Research into alternative sources of energy, such as solar and wind, are constantly growing and evolving. The science behind photovoltaics is improving constantly and wind turbines are producing more electrical energy than ever before. However, the question still stands of how we store and deliver this electrical energy to the grid. A few ECS members from Harvard University believe their new flow battery could answer that question.

Building off earlier research, the new and improve flow battery could offer a great solution for the reliability issue of energy sources such as wind and solar based on weather patterns. The batteries could store large amounts of electrical energy that can delivered to commercial and residential establishments even when the wind isn’t blowing or the sun isn’t shining.

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On the path to building better batteries, researchers have been choosing silicon as their material of choice to increase life-cycle and energy density. Silicon is favored among researchers because its anodes have the ability to store up to ten times the amount of lithium ions than conventional graphite electrodes. However, silicon is a rather rigid material, which makes it difficult for the battery to withstand volume changes during charge and discharge cycles.

This from Georgia Tech:

Using a combination of experimental and simulation techniques, researchers from the Georgia Institute of Technology and three other research organizations have reported surprisingly high damage tolerance in electrochemically-lithiated silicon materials. The work suggests that all-silicon anodes may be commercially viable if battery charge levels are kept high enough to maintain the material in its ductile state.

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Eric Schindelholz of Sandia National Laboratory will be awarded the ECS Corrosion Division Morris Cohen Graduate Student Award at the upcoming 228th ECS Meeting for his contributions to methods for the study of atmospheric corrosion and his insights into the fundamentals and the factors controlling surface wetness and the carrion of steel.

In light of receiving the award, Schindelholz was able to sit down with local news station KOAT to talk about his work on such projects as the preservation of the Statue of Liberty and historic Pearl Harbor ships.

Learn more about his research at the 228th ECS Meeting and take a look at his scheduled talk, “Impact of Salt Deliquescence on the Humidity-Dependence of Atmospheric Corrosion.”

Deadline for Submitting Abstracts
December 11, 2015
Submit today!

Topic Close-up #3

SYMPOSIUM A02: Future and Present Advanced Lithium Batteries and Beyond – a Symposium in Honor of Prof. Bruno Scrosati.

FOCUSED ON the most innovative concepts, materials and designs for the advancement of the science and technology of secondary batteries.

SPECIAL INVITED TALKS will be delivered by highly respected scientists in this field.

SELECTED papers on the synthesis of the materials, battery assembly and testing, modeling and simulation will be invited to talk from the submitted abstracts. Learn about all the topics!

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Topic Close-up #4

SYMPOSIUM B02: Carbon Nanostructures in Medicine and Biology

FOCUSED ON the biomedical applications and biological interactions of carbon nanomaterials, including studies in toxicology, imaging, research tools, sensors, therapeutics, bioenergy, and theranostics.

FEATURING Lon Wilson of Rice University on Carbon Nanomaterials for MRI Contrast, Mohammed Islam of Carnegie Mellon University on Sub-cellular Partitioning and Analysis of Ultra-Short Single-walled Carbon Nanotubes, and Ardemis Boghossian of EPFL on Plant Nanobionics Approach to Augment Photosynthesis and Biochemical Sensing.

SELECTED papers on the most promising bio-application of carbon nanostructures will be invited to talk from the submitted abstracts. Learn about all the topics!

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Cyanobacteria has been recognized by researchers as a promising platform for biofuel production since 2013. The bacteria—more commonly referred to as blue-green algae—has the ability to grow fast and fix carbon dioxide gas. Unlike many other forms of bacteria, they do not require fermentable sugars or arable land to grow.

While that all spells out promising potential for the transformation into biofuel, the productions methods have not been adequate to take this development to commercialization.

A ‘Green’ Revolution

Now, researchers from Michigan State University have found a way to streamline the molecular machinery that transforms cyanobacteria into biofuels. To do this, researchers fabricated a synthetic protein that can improve the bacteria’s ability to fix carbon dioxide gas as well as potentially improve plant photosynthesis.

“The multifunctional protein we’ve built can be compared to a Swiss Army knife,” says Raul Gonzalez-Esquer, a doctoral researcher at Michigan State University and one of the authors of the study. “From known, existing parts, we’ve built a new protein that does several essential functions.”

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A team of chemists from the University of Montreal have developed a DNA-based electrochemical diagnostic test that is inexpensive and can provide results in just a few minutes. This development has the potential to lead to point-of-care medical devices that can provide results for diagnoses ranging from cancer to autoimmune diseases in just minutes.

Not only is this development exciting for the advancement of the scientific community, it also has the potential to impact global health due to the low cost and ease of use of the test. The new development could help cut lag time and expenses between diagnosis and treatment for both communicable and non-communicable diseases on a global level.

Molecular Diagnostics at Home

“Despite the power of current diagnostic tests, a significant limitation is that they still require complex laboratory procedures. Patients typically must wait for days or even weeks to receive the results of their blood tests,” Alex Vallée-Bélisle said, head of the research team.

At the core of the DNA-based device is one of the simplest forces in chemistry: steric effects. Essentially, the new development focuses on the phenomenon of atoms getting too close to one another and using force to push off each other. This reaction allows researchers to detect a wide array of protein markers.

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Chris Johnson, group leader at Argonne National Laboratory and ECS Battery Division vice-chair, we would like to let you know about The 2^nd International Conference on Sodium Batteries, which will take place at the Sheraton Wild Horse Pass Resort and Hotel in Chandler, AZ the week before (Oct. 7 – 9) the ECS meeting this October.

This from Dr. Johnson:

The location and timing for this specialized sodium-only conference was set up to dovetail with the ECS meeting and promote one travel event (particularly for overseas travelers). The conference was established to function as a technical and collaborative forum to bring together technical, policy, and government experts in battery science and engineering, particularly those who specialize in sodium batteries as a next-generation energy storage technology for “Beyond Li-ion” battery chemistries.

The conference’s goal is to communicate a current understanding and benchmark state-of-art science in the field. Research and progress in sodium batteries technology will be discussed by this international community. We expect 100 attendees, who both specialize in pushing this technology forward, but also who want to learn more about emergent technology. Approximately 20 internationally recognized invited speakers will give 30-minute presentations. A poster session will also be held.

The cost to attend is $300 and includes two receptions, and two sit-down/served luncheons. To learn more or register for the conference, please visit the conference homepage.

And don’t forget to check out the ECS Battery Division’s sodium-battery-specific talks scheduled for Sunday afternoon in Phoenix!

Even after the release of the highly anticipated iPhone 6s, Apple remains in the spotlight with the announcement of the company’s potential electric car.

Apple’s entrance into the electric car race puts them up against competitors such as Tesla and Google. The company aims to follow a Tesla path rather than Google—delivering cars directly to the consumers rather than selling the technology to established automobile manufactures. It is expected that the first iCar (presumed name) will hit the market by 2019.

Electric Car Race

These companies are not the only ones interested in green energy alternatives for automobiles. Car manufactures such as Toyota are also directing their attention to this topic. Aside from the release of the Toyota Prius PHV, the company has also allowed for royalty-free use of their fuel cell patents and has recently partnered with ECS to fund new projects in green energy technology.

Technology companies and automobile makers alike are transitioning away from gas-guzzling vehicles to environmentally friendly automobiles, utilizing hydrogen and electric power more frequently. This is in part due to consumer concern regarding climate change and danger of increased greenhouse gas emissions.

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Photos and text by E. Jennings Taylor.

In a response to a recent call for photos, ECS Treasurer E. Jennings Taylor sent us some great shots of the innovative research coming out of Faraday Technology Inc. Here’s the first one:

Regarding this photo, it is a superconducting radio frequency (SRF) cavity made of niobium.

These SRF cavities are used in particle accelerators, such as the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) built by the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN), as well as accelerators for medical isotope production and ion therapy treatment.

So, why is this relevant to electrochemistry? The internal surface of these SRF cavities must be electropolished in order for them to achieve their particle accelerating characteristics. Faraday Technology Inc. electrochemists are developing a simpler, more cost effective electropolishing process based on pulse reverse electropolishing .

Take a look at the research in the Journal of The Electrochemical Society.

PS: Do you have interesting science photos you’d like us to share on the ECS Redcast Blog? Send your pictures and a short write-up to rob.gerth@electrochem.org. We’re always looking for great guest posts!

Since the 1970s, biomedical engineers have been looking for a way to develop a “smart pill” that can monitor and treat ailments electronically. Since then, breakthroughs such as the camera pill have come about—allowing those in the medical field to perform more complex surgeries and study how drugs are broken down.

While we have biologically understood the concept of edible electronics for some time now, researchers have not been able to nail down the appropriate materials that should be used in such an application as to not cause internal damage.

“Smart Pill” to Sense Problems

Researchers from Carnegie Mellon University are putting fourth their proposal to this question in the journal Trends in Biotechnology, which could yield edible electronic technology that is safe for consumption.

“The primary risk is the intrinsic toxicity of these materials, for example, if the battery gets mechanically lodged in the gastrointestinal tract—but that’s a known risk. In fact, there is very little unknown risk in these kinds of devices,” says Christopher Bettinger, a professor in materials science and engineering and author of the study. “The breakfast you ate this morning is only in your GI tract for about 20 hours—all you need is a battery that can do its job for 20 hours and then, if anything happens, it can just degrade away.”

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