 14-18
Synthesis and Surface Modification of ZnO Nanorods Arrays July 29, 2015 Advanced Materials Research - Volume 1119, Pages 49-53
Arrays of ZnO/CuInxGa1-xSe2 nanocables with tunable shell composition for efficient photovoltaics May 28, 2015 Journal of Applied Physics - Volume 117, Issue 20, Article Number 205306
Residual strain and electrical resistivity dependence of molybdenum films on DC plasma magnetron sputtering conditions November 01, 2014 Materials Science in Semiconductor Processing - Volume 27, Pages 343-351
Environment friendly template free microwave synthesis of sub‐micron sized hierarchical titania nanostructures and their application in photovoltaics October 13, 2014 CrystEngComm - Volume: 16, Issue: 48, Pages: 10937-10942
Processing-structure-property correlation in DC sputtered molybdenum thin films December 01, 2013 Surface Review and Letters - Volume: 20, Issue: 6, Article Number: 1350065
Sol-gel synthesis of intrinsic and aluminum-doped zinc oxide thin films as transparent conducting oxides for thin film solar cells February 01, 2013 Thin Solid Films - Volume: 529, Pages: 242-247
Electrophoretic deposition of PVA coated hydroxyapatite on 316L stainless steel May 01, 2012 Current Applied Physics - Volume 12, Issue 3, Pages 755-759
Rapid synthesis of thermally stable hydroxyapaptite January 01, 2012 Ceramics International - Volume: 38, Issue: 1, Pages: 457-462
Microwave Augmented Fabrication and Evaluation of CNT-Reinforced Nanohydroxyapatite September 08, 2011 Advanced Materials Research - Volume 326, Pages 110-120
The effect of processing conditions on the structural morphology and physical properties of ZnO and CdS thin films produced via sol?gel synthesis and chemical bath deposition techniques September 07, 2011 Advances in Natural Sciences: Nanoscience and Nanotechnology - Volume 2, Issue 4, 045001
Conferences
Effective Surface Washing of All Inorganic Perovskite Nanocrystals to Enhance Optoelectronic Properties November 22, 2023 - November 23, 2023 Saqib Ali, Sofia Javed, Muhammad Aftab Akram, Muhammad Arman Liaquat, Muhammad Arman Liaquat, Maryam Basit, 6th Conference on Emerging Materials and Processes 23
Highly Transparent N-Type TiO2 Coatings for Self-Cleaning Glass Application October 18, 2021 - October 22, 2021 Sofia Javed, Muhammad Aftab Akram, Muhammad Rabeel, Ramsha Khan, Usman Ali, 17th International Symposium on Advanced Materials
Study on Morphology of TiO2 Nanostructures synthesized under Microwave Irradiation and Their Application in Visible Light Photocatalysis January 08, 2019 - January 12, 2019 Sofia Javed, Muhammad Aftab Akram, Ramsha Khan, Adeel Riaz, Muhammad Rabeel, 16th International Bhurban Conference on Applied Sciences and Technology 2019
Ultrathin 2D Sheets of Graphene and WS2 for Energy Storage Applications January 08, 2019 - January 12, 2019 Sofia Javed, Muhammad Aftab Akram, Sufyan Naseer, Adeel Riaz, Ramsha Khan, Khalid Mansoor, Qaisar Abbas, Rahim Jan, 16th International Bhurban Conference on Applied Sciences & Technology
An Evaluation of Dichalcogenides as Fillers for Use in Highly Effective Electromagnetic Interference Shielding Materials May 07, 2018 - May 10, 2018 Sofia Javed, Muhammad Aftab Akram, Shazrah Shahzad, Ramsha Khan, Adeel Riaz, Rahim Jan, Mohammad Islam, 29th AeroMat 18 Conference and Exposition
Effect of Ethane-1,2-Diamine on Growth of ZnO Nanorods and Cyclohexane Sensing by Current-Voltage Characteristics Investigations October 16, 2017 - October 20, 2017 Sofia Javed, Muhammad Aftab Akram, SHAZRAH Shahzad, DAWAR Ali, JAWAD Asif, MUHAMMAD Zafar Khan, 15th International Symposium on Advanced Materials (ISAM 17)
Visiting Researcher City University of Hong Kong July 31, 2013 - January 31, 2014
TVF SCME NUST February 12, 2012 - May 10, 2017