New paper published in Polymer Chemistry on cellulose-based membranes. The collaborative work demonstrates how tailored linear and star-shaped block copolymers can be assembled around cellulose fibers to create hierarchical porous structures, which can then be chemically modified to adjust surface polarity, wettability, and water permeance. This approach opens a versatile route toward functional, cellulose-based porous […]
In our work, we have developed a new multi-phase transition metal oxalate anode material for lithium-ion batteries by combining five transition metals in a simple co-precipitation process, creating a structure that improves both charge transport and structural stability during cycling. The best-performing composition, TMOx-2, showed strong long-term performance, retaining 827 mAh/g after 400 cycles at […]
Nikolaos Papadopolous gives an oral presentation at the 22nd Symposium on Modeling and Experimental Validationof Electrochemical Energy Technologies (ModVal 2026) in Lausanne, Switzerland. The presentation has the title “Electrochemical Modeling of Silicon in Lithium-Ion Batteries Using a Multi-Species, Multi-Reaction Framework with Atomistic Insights”.
New collaborative paper spearheaded by Gündog Yücesan published in Advanced Functional Materials (and featured on the back cover). In this work, we introduce flexible bimetallic phosphonate crystals as a new class of energy-storage materials that combine mechanical flexibility with remarkable chemical stability and electrochemical activity. The material remains structurally stable across a broad pH range […]
Congratulations to Stefanie to be admitted to the Young Academy (Academy of Sciences and Literature | Mainz)! Since 2016, The Young Academy | Mainz has been the Academy’s dedicated programme for supporting emerging talent. Membership gives selected scientists, writers, and musicians the chance to build an interdisciplinary network and engage across fields. A key principle is […]
Welcome to the team! Ayush Gadpayle will be working on the Ec=m² Research Training Group and will explore MXene and the world of inter-layer functionality.
New paper published in Chemistry of Materials. This constitutes collaborative work between the Universität Salzburg (Michael Elsaesser, Saeid Borhani, Gregor Zickler), the Leibniz Institute for Plasma Science and Technology (INP Greifswald) e.V. (Antje Quade), and us (Stefanie Arnold, Le Thao). Congratulations to Stefanie Arnold for her debut as last-and-corresponding author! The work has now been […]
New paper published in Energy Advances. Our collaborative work with the group of Michael Naguib reports the synthesis of a delaminated 2D molybdenum boride MBene aerogel, Mo4/3B2Tx, and shows that it works very well as an anode material for lithium-ion storage because it combines accessible active sites, fast charge storage, and strong structural stability. The […]
New paper published in Desalination on position-resolved ion concentration from operando X-ray transmission. This collaborative work introduces position-resolved operando synchrotron X-ray transmission to directly map local ion concentration changes inside a working capacitive deionization (CDI) cell – separating contributions from the flow channel electrolyte and the two nanoporous electrodes. Using a CsCl model electrolyte, we […]
New collaborative research published in Advanced Materials on the niobium nanoparticle decorated carbon particles as high performance sodium sulfur battery electrodes.
New paper published in ACS Energy Letters on interlayer-tailored Alkyl-MXenes for selective electrochemical lithium-ion extraction. The paper reports a two-step electrochemical lithium-ion extraction strategy using interlayer-tailored Ti3C2Tx MXene electrodes. By pre-intercalating long-chain organic molecules (hexadecylamine, HDA, and decyltrimethylammonium, C10), the MXene interlayer environment is tuned to favor Li+ over competing Na+, improving both selectivity and […]
New paper published in ACS Applied Energy Materials. This collaborative work explores the electrochemical pathway behind cathode-electrolyte interphase (CEI) formation in Li-S batteries operated with carbonate-based electrolytes. By using microporous carbon-sulfur cathodes and tracking the first discharge, we propose an electrochemical nucleophilic mechanism in which polysulfides and solvent molecules react inside confined pores, forming a […]
New paper published in ACS Applied Energy Materials on the use of quaternary electrolytes for enhanced capacitive energy storage. This collaborative work explores quaternary electrolytes (two distinct cations and two distinct anions) as a practical strategy to improve electrical double-layer capacitors – combining a solvable theoretical pore-charging framework with experimental validation using [EMIM][BF4] mixed with […]
We are grateful that our collaborative review paper (led by Amir Razmjou) obtained the Best Review Paper in Desalination 2023–2025 Award from the Elsevier Journal Desalination.
Our team competed this year again at the International Olympiad in Electrochemical Material Science, which starts to become a bit of a tradition. This year, Energetic People (Stefanie Arnold, Peter Burger, Anna Seltmann) won the 3rd place! 🏅A special thanks to Fyodor Malchik for organizing this amazing event!
Volker Presser has been listed as a Highly Cited Researcher (2025 edition) by Clariate.
New paper published in Rare Metals on oxygen vacancy–engineered Bi–Mn–Al oxide / reducedgraphene oxide for high–performance supercapacitors. This work introduces oxygen-vacancy-rich Bi2O3/Mn3O4/Mn2AlO4(OV)/rGO multiphase heterostructures that accelerate ion transport and boost conductivity, enabling higher operating voltage and markedly improved supercapacitor energy and power performance (supported by DFT).
We are happy to announce Wensen Wang having received the Humboldt Research Fellowship for Experienced Researchers to carry our research on ion separation! We are excited!
New paper published in ACS Sustainable Chemistry & Engineering. We present a mildly synthesized aluminum layered double hydroxide (Al-LDH) electrode that couples chemical adsorption with electrochemical release to recover lithium at neutral pH, eliminating harsh acids or bases and minimizing secondary pollution. It achieves an average Li+ uptake of 57.6 mg/g with strong Li+ over […]
Delvina Tarimo gives an oral presentation on “Influence of Porous Structure, Sulfur Loading, and Cathode/Solid Electrolyte Interphase Formation Using Carbonate and Ether-Based Electrolyte for Lithium-Sulfur Batteries”