Abstract:

A lithium-ion battery (LIB) is a complex system, characterized by physical, electrochemical and thermal phenomena occurring over a wide range of length scales. The optimisation of LIB design and operation can be assisted by multi-scale physically-based modelling. In this seminar, we will explore some recent advances in LIB modelling, from particle-resolved 3D simulations of electrodes reconstructed via tomography to continuum-level models of a battery cell, including thermal and degradation phenomena. The talk shows how heterogeneities in the electrode microstructure are significant and how they can be turned in a benefit by a proper engineering at particle level and via particle grading. At a larger scale, the possibility to early detect degradation mechanisms from the voltage response is investigated to promote a rational battery management, along with indications for a design-for-recycling approach. The potential of these implications, from material science to energy engineering, is discussed.

Bio:

Antonio Bertei is Associate Professor of Chemical Engineering at the Department of Civil and Industrial Engineering of the University of Pisa (Italy). He obtained a PhD in Chemical Engineering from the same university in 2014 and then moved to Imperial College London thanks to a Marie Sklodowska-Curie Individual Research Fellowship. In the last 15 years Prof. Bertei has focused his research on the physically-based
modelling of chemical, electrochemical and transport phenomena in electrochemical energy systems, with special focus on fuel cell and battery electrodes, effective properties of porous/composite materials, advanced 3D microstructural characterisation and interplay between microstructure-performance-degradation of electrochemical energy systems. Prof. Bertei’s research has been published in prestigious journals including Nature Communications, Energy & Environmental Science, Joule, and funded by several sources such as grants provided by the European Commission as well as by Italian, UK and Taiwanese governments in addition to European industries. He serves in the Editorial Board of Processes (Energy Systems section) and as co-editor of the special issue ‘Advanced characterization and modelling for
electrochemical energy storage’ for Frontiers in Energy Research.