Hongyi Zhang

Despite the widespread use of Li-ion batteries nowadays, their use of volatile, flammable liquid electrolytes poses significant safety risks and limits their scalability. Solid polymer electrolytes (SPE) can improve the safety and energy density of Li-ion batteries, but low electrochemical performance limits their application. I propose a novel class of tetrahydrofuran-pendant polymers for lithium electrolytes enabled by an economical and scalable production of tetrahydrofuran-containing monomers from biomass, designed to achieve high ionic conductivity through dynamic coordinating functionalities. A diverse, tunable catalogue of materials can be explored by modifying the backbone structure. By establishing an interdisciplinary feedback loop between synthesis, characterization, and device evaluation, I aim to develop performant SPEs for next-generation batteries.