Research Highlights
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Following the Transient Reactions in Lithium-Sulfur Batteries Using an In Situ Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) Technique
First in situ NMR characterization of the full cell electrochemical reactions in Li-S batteries using a microbattery design Read More
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Natural Abundance 17O Nuclear Magnetic Resonance and Computational Modeling Studies of Lithium Based Liquid Electrolytes
A high sensitivity NMR probe was developed at ultra-high field, allowing 17O NMR spectra on electrolytes acquired at concentration as low as about 20 mM. Read More
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A Lewis Acid-free and Phenolate-based Magnesium Electrolyte for Rechargeable Magnesium Batteries
A novel Lewis acid-free all magnesium electrolyte containing 2,6-di-tert-butylphenoxidemagnesium chloride ((DTBP)MgCl + MgCl2) has been deliberately developed. The obtained electrolyte possesses the oxidative stability of up to 2.3 V (vs Mg/Mg2+) with 100% coulombic efficiency, which is comparable to its AlCl3 counterpart. Read More
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Direct Observation of SEI and Dendrite Dynamics by Operando Electrochemical Scanning Transmission Electron Microscopy
Implemented “battery in a STEM” - an operando electrochemical stage inside an Cs-corrected scanning transmission electron microscope (STEM) Read More
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Molecular‐Confinement of Polysulfide within HybridElectrodes for High Mass Loading in Lithium Sulfur Batteries
N-doped carbon stabilizes the S3 radicals, which are rarely detected in ether-based electrolyte due to their high reactivity; this also restrains the polysulfide loss during battery cycling. Read More
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Electrolyte Genome Reveals New Instability Mechanism in Mg Electrolytes
imulations of a matrix of Mg salt and solvent combinations revealed a strong tendency to ion pair formation. Close association of the salt anion and cation within the first solvation shell, even at modest concentrations. Read More
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First-Principles Study of Redox End-Members in Li-Sulfur Batteries
Van der Waals-augmented density functional theory (vdW-DF), quasi-particle methods (G0W0), and continuum solvation techniques were used to predict several structural, thermodynamic, spectroscopic, electronic, and surface characteristics of solid-phase redox end-members in Li-S batteries. Read More
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Modified Electrochemical Properties of Organic Quinoxaline via Electrolyte Interactions in Propylene Carbonate
Quinoxalines are highly sensitive to solvent and electrolyte interactions. For example, bare quinoxaline is active in acetonitrile at DFT-predicted potentials but is effectively dead in propylene carbonate. Electrochemical activation is achieved by addition of BF3-ligands. Read More
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The Unexpected Discovery of the Mg(HMDS)2/MgCl2 Complex as a Magnesium Electrolyte for Rechargeable Magnesium Batteries
A simple mixture of magnesium compounds: magnesium hexamethyldisilazide (Mg(HMDS)2) and magnesium chloride (MgCl2) was prepared to achieve reversible Mg deposition/dissolution, a wide electrochemical window, and a coulombic efficiency of 99%. Read More
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A Highly Active Nanostructured Metallic Oxide Cathode for Li-O2 Batteries
Synthesis of a low-cost nanocrystalline metallic metal oxide that shows very good ORR/OER properties in a Li-O2 cell, highlighting the importance of controlling the cathode interface to achieve better round-trip efficiency Read More
Latest Updates
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Fund launched in honor of JCESR collaborator Susan Odom
The University of Kentucky (UK) College of Arts & Sciences has launched a fund to honor the life and legacy of Dr. Susan Odom, a dear friend and JCESR collaborator. Dr. Susan A. Odom (1980-2021) was a talented associate professor of chemistry in … Read More
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Li+ hopping mechanism in LiTFSI water-in-salt electrolyte identified by molecular dynamics simulations
The high Li+ apparent transference number in the LiTFSI water-in-salt electrolyte was captured by MD simulations and the dominant Li+ conduction mechanism in the highly concentrated LiTFSI water-in-salt electrolyte was identified to be hopping between water and TFSI- anions. Read More
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High-Efficiency Zinc-Metal Anode Enabled by Liquefied Gas Electrolytes
A liquefied gas electrolyte was developed for the 1st time for a bivalent chemistry. It displays an excellent Zn conductivity (>3.4 mS cm-1) across a broad temperature range (-60 to +20 °C), enables highly reversible Zn cycling with no evidence of shorting behavior at both … Read More
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Limited Accessibility to Surface Area Generated by Thermal Pretreatment of Electrodes Reduces Its Impact on Redox Flow Battery Performance
A systematic study on thermally pretreated electrodes for redox flow batteries (RFBs) leveraging gas adsorption techniques, physicochemical spectroscopy, in situ flow cells, and a convection-reaction model suggests diminishing returns in RFB performance at longer pretreatment times due to hindered active species transport to recessed regions … Read More
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First-principles calculations predict Ca cathodes based on layered calcium transition metal oxide materials
First-principles calculations are used to demonstrate that P-type layered CaTM2O4 materials with a range of TM substitutions (TM = Ti, V, Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, and Ni) have excellent battery-related properties including thermodynamic stability, average voltage, energy density, synthesizability, ionic mobility, and electronic structure. Read More
