Our first highlighted intern is Brett Cesar.  Brett is a Chemical Engineering student at MSU…

Stability Analysis of Non-Aqueous Redox Flow Battery Active Materials 

Brett Cesar 

Dr. Thomas Guarr 

Organic Chemistry Storage Laboratory at Michigan State Bioeconomy Institute 

Redox flow batteries offer the benefit of being safer and more scalable than traditional lithium-ion batteries. However, most redox flow batteries make use of aqueous solvents that limit the cell voltage and employ relatively rare metals that increase the cost and environmental impact of the cell. Non-aqueous redox flow batteries have been explored to reduce these costs while increasing cell voltage and energy density. One method of achieving these goals includes the use of linked active materials in symmetric, non-aqueous redox flow batteries. The stability of several linked compounds prepared in our lab was analyzed through spectroelectrochemistry and bulk electrolysis. 

This research was supported by the Community Foundation of Holland/Zeeland, Lakeshore Advantage, and Michigan State University. 

Thanks for spending the summer with us.  Good luck with the next triathlon.  Wish we could keep up!