Spring 2023 Student News includes news from the ECS Indian Institute of Technology Madras, Jawaharlal Nehru University New Delhi, and Purdue ECS Student Chapters.

Advances in treatment and diagnosis of human health demand advances in energy storage providing small, adaptable, predictable, and reliable systems. This article summarizes key milestones in the adoption of batteries used for implantable medical applications, provides details about several of the dominant battery chemistries currently powering medical devices, and provides comment on the future impact of advances in the battery field on medical devices.

In this installment of the “Looking at Patent Law” series, we present a case study of the prosecution events of U.S. Patent No. 5,865,971 directed toward “Sealing Ring with Electrochemical Sensing Electrode." This invention aligns with several divisions of the Electrochemical Society (ECS), including Corrosion (CORR), Industrial Electrochemistry and Electrochemical Engineering (IE&EE), and Sensor (SENS). Notably, the development team for the o-ring crevice corrosion sensor included many members of the ECS. The case study begins with a brief synopsis of the background of the invention followed by 1) summary of key drawings and the specification of the invention, 2) inventor assignment and power of attorney designations, 3) submission of the Invention Disclosure Statement (IDS) and associated Duty of Candor, 4) summary of the non-final office action (NF-OA) and rejection, and 5) applicant response and allowance of the patent application. The case study illustrates the use of a professional search of the prior art and the applicant providing a summary of the prior art in a “Statement of Relevancy.” The “Statement of Relevancy” allowed the applicants to provide a convincing summary of the prior art to the USPTO and to craft well-defined claims avoiding rejections based on lack of novelty and obviousness. With this case study, we hope to de-mystify the patent prosecution process and better prepare electrochemical and solid-state scientists, engineers and technologists to interact with their patent counsel regarding their inventions.

The Winter Awards Program recognizes Society, Division, Section, and Student award winners.

Electric vehicles (EVs) were first commercialized over 100 years ago, using lead-acid batteries. Due to low battery energy density limiting the vehicle range, EVs were surpassed by gasoline powered cars that have dominated the auto industry until now. It took electrochemists 100 years to achieve the order of magnitude increase in specific energy needed for electric vehicles to become competitive. The Nobel prize technology of the lithium-ion battery has provided the necessary high energy density together with other excellent performance attributes including high power and long life in an affordable package for the modern EV. This breakthrough has enabled a return to commercialization of electric vehicles this time with excellent performance. Millions of electric vehicles are now being produced and sold globally with huge investments being made in EVs and Li-Ion batteries by the automotive and battery industries.

This issue’s People News includes an award-winning photo by David J. Lockwood, a thank you to Kailash Mishra, and In Memoriams for Michael J. Graham and Royce W. Murray

Li-ion and Li metal batteries are widely used for portable devices due to their high gravimetric and volumetric energy densities and cyclability. However, overcharging and extreme discharging of the battery can lead to overheating and thermal runaway, while improper use can lead to fires and explosions. The volatility and flammability of the organic solvents (ethylene carbonate/dimethyl carbonate) used as electrolytes are the major sources of these thermal stability issues. Therefore, an alternative to flammable electrolytes, room temperature ionic liquids (RTILs) electrolyte chemistry is investigated due to its high thermal and electrochemical stability. Here, the fundamental understanding of developing high temperature Liion battery materials is evaluated using electrochemistry and depth-dependent the X-ray spectroscopy techniques.

Biographical sketches and candidacy statements of the nominated candidates for the annual election of ECS officers.

Highlights of the 242nd ECS Meeting

We recognize the 2022 ECS Outstanding Student Chapter & Chapter of Excellence and new chapters welcomed in June 2022 and hear news from the Detroit, Lambton College, TU Ilmenau, TUM, Oklahoma State, Texas Tech, and Waterloo Student Chapters.

Call for Papers for the 243rd ECS Meeting with SOFC-XVIII, Boston, May 28 to June 2, 2023.

The goal of this column is to acknowledge novel contributions that advance particular fields while engaging a new audience through detailed and easy to understand descriptions of advances in electrochemistry. Each installment will include a topic area such as electrochemistry in archaeology, steel manufacturing, water treatment, etc. and will describe a novel or unconventional application of electrochemistry. We believe that, in doing so, not only will “Electrochemistry in Action” inform readers but perhaps it will even inspire creativity and broaden interest in the field.

The Spring 2023 Section News features an update from the Japan Section and Section Leadership.

One of the most inspiring and rewarding aspects of my role with ECS is the opportunity to support the greatest minds in the electrochemical and solid state sciences as they strive to meet the grand global challenges facing the world today, such as combating climate change, finding renewable energy sources, and providing secure, high-speed connectivity to all. As someone who is neither a scientist nor a researcher, I am very grateful for this immense honor, which fills me with a sense of purpose and pride in my work. viding secure, high-speed connectivity to all. As someone who is neither a scientist nor a researcher, I am very grateful for this immense honor, which fills me with a sense of purpose and pride in my work.

One key strategy toward decarbonizing chemical synthesis is to reduce reliance on fossil fuels as an energy source. The increased availability of renewable electricity from sources such as solar and wind offers opportunities to both reduce reliance on fossil fuels and electrify chemical manufacturing. While there are many possible uses for renewable electricity, such as joule heating of reactors, one approach is to use these electrons to make and break chemical bonds directly via electrochemistry.

A sneak peek at the 243rd ECS Meeting with SOFC-XVII

Why read the ECS News

Extreme fast charging (XFC) of lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) in 10 minutes is one of the main goals of the US Advanced Battery Consortium for low-cost, fast-charged electric vehicles by 2023. However, existing LIBs cannot achieve these XFC goals without significant capacity fade over cycling due to complex XFC degradation modes. One of the key XFC failure mechanisms is dead Li plating on the graphite anode. While numerous methods have detected Li plating, they lack three-dimensional non-invasive visualization of dead Li on graphite anodes in full cells during battery cycling. Herein, we demonstrate the viability of high-resolution (spatial resolution: 10–15 μm) neutron micro-computed tomography (μCT) for in-situ characterization of dead Li on graphite anodes (thickness: ~130 μm) in full cells containing NMC cathode, that were cycled at 1C and 6C.

Winter 2022 Society News includes publications updates, a report on the Gordon Research Conference Seminar on Electrochemistry, new institutional member ACE, and a report from the 5th Organic Battery Days.

Brain neuromodulation has revolutionized the medical treatment of neurological diseases and injuries; however, existing therapies are limited in their clinical scope of application. Most existing therapies are delivered through implanted macroelectrodes that reside either on top of or directly inside the brain. Estimates of the effective electric field spread from these devices generally span from thousands to millions of individual neurons. Unfortunately, some neurological diseases and injuries require stimulation fields of higher precision. Next-generation microneuromodulation devices (˜102 – 103 μm2 surface area) have been developed with hundreds of closely spaced channels. These devices may be able to provide electrical microstimulation in the form of biphasic, charge-balanced small amplitude square waves that provide salient, behaviorally relevant information to human subjects. However, there is a lack of knowledge incorporated into their safety and clinical use. Neuromodulation is a field of science, medicine, and bioengineering that encompasses implantable and non-implantable technologies, electrical or chemical, that act upon neural interfaces to improve life for humanity. Our research groups collaboratively investigate neuromodulation performed via electrical microstimulation. Our primary development target is brain neuromodulation. In this article we highlight the application of electrochemistry to the field of neuromodulation.