Title: Improving Energy Storage Technologies

Abstract:

As energy systems increasingly rely on solar and wind energy resources, additional technologies will be needed to ensure that energy demand is met reliably. Options that can help variable resources meet demand include energy storage, backup generation, demand-side management, and transmission expansion. 

I will first discuss chemistry research initially directed toward storing solar energy via artificial photosynthesis, specifically carbon dioxide reduction with copper complexes. As our idealistic efforts did not succeed, my colleagues and I pivoted. We discovered and studied a series of discrete cationic dicopper complexes containing bridging organic ligands. The electrochemistry of these complexes enables the synthesis and characterization of persistent, isolable mixed-valence organocopper complexes. Meanwhile, exploration of their reactivity has helped elucidate the mechanism of the copper-catalyzed azide−alkyne cycloaddition reaction. 

I will then discuss systems research that identifies broader strategies to improve energy storage technologies. My colleagues and I identify key drivers of cost, along with features of storage technologies that can enable cost-competitive generation of electricity. We also investigate the improvement of lithium-ion batteries to identify factors that enabled their success, and inform promising strategies for the future. This systems research, which I am expanding at Tech, can inform engineering strategies, as well as public policies and financial investments, that aim to improve a range of sustainable technologies.