Research Areas

electrolyte engineering | interfacial electrochemistry | laboratory automation

The way we generate and consume energy is changing on a global scale. Efforts to reduce carbon emissions and mitigate the worst effects of climate change are driving increased installation of renewable electricity generation and the electrification of our transportation. This transition necessitates new electrochemical energy storage devices with higher energy density, lower cost, and enhanced safety. In the Lopez Research Group, we work to identify and understand molecular phenomena that can be utilized to design and develop materials to meet these demands and enable the global transition to clean energy.

Unlocking the Solid Electrolyte Interphase (SEI)

Achieving the full potential of battery electrode active materials requires careful engineering of the solid electrolyte interphase (SEI) that forms from electrolyte decomposition at the electrode surface. Using advanced electrochemical and spectroscopic characterization techniques, we work to answer questions regarding the solvation structure of ions in electrolytes as well as the kinetics and mechanisms of electrochemical reactions at electrode interfaces to better design electrolytes and additives for next generation battery chemistries.

Sustainable Battery Manufacturing

The demand for lithium ion (Li-ion) batteries is expected to increase 8-10x by 2030, creating a corresponding increase in manufacturing capacity for these devices. With 100s of GWhs of production coming online in the next decade, there is significant opportunity to develop and implement improvements to the Li-ion battery manufacturing process to reduce cost, energy usage, and material waste. Through fundamental studies of electrode processing – structure – performance relationships we are building understanding to enable solvent-free electrode processing.

Accelerated Materials Development

Recently there has been a dramatic increase in the availability of data science tools capable of ingesting enormous amounts of information, but uses of these approaches in materials research is hindered by limited availability of appropriately sized, high-quality experimental data sets. We are working to design and develop new high-throughput reaction and characterization tools to enable accelerated research of electrochemical materials.

Research Sponsors

Mailing Address

Lopez Research Group
Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering
Northwestern University
2145 Sheridan Road, Tech E168
Evanston, IL 60208-3109