Title:

Mechanics of Materials for Rechargeable Batteries

Speaker:

Prof. Matt Pharr

Affiliation:

Texas A&M University

When:

Thursday, October 17, 2024 at 11:00:00 AM   Add to Calendar

Where:

GTMI Building, Room Auditorium

Host:

Yuhang Hu
yhu462@gatech.edu

Abstract

Despite their prevalence, rechargeable batteries currently utilize materials with relatively low energy densities that add substantial weight and volume to vehicles and portable electronics. Recently, several high-capacity electrode materials have been identified, but these materials often suffer from severe issues of cyclability and safety that have precluded their practical use. While the electrochemistry of these systems has received extensive examination, at the heart of many issues lies a mechanics of materials problem: as atoms rearrange under electrochemical driving forces, materials deform, thereby generating stresses under constraint. These stresses can result in fracture, detachment, and/or unstable deformation of the electrodes, diminishing their capacity. With these ideas in mind, I will discuss our recent experimental and modeling studies that provide basic understanding of mechanical behavior in several high-capacity battery electrodes, including lithium, sodium, potassium, calcium, magnesium, and silicon anodes, as well as vanadium oxide and sulfur cathodes.

Biography

Matt Pharr is an Associate Professor and J. Mike Walker '66 Faculty Fellow in Mechanical Engineering at Texas A&M University with a courtesy appointment in Materials Science & Engineering. He received his Ph.D. from Harvard University and performed postdoctoral research at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. His research focuses on mechanics of materials in areas including energy storage and conversion, soft materials, irradiated materials, stretchable electronics, and materials for neuromorphic computing. He has received an NSF CAREER Award, a Kaneka Junior Faculty Award, a Texas A&M Young Faculty Fellow Award, a TMS Young Leaders Award, the Peggy L. & Charles Brittan '65 Outstanding Undergraduate Teaching Award, a Montague-Center for Teaching Excellence Scholar Award, and an Association of Former Students Distinguished Achievement in Teaching Award.