Controlling Ions for Separation and Manufacturing
Achieving the net-zero emissions goal requires a significant increase in electricity production from renewable technologies, along with widespread electrification of the transportation sector. These urgent societal challenges create a substantial gap between manufacturing demand and production capacity, calling for innovative solutions to secure resource supplies and advance manufacturing capabilities. Ions, as the simplest unit for separation and synthesis, are critical to control to enable transformative technologies. In this talk, I will introduce our group’s research in understanding and manipulating ions at electrified interfaces and in confinement for separation and manufacturing. In the first part, I will introduce a platform method, electrochemical intercalation, for selective ion separation and outline several strategies to promote the separation of critical elements (lithium and lanthanides) based on the understanding of complex host behaviors during the co-intercalation of competing ions. In the second part, I will discuss our development of methods to construct sub-nanometer solid ionic channels and understanding the intriguing ion transport and interplay in confinement.