1. National Science Foundation Dynamic Phenomena in Complex Oxides for Electrochemical Energy Storage Ying S. Meng, University of California-San Diego, DMR 1057170 Outcome: Researchers at UC San Diego have developed and optimized a family of new oxide materials for electrodes in rechargeable lithium and sodium ion batteries. Impact: These oxides can reversibly intercalate and de-intercalate lithium and sodium ion, storing electric energy in chemical energy form. Such rechargeable batteries can be used in mobile devices, electric vehicles or station storage for solar and wind, offering a strong alternative energy storage solution. Explanation: Rechargeable ion batteries consists of ceramic oxides that can reversibly store and release mobile ions. For the past two decades lithium is the dominant chemistry, though sodium is a much more abundant element. By using lithium intercalation compounds as the model compounds, new oxides that can store and release sodium AND lithium ions have been developed and optimized for next generation energy storage technology. Professor Shirley Meng, of UCSD's Department of NanoEngineering and Chemical Engineering and recipient of an NSF Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) award, led the team, which developed the new family of energy storage oxides. Experimental batteries being tested at the Laboratory for Energy Storage and Conversion led by Dr. Shirley Meng (courtesy of Jacobs School of Engineering, UCSD)

2. National Science Foundation Na Ion Mobility and Battery Performance Ying S. Meng, University of California-San Diego, DMR 1057170 Ambient temperature Na-ion batteries have the potential to meet the requirements for large-scale stationary energy storage sources as well as an alternative to Li-ion batteries due to the natural abundance and low cost. We prepared P2-Na 2/3 [Ni 1/3 Mn 2/3 ]O 2 with excellent cycling property and high rate capability as a cathode material for Na-ion batteries. P2 structure Prismatic site allows Na-ions to diffuse faster than octahedral site. It was demonstrated that the capacity retention of 95% after 50 cycles could be obtained by excluding the P2–O2 phase transformation. O2 structure This work is submitted for publication, 2012

3. National Science Foundation How Can Energy be Stored? Ying S. Meng, University of California-San Diego, DMR 1057170 An integrated education and outreach effort of this project include the design of a summer class where the high school students will learn the story of batteries, where they will learn why oxides have ability to store chemical energies, much more than the acidic fruits. The participants of the program are high school students from Latino district and central and south American. PI Meng has hosted over 60 Latino high school students in the past three years. PI Meng was demonstrating to the high school students how to make a Lemon battery of 3.5V (with six lemons) to light up an LED bulb. She then demonstrated that a tiny coin cell can perform the same function with much longer period, at the same time explaining the principles of energy storage.