The Chemical Engineering Department is hosting a special graduate lecture on Accelerated scale-up of rationally designed sustainable energy materials.
Abstract:
Electrochemical energy devices, like batteries, fuel cells, and electrolyzers underpin our energy transition to sustainability. However, inherent heterogeneities in the design of these devices lead to sub-optimal performance and durability. For instance, when solid-state batteries are cycled (charged/ discharged) at reasonable pressures, heterogenous degradation mechanisms such as void formation and associated contact loss significantly degrades battery durability, bottlenecking their commercialization. In this talk, I will discuss key elements needed for rational design of clean energy materials – a) create, b) test, c) understand, and d) deploy. Building on insights from previous studies, I will present my research vision and plan to overcome and even leverage some existing heterogeneities and accelerate the scale-up of next-generation energy materials.