Tech Highlights was prepared by David Enos and Mike Kelly of Sandia National Laboratories, Colm Glynn and David McNulty of University College Cork, Ireland, Zenghe Liu of Verily Life Science, and Donald Pile of Rolled-Ribbon Battery Company. This article was originally published in the fall 2017 issue of Interface. Read the full article.

The Effect of the Fluoroethylene Carbonate Additive in Full Lithium-Ion Cells

In recent years, high voltage cathode materials have attracted a great deal of attention due to the high energy densities that they offer. However, side reactions with conventional electrolytes resulting in electrolyte decomposition need to be overcome to make the use of these materials viable for commercial cells. Consequently, various electrolyte additives have been the subject of much research. A team led by researchers from Uppsala University has investigated the effect of fluoroethylene carbonate (FEC) as an electrolyte additive in full Li-ion cells consisting of a LiNi_0.5Mn_1.5O₄ cathode and a Li₄Ti₅O₁₂ anode. Read the full paper.

From: B. Aktekin, R. Younesi, W. Zipprich et al., J. Electrochem. Soc., 164, A942 (2017).

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By: John Staser, division vice chair and Assistant Professor at Ohio University

As vice chair of the Industrial Electrochemistry and Electrochemical Engineering Division, it is with great pleasure that I introduce the summer 2017 edition of Interface.

The authors of the articles you are about to read all worked tirelessly, and we owe them acknowledgement and significant gratitude for putting this issue together. Without their contributions, we would not be able to deliver the consistent quality of content that you expect in Interface.

We as a division hope to highlight the diverse activities of our members.

In the following pages you will find articles authored by industrial and academic members, with foci ranging from environmental applications to mathematical modeling to large-scale industrial production of metals. Such breadth is evidence that our division’s activities, as has been the case in the past, are ever evolving.

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Tech Highlights was prepared by David Enos, Mara Schindelholz, and Mike Kelly of Sandia National Laboratories, Colm Glynn and David McNulty of University College Cork, Ireland, and Donald Pile of Rolled-Ribbon Battery Company. This article was originally published in Interface. Read the original article.

Spray Drying-Assisted Synthesis of Li₃VO₄/C/CNTs Composites for High-Performance Lithium Ion Battery Anodes

Published in the “Focus Issue of Selected Papers from IMLB 2016 with Invited Papers Celebrating 25 Years of Lithium Ion Batteries.” Graphite-based materials continue to be the most commonly used anode materials in commercial Li-ion batteries (LIBs). However, the practical application of graphite anodes in largescale LIBs may be hindered by safety issues arising from Li dendrite formation on the surface of the anode when cycling at fast rates. Read the full paper.

From: Yang Yang, Jiaqi Li, Dingqiong Chen, and Jinbao Zhao, J. Electrochem. Soc., 164, A6001 (2017).

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By: Alice H. Suroviec, Berry College

Wolfram|Alpha

Wolfram|Alpha is a computational search engine that uses an extensive collection of built-in data and algorithms to answer computation questions using a web-browser interface. It is a free website designed by the programmers behind the Mathematica software package.
www.wolframalpha.com

NREL MatDB

NRELMatDB is a computational materials database that primarily contains information on materials for renewable energy applications such as photovoltaic materials, and materials for photo-electrochemical water splitting. This website is a growing collection of computed properties of stoichiometric and fully ordered materials. It is a very useful database for those needing comparative data.
NREL (National Renewable Energy Laboratory)
www.materials.nrel.gov

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Tech Highlights was prepared by Colm Glynn and David McNulty of University College Cork, Ireland, David Enos of Sandia National Laboratories, Zenghe Liu of Verily Life Science, and Donald Pile of Rolled-Ribbon Battery Company. Each article highlighted here is available free online.

By: Petr Vanýsek

The discovery of an electric arc can be tied to the use of an electrochemical energy source. Sir Humphry Davy described in 1800 an electric discharge using electrochemical cells¹ that produced what we would call a spark, rather than an arc. However, in 1808, using an electrochemical battery containing 2000 plates of copper and zinc, he demonstrated an electric arc 8cm long. Davy is also credited with naming the phenomenon an arc (Fig. 1). An electric arc was also discovered independently in 1802 by Russian physicist Vasily Petrov, who also proposed various possible applications including arc welding. There was a long gap between the discovery of the electric arc and putting it to use.

Electrochemical cells were not a practical source to supply a sustained high current for an electric arc. A useful application of this low voltage and high current arc discharge became possible only once mechanical generators were constructed. Charles Francis Brush developed a dynamo, an electric generator, in 1878, that was able to supply electricity for his design of arc lights. Those were deployed first in Philadelphia and by 1881 a number of cities had electric arc public lights. Once that happened, the application and new discoveries for the use of the electric arc followed. Electric arc for illumination was certainly in the forefront. First, electric light extended greatly the human activities into the night and second, public street electric lights, attracting masses of spectators, were the source of admiration, inspiration, and no doubt, more invention.

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By: Roque Calvo, ECS Executive Director

In April 1902, upon the conclusion of the Society’s first meeting in Philadelphia, the Society’s first president wrote the column below, which was printed in the Society’s first publication, explaining the rationale to form the American Electrochemical Society.

Evidence accumulates on every hand that the analogue of the specialist in science is the society which specializes. Whether for good or ill, whether some of its influences are narrowing in some directions or not, the society which specializes is the necessary corollary of the scientific specialist; the latter came perforce into existence, has made the whole world his debtor, and is recognized as the present factor for progress; the former is coming perforce into existence, will soon make the world its immeasurable debtor, and will be a wonderfully potent factor in future scientific progress.

Such is the force, the necessary condition, which has brought into existence The American Electrochemical Society. … Its functions should be those of bringing electrochemists into personal contact with each other; of disseminating among them all the information known to, and which can be spared by, their co-workers; to stimulate original thought in these lines by
mutual interchange of experience, and by papers and discussions; to stimulate electrochemical work all over the world. …

Such a society … being, therefore, a necessity, a pressing need, its formation was inevitable. It came. … The results have justified the insight of the projectors of the society, the first meeting has been an enthusiastic success, the organization now exists, its future is one of assured usefulness. With confidence we stand out to sea.

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By: Gary W. Hunter, Raed A. Dweik, Darby B. Makel, Claude C. Grisby, Ryan S. Mayes, and Cristian E. Davis

The advent of the Internet of Things suggests the potential for broad dissemination of information through a world of networked systems. An aspect of this paradigm is reflected in the concept of Smart Sensors Systems previously described in Interface: Complete self-contained sensor systems that include multi-parameter sensing, data logging, processing and analysis, self-contained power, and an ability to transmit or display information.

One application of Smart Sensor Systems is in the healthcare field. The concept of smart technologies that can monitor a patient’s health, assist in remote assessment by a health care provider, and improve the patient’s quality of life with limited intrusion and decreased costs is another aspect of a more interconnected world composed of distributed intelligent systems. One area where smart sensor systems may have a significant health care impact is in the area of breath analysis.

Breath analysis techniques offer a potential revolution in health care diagnostics, especially if these techniques can be brought into standard use. Of particular interest is the development of portable breath monitoring systems that can be used outside of a clinical setting, such as at home or during an activity. This article provides a brief overview of the motivation for breath monitoring, possible components of portable breath monitoring systems, and provides an example of this approach.

Read the full article in the winter 2016 edition of Interface.

Calling all ECS members! Has your section or student chapter achieved something momentous in recent months, or will it do so before mid-October? Tell us about it and you just might see your submission published. ECS wants to highlight YOUR news in the Winter 2016 edition of Interface!

ECS takes pride in its members and is consistently honored to call attention to their accomplishments and share their stories. Please do not hesitate to inform us of noteworthy events or developments in your section or student chapter. We want to recognize your successes!

Please note: While Interface actively encourages submissions of news from sections and thus places few restrictions upon them, certain guidelines must be adhered to in preparing submissions.

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In December of 1992, the premier issue of Interface was published with a cover celebrating Rudolph Marcus’s winning of the Nobel Prize that year. But did you know that prior to that first issue of Interface, ECS published its members magazine prototype named the Quarterly? It was published in January 1992 and its cover showed a porous silicon sample luminescing in the visible when irradiated by an argon ion laser.

In that prototype issue, then ECS president Larry Faulkner said in his Letter from the President, “The periodic self-analysis of the Society’s agenda and structure is an extremely important part of our life. Without it, we will fail to adapt effectively to a changing environment, so the work is essential in the strictest sense.” Still good advice today.

Now, over 90 issues later, we’re celebrating the 25th anniversary of Interface. Throughout the issues this year, readers will be treated to special excerpts looking back at some of the top moments in the magazine’s history.

We’re inviting readers to share their thoughts about Interface, in particular how the magazine may have impacted your research or career. Send your thoughts to Interface@electrochem.org.