2026 Spring Meeting

Chunsheng Wang

Low-Temperature Electrolytes for Micro-Si Li-ion Batteries
We develop solvent-bridged ether electrolytes that simultaneously promote LiF-rich SEI formation and exhibit high ionic conductivity, thereby significantly extending the cycle life of micro-sized Si (μSi) anodes, even with Li plating and a low temperature below -30^oC. The solvent-bridged electrolyte also supports 6.0 C fast charging at 4.3 V for μSi||NCM811 full cells and maintains stable cycling in pouch cells even at −30 °C. In parallel, we also developed high-voltage sulfonamide-based electrolytes that enable μSi||NCM811 full cells to be charged to 4.5 V. Our rationally designed electrolyte addresses the challenges of low-temperature and fast charging in μSi || NCM811 batteries.

• Paul Albertus, University of Maryland is an Associate Professor in the Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering Department and the Associate Director of the Maryland Energy Innovation Institute, both at the University of Maryland.  He previously served as a Program Director at ARPA-E, leading the initiation and management of a range of electrochemical projects.  His research group is focused on electrochemical energy technologies, including solid state Li metal batteries, with a focus on electrochemical-mechanical coupling and safety.  

• Rob Anstey, Graphenix Development Inc (GDI) is the Founder and CEO of Graphenix Development (GDI) in Rochester, New York. GDI is investigating pure silicon anodes intended to be compatible with any lithium battery architecture. GDI also does roll-to-roll manufacturing, dispersions, and coatings. Anstey's Doctor of Law is from Northeastern University and his undergraduate degree from McGill University.

• Xilin Chen, Saft America is a Senior Scientist at Saft America, Inc, Space and Defense Division. He has more than 15 years of experience developing electrode materials, electrolytes, and platform design for lithium-ion batteries. Chen's current research focuses includes phosphate cathodes and high energy anodes. Saft America’s Space and Defense Division is a full-service lithium-ion cell and battery manufacturing facility with all equipment and trained personnel needed to design, assemble, test and deliver products.
• Gregory Hitz, Ion Storage Systems

• Peter Kofinas, University of Maryland is Professor and Chair of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering at UMD and director of the Functional Macromolecular Laboratory (FML). The FML Lab performs research on nanostructured functional polymers for a variety of technological fields ranging from medicine and pharmaceutics to energy storage and microelectronics. Kofinas works in the synthesis and structure-properties characterization of functional polymer-based architectures, including block copolymer and crosslinked network systems. 

• Dennis McOwen, Ion Storage Systems is the Director of Ceramics R&D at ION Storage Systems.  His team develops technology for bilayer solid electrolyte used in ION solid-state batteries.  He received a PhD from North Carolina State University investigating novel liquid electrolytes for Li-ion batteries. He was a Postdoctoral Researcher, then Research Scientist at the University of Maryland.  He investigated microstructured LLZO solid electrolytes

• Yifei Mo, University of Maryland
• Gary Rubloff, University of Maryland

• Esther Takeuchi, Stony Brook University & Brookhaven National Lab is a SUNY Distinguished Professor and the William and Jane Knapp Chair in Energy and the Environment at Stony Brook University.  She holds a joint appointment at Brookhaven National Laboratory as Chief Scientist and Chair of the Interdisciplinary Science Department.  Previously, she was employed at Greatbatch, Inc., where her work was instrumental in the development of the lithium/silver vanadium oxide battery, the power source of life-saving implantable cardiac defibrillators.  Dr. Takeuchi is a prolific inventor with over 150 patents. 
• Saya Takeuchi, University of Maryland
• Eric Wachsman, University of Maryland is a Distinguished University Professor at the University of Maryland with appointments in the Departments of Materials Science and Engineering (MSE) and Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering (CHBE). He is also the Director of the Maryland Energy Innovation Institute and Past President of The Electrochemical Society. His research is focused on solid ion-conducting materials and electrocatalysts, including solid state batteries, solid oxide fuel cells and electrolysis cells and ion-transport membranes.
• Chunsheng Wang, University of Maryland is a Professor of Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering at the University of Maryland, and the Director of the Center for Research in Extreme Batteries. Wang's current research activities include rechargeable batteries, applied electrochemistry, fuel cells, electroanalytical technologies, nanostructured materials, electrochemical gas separation and compression.

Planning to attend in person?  Please note: There are three airports that service the Baltimore/Washington D.C. region (Dulles, Reagan National and BWI).

• For maps and directions, follow this link.
• For local hotel accommodations, please visit this link.

Parking on campus can be a bit tricky, however, policies are a bit more relaxed during the summer!

• Follow this link to the UMD DOTS website to learn more about parking, and how to avoid pesky citations. 
• You may download a visitor parking map here. Note: The Xfinity visitor parking is the closest to  the Kim Engineering Building.