Pumpkin Carving and Fall Celebration
October 2024
The Kazyak Lab celebrated fall along with the Pikul Lab and Mastropasqua (HERD) Lab with a pumpkin carving competition, bonfire (w/s’mores!), hot cider, apples, and more! There were some amazing and creative designs from the teams!
Electrochemical Society PRIME Meeting
October 2024
Diprajit and Jon gave oral presentations on their work at the ECS meeting in Honolulu, HI. Diprajit’s talk described the results of our project with the Forest Products Laboratory on the use of Lignin-derived carbon foams as negative electrodes in Na-ion batteries. Jon’s talk is a comparative study of Li-ion battery and solid-state battery safety, highlighting the need for more comprehensive studies of SSB safety, particularly on practical cell geometries.
Group Retreat 2024
September 2024
We recently held our first annual Kazyak Lab Retreat. We did teambuilding activities, discussed our group’s values and how we reflect those values in our group culture and how we conduct our research. We brainstormed ideas to improve efficiency and operations, and discussed how to formulate a compelling narrative/story about your results/data. We ended with making dinner and getting to know each other better!
Perspective Article on Solid-State Batteries Published in MRS Bulletin
June 2024
Our collaborative paper with Prof. Regina Garcia-Mendez (Johns Hopkins University) is now online and available here. This article reviews recent progress and challenges of solid-state batteries for electric vehicle applications. We highlight that as these technologies make their way to market, it is imperative to prioritize sustainable manufacturing and safety while overcoming various interfacial challenges.
Welcome Grace, David, and Liam!
May 2024
The Kazyak Lab welcomes new members Grace, David, and Liam. All three are ME undergraduate students who will be joining us to work on their own research projects this summer. Grace will be focused on developing Seawater battery materials and cells, David will work on integrating internal temperature measurements in our pouch cells, and Liam will focus on operando visualization of Li-ion battery electrodes. Welcome!
Kazyak Lab Featured in ME Department Newsletter
May 2024
Prof. Eric Kazyak and undergraduate student Luke Eberle are featured in the Spring 2024 Mechanical Engineering Department Newsletter. Inside, the new electrochemistry-related labs in the department are also highlighted. Check it out here.
Ethan Wins “Best Research Project” at the 2024 Mechanical Engineering Design Showcase
May 2, 2024
Undergraduate Student Ethan Mohr won the award for best research project based on his presentation and poster on his work as a Faustin-Prinz Research Fellowship recipient. Ethan studied the application of solid electrolytes in low-cost seawater batteries for future application in long duration storage applications. Ethan developed new synthesis procedures, designed and built a new seawater battery test cell and tank, and conducted electrochemical measurements to measure the transport properties of the solid electrolytes. Ethan is graduating this semester and will be starting a new position at Honda Motor Co. in Columbus, OH. Congratulations Ethan!
Logan Presents work on Operando Visualization of Li-ion Batteries
April 25, 2024
Undergraduate student Logan Fitzpatrick presents his poster on “Operando Visualization of Dynamic Heterogeneity in Lithium-ion Batteries” at the Undergraduate Symposium. This is the culmination of his work over the last year as a Hilldale Undergraduate Research Fellow. He has designed and built a custom electrochemical cell to enable us to see inside of Li-ion batteries with better resolution than previously possible.