Seminar: Extending the Lifetime and Boosting the Energy Density of Lithium-Ion Batteries

ABSTRACT

Li-Ion batteries have a profound impact on our daily lives, ranging from how we work (laptops) and communicate (mobile phones) to how we travel (electrical vehicles). It is therefore unsurprising that tremendous academic and industrial research efforts have gone towards the development of better batteries. However, Li-ion batteries still fall short of consumer needs in terms of charging time, capacity and cost. In addition, the lifetime of batteries is still insufficient to provide a truly sustainable alternative to fossil fuel-based vehicles.

In this talk, I will focus on different strategies to improve the performance of batteries. First, I will discuss aspects how optimising the structure of battery electrodes can lead to better battery performance. In particular, I will discuss how this can be achieved using processes that are compatible with industrial electrode manufacturing processes.

The second part of the talk will focus on better understanding degradation processes taking place in Li-ion batteries as well as new strategies we are developing to slow down degradation. This is important to extend the lifetime of batteries and thereby making them more sustainable. The latter will be discussed particularly with a focus on Ni-rich cathode degradation.

BIOGRAPHY

Michael De Volder is Professor of Advanced Materials Engineering at the Department of Engineering at the University of Cambridge. He carried out his PhD research on microsystems technology at the University of Leuven in Belgium. He spent time as a postdoc researcher at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, the University of Michigan, and Harvard University working on different aspects of nanotechnology. Michael also worked for several years at imec - an industry funded microelectronics research institute - before joining the Department of Engineering at the University of Cambridge. He is a recipient of an ERC Starting Grant as well as an ERC Consolidator Grant and he is holder of several industrial and academic awards. He is a Laureate of the Belgian Royal Academy and co-founder of Echion Technologies and Myriofoam (UK).