Nick and Amber collaborated on a poster, which they presented in Chicago at the International Meeting on Lithium Batteries.  They are both researchers here at the Organic Energy Storage Laboratory.

Exploiting Steric Factors in the Design of Overcharge Additives; Nicholas Mortimer, Amber J Prins, Robert Polik and Thomas F. Guarr

Lithium ion batteries are very commonly used today, but unsafe conditions can occur if expensive electronics are not used to prevent overcharging.  These electronics can double the price of the battery pack, so it is important to find a more economical way to control charging.  Redox shuttles are potential additives to batteries to shunt the excess current and allow the battery to be safely used to its full capacity.  Numerous organic compounds have been investigated as shuttle candidates, but finding materials that possess both a sufficiently high oxidation potential and adequate durability has proven challenging.  Our current approach exploits the change in molecular geometry that often accompanies the oxidation of heterocyclic compounds.  By introducing bulky groups to sterically impede this reorganization, computational modeling suggests that oxidation potentials can be shifted to more positive values without sacrificing stability.

Thank you Amber and Nick, your work is appreciated.