The Missouri S&T team, comprising of Tazdik Patwary Plateau (Ph.D. student), Kiernan O’Boyle (Ph.D. student), Mackenzie Hilburn (Junior) and Dr. Jonghyun Park (Associate Professor in MAE), competed in Missouri Center for Advanced Power Summit (MOCAP), where graduate and undergraduate students from Missouri S&T, University of Missouri Columbia, Missouri State University, and Missouri Southern State University all showcase their innovative research in energy. The students were judged by industry representatives from Aesir, Associated Electric, Evergy, Missouri Energy Initiative, Enersys, Patrick Kinlen LLC, Spear Power Systems, and Eagle Picher Technologies. Tazdik Patwary Plateau secured FIRST PLACE and Kiernan O’Boyle secured SECOND PLACE for the graduate poster presentations and Mackenzie Hilburn secured THIRD PLACE for the undergraduate poster presentation.
In response to the evolving demands for safety, rapid charging, and heightened energy density in lithium-ion battery-powered vehicles, Tazdik‘s research illuminates a swift path to manufacturing electrodes for batteries with superior energy and power densities. This groundbreaking process enables the creation of hyper-thick electrodes, resulting in enhanced particle distribution at both macro and micro levels within the electrodes. This facilitates enhanced ionic diffusion, addressing key challenges in the quest for high energy density batteries for electric vehicles.
For electrical vehicles to compete with gas-powered vehicles in the industry, the charging time must be reduced. However, dangerous degradation mechanisms occur, including irreversible lithium plating and solid electrolyte interface layer growth, within a battery when subjected to extremely fast charging times. Kiernan O’Boyle and team proposed an innovative fast-charging algorithm to mitigate the effects of degradation mechanisms, called CQtCV. This CQtCV algorithm reduces the charging time of lithium-ion batteries to less than 8 minutes while effectively reducing capacity fade.
Another pressing issue plaguing electric vehicles is safety. Mackenzie Hilburn, supported by Gracie Boyer (PhD student), worked to reduce the risk associated with lithium-ion batteries, specifically targeting the volatile liquid electrolyte. Solid polymer electrolytes have been proven as a safe alternative; however, they are plagued with poor ionic conductivity under standard operating conditions. The team is working on an improved electrochemical exfoliation process for the efficient production of boron nitride nanosheets, an inorganic additive for solid polymer electrolytes that can suppress the movement of anions, thus supporting a higher lithium-ion conductivity.
The team’s groundbreaking projects have the potential to revolutionize the field of energy storage and significantly improve the energy density, charging time, and safety of electric vehicles.