A team of researchers from the Joint Center for Energy Storage Research is taking a potential major step toward developing energy dense, safe solid state magnesium-ion batteries. This research marks another step in pursing batteries that utilize solid electrolytes, which could offer significant safety benefits over conventional lithium-ion batteries. The work was developed out of efforts to create a magnesium battery with a liquid electrolyte. While magnesium has promising properties for energy storage, the researchers had trouble finding a viable…
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By: Joshua M. Pearce, Michigan Technological University Within the next month, energy watchers expect the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to act on an order from Energy Secretary Rick Perry that would create new pricing rules for certain power plants that can store fuel on site to support grid resilience. This initiative seeks to protect coal-fired and nuclear power plants that are struggling to compete with cheaper energy sources. Perry’s proposed rule applies to plants that operate in regions with deregulated…
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Matthew Murbach, founding president of the ECS student chapter at the University of Washington (UW) and motivating force behind the launch of the ECS Data Sciences Hack Day, has been named to the Forbes 30 Under 30 list in the area of energy. According to Forbes, Murbach was recognized for his work “to commercialize battery management breakthroughs to enable faster charging, finer control over degradation and longer lifetimes.” Murbach is co-founder of Battery Informatics, Inc. and a PhD student in…
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The ECS Lecture during the 232nd ECS Meeting in National Harbor, MD, was delivered by Steven Chu. Chu is currently the William R. Kenan, Jr., Professor of Physics and Professor of Molecular & Cellular Physiology at Stanford. Previously, he served as U.S. Secretary of Energy under President Obama and was the co-recipient of the 1997 Nobel Prize in Physics for his contribution to laser cooling and atom trapping. Chu’s ECS Lecture, “The Role of Electrochemistry in our Transition to Sustainable…
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Researchers have developed a type of “smart paper” that can conduct electricity and detect water. The paper, laced with conductive nanomaterials, can be employed as a switch, turning on or off an LED light, or as an alarm system indicating the absence or presence of water. In cities and large-scale manufacturing plants, a water leak in a complicated network of pipes can take tremendous time and effort to detect, as technicians must disassemble many pieces to locate the problem. The…
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By: Matt Murbach, University of Washington The full vibrancy of the electrochemical community was on show during the recent 232nd ECS Meeting in National Harbor, MD. Adding to the diversity of ideas and excitement for electrochemistry were the 30 participants of the inaugural ECS Data Sciences Hack Day on Wednesday, October 4. The participants in the hack day traveled from around the globe and represented varying stages of careers in both academic and industry roles. The day-long event was kicked…
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Nearly 2,400 people from 54 countries attended the 232nd ECS Meeting in National Harbor, Maryland, October 1-5, 2017. Participants could choose from 49 symposia, over 1,250 oral talks, 644 student presentations, and nearly 570 posters. Plenary Session ECS President Johnna Leddy presented the opening remarks at the 232nd ECS Meeting. ECS President Johna Leddy welcomed attendees to the meeting during Monday evening’s plenary session. In addition to wrapping up the first full day of technical sessions and honoring award winners,...
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Capitalizing on tiny defects can improve electrodes for lithium-ion batteries, new research suggests. In a study on lithium transport in battery cathodes, researchers found that a common cathode material for lithium-ion batteries, olivine lithium iron phosphate, releases or takes in lithium ions through a much larger surface area than previously thought. “We know this material works very well but there’s still much debate about why,” says Ming Tang, an assistant professor of materials science and nanoengineering at Rice University. “In…
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ECS Short Courses are all-day classes designed to provide students or the seasoned professional with an in-depth education on a wide range of topics. Taught by academic and industry experts, the small class size makes for an excellent opportunity for personalized instruction helping both novices and experts advance their technical expertise and knowledge. Short courses are open to the public with special discounts given to meeting attendees. Sunday, May 13, 2018 | Seattle, WA Short courses will be offered at...
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By: Yanbo Qi, Taejin Jang, Venkatasailanathan Ramadesigan, Daniel T. Schwartz, and Venkat R. Subramanian This article refers to a recently published open access paper in the Journal of the Electrochemical Society, “Is There a Benefit in Employing Graded Electrodes for Lithium-Ion Batteries?” Functionally graded materials have been widely developed in various fields, including the solid oxide fuel cells. However, its application in batteries is less common. Using simulation and optimization, both benefits and negligible improvement have been reported in the…
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