Paul V. Braun - US grants

This award to the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign is for the acquisition of a sum-frequency-generation spectrometer. The instrument will help develop a clearer picture, at the microscopic level, of surfaces and buried interfaces. This picture is difficult or impossible to obtain with conventional forms of spectroscopy, because the region of interest typically has a thickness of only one nanometer. Although their dimensions are small, the technological importance of surfaces and interfaces is extremely large. For example, the Si-H bonds that passivate the Si/SiO_2 transistor interface affect the properties of 95% of the world's integrated circuits. The SFG spectrometer will allow to determine the number of bonds at the interface, and therefore to optimize the processing of Si wafers. Surfaces are also very important in catalysis and corrosion. The SFG spectrometer will enable to acquire knowledge which will help in the search for alternative corrosion inhibitors that are less harmful to the environment. Another example is the surface of polyethylene oxide (PEO), which is used to coat prosthetic devices because it prevents the adhesion of proteins and cells. SFG spectroscopy will increase our understanding of the molecular properties responsible for the biological activity of PEO, and accelerate the design of new and better biomaterials. The spectrometer will be placed in a user facility, open to all, where graduate students will be able to receive training, use a state-of-the-art instrument in their research, and interact with experts both inside and outside of their disciplines.
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This is an award from the Instrumentation for Materials Research program to the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign for the acquisition of an infrared-visible sum-frequency-generation spectrometer. The instrument will help develop a clearer picture, at a microscopic level, of phenomena occuring at surfaces and buried interfaces, e.g. adsorption, deposition, catalysis, corrosion, templating, and steric selection. Infrared spectroscopy is well-suited to this endeavor because it allows one to identify many of the chemical bonds which determine the properties of interfaces, e.g. the Si-H bond which passivates the Si/SiO_2 transistor interface. Sum-frequency-generation spectroscopy is particularly sensitive to the interface, even though it is often less than a nanometer thick, because the signal is generated only where the sample lacks inversion symmetry. The spectrometer will help answer scientific questions of technological importance, for example: Why is chromate so effective in preventing the corrosion of aluminum? Why do cells and proteins not adhere to the surface of prothetic devices coated with polyethylene oxide? How does adding a minute amount of benzotriazole to a plating bath drastically change the surface morphology of copper? The spectrometer will be placed in a user facility where a large number of graduate students will receive training and participate in research projects to answer questions such as those above.
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This research project will develop patternable, 3-D photonic band gap (PBG) materials. Such systems will be templated from hard-sphere colloidal crystals assembled epitaxially from depletion-stabilized silica suspensions of varying chemistry, functionality, and size. Through photopolymerization of functional groups grafted onto the silica particle surfaces or of the surrounding aqueous matrix, the assemblies will be patterned to embed critical features (e.g., waveguides) needed for device applications. Formation of PBG structures with the desired optical contrast will be created by infilling as-grown colloidal crystals with a high refractive index material followed by removal of the colloidal template. Finally, the photonic properties of these novel PBG materials will be measured experimentally and compared to theoretically predicted behavior. Engineering patternable 3-D PBG structures requires an interdisciplinary effort that brings together researchers in the fields of colloid science, materials synthesis, PBG fabrication, and photonic properties. Hard-sphere colloidal crystals that serve as templates for PBG structures will be assembled from depletion-stabilized suspensions of bare, uncharged silica spheres of varying functionality. Colloidal epitaxy will be implemented to achieve the desired fcc crystal structure. The assemblies will then be gelled in situ by a photopolymerization process induced via confocal lithography. The patterned assemblies will be infitrated with rare earth doped chalcogenide glasses. The photonic properties of the resulting inverse fcc structures will be characterized with respect to their PBG structure, wave guiding nature, and luminescence.

Successful implementation of this multidisciplinary research project will lead to new scientific understanding in several key areas. Fundamental knowledge of depletion-enhanced colloidal crystallization, the mechanical and rheological properties of colloidal assemblies, and important discoveries in the patterning, drying, and infiltration behavior of colloidal crystals, and their photonic properties are expected. These results should have broad impact on colloidal processing of ceramics, fabrication of porous materials for related applications including catalysts, membranes and biostructures, and on the technologically significant area of photonic band gap materials needed for the next generation of information technology.

0118053
Nayfeh
The objective of the proposed research is to develop biophotonic markers for fluorescent biosensors that are smaller, brighter, less fragile, and more practical than existing markers. The specific components of this research include: (1) an examination of the time dynamics of emission, photostability, and bleaching under a variety of incident excitation intensities, in the UV, visible, and near-infrared range of frequencies, (2) an examination of the solubility of particles and their integrity of brightness under diverse environmental conditions, such as those encountered in vivo, and (3) the development of cladding methods to improve biocompatibility, (4) develop methods to refine synthesis and scale the throughput to meet high-demand commercial applications, and (5) examine the feasibility of modifying the particles by attaching additional molecules to their surfaces to produce "smart" particles that are able to seek out specific biological targets, for imaging, targeted drug delivery, or destruction of a pathogenic invader.

Divisions of Chemistry, Molecular and Cellular Biosciences, Chemical Transport Systems, Computer-Communications Research, and Experimental and Integrated Activities support this multidivisional award to University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. This Nanoscale Interdisciplinary Research Team (NIRT) award is part of the Nanoscale Science and Engineering program. Under this project, an interdisciplinary team with Joseph Lyding as the principal investigator will develop protein-based logic chips that interfaces between biochemical reactions and conventional microfabricated silicon-based electronics such as metal-oxide semiconductor (MOSFETs) taking advantage of biocomplexity and electronic speed. These protein interfaced MOSFETs will help to create atomically accurate protein arrays to function as cellular nonlinear/neural network, and this in turn will help to over come the 100 nm limit in miniaturization of the present transistor technology. Industrial collaborations and outreach programs in the K-12 system will be part of the project.

Under the award, ordered and atomically accurate protein arrays that interfaces between biochemical reactions and conventional microfabricated silicon-based electronics will be developed. Strong industrial collaboration will help in the industrial development and technology transfer of this science. In addition, the research program will provide multidisciplinary education and training opportunities in materials chemistry, protein chemistry and electronics to students from K-12 to post doctoral candidates.

The promise of nanotechnology won't be realized unless nanometer-scale structures can be assembled together inexpensively into a working system. The goal of this proposal is to develop and test a revolutionary tool that uses light-pressure forces to rapidly assemble complex nanosystems comprised of structures ranging in size from ~10nm to 1mm. Intellectual Merit: We plan to develop a tool to assemble a nanosystem layer-by-layer using light pressure forces to produce multiple, independent optical traps for organizing simultaneously tens of thousands of nanometer-scale structures within each layer. The optical traps will be produced either by rapidly scanning a laser beam from one trap location to the next, relying on the viscosity of the medium to stabilize the position until the trap is refreshed, or by generating a hologram, where multiple optical traps are created simultaneously by controlling the intensity and phase profile of the beam using a spatial light modulator. Either way, the tool will have to compensate in real-time for the scattering environment of the trap during the layer-by-layer assembly. Therefore, there are two elements at the core of this proposal: 1. the efficient simulation of the dynamic electromagnetic environment of the trap, which is used to predict in real-time the required intensity and phase profiles for the laser; and 2. the concomitant synthesis through adaptive optics of the trap.

Broader Impact: Aside from the development of a new tool for nanoscale manufacturing that assembles nanometer-scale objects using light, there is a broader impact of this work derived from the nature of the testbeds we choose to explore, which can only be fabricated through optical manipulation. In particular, we plan to contribute to the understanding of self-assembly and locomotion in living cells through our work on "artificial cytoskeletons," by using optical tweezers to control the assembly of the molecular networks that form the cell's structure. Moreover, our work will affect supra-molecular chemistry in a fundamental way by augmenting the weak noncovalent bonds that form soft-condensed matter systems such as proteins, biological membranes and DNA with "optical binding" forces. By using optical binding forces in conjunction with supra-molecular forces, we hope to gain insight into the structure of the supra-molecular aggregates and their interactions. In addition, significant educational efforts are planned in the form of monthly seminars, innovative new interdisciplinary courses, and extensive involvement of undergraduate students in the research.

Technical Abstract:

This proposal support the purchase an ultra high-resolution x-ray nanotomography instrument (nano-CT). This instrument, which supports nondestructive internal three-dimensional (3D) imaging of samples as thick as 100 om with 30 nm resolution, would be the first nonsynchrotron-based nano-CT in the US. Forty-seven faculty on the campus of the University of Illinois at Urbana/Champaign (UIUC) are participating. Within materials science, the nano-CT will aid the development of self-healing materials and stretchable/flexible circuits, and it will enable complete characterization of complex materials in 3D micro and nanoassemblies. In the areas of engineering, the nano-CT will improve optical coherence tomography for imaging breast tumors, aid the development of 3D nanofabrication technologies and the modeling of solid propellants, characterize multi-scale particle/pore distributions in concrete fracturing, enable electrode optimization for fuel cells, support the development of new nano-CT contrast agents, and enable the refinement of new ultra-fast tomography image reconstruction algorithms.

Non-technical Abstract:

This proposal support the purchase a very high-resolution three dimensional x-ray imaging system, a nanotomography instrument (nano-CT). This instrument, allows nondestructive three-dimensional (3D) imaging of samples as thick as 0.1 mm while resolving features as small as 600 atomic diameters in width. In the areas of materials science, biology, bio-engineering and other fields, considerable progress is being made in fabricating materials and devices that operate at a "nano-scale", that is, the size regime just larger than single atoms. For progress in these fields to continue it is vital to be able to study the three dimensional structure of materials at that length scale that is much larger than a single atom but much smaller than a biological cell. Outside of major Department of Energy national facilities, this will be the first instrument for this three dimensional imaging in the United States. The capabilities of the instrument are expected to have major impacts in materials science, complex materials, modeling of solid propellants, studies ofconcrete fracture, electrode optimization for fuel cells, and enable the refinement of new methods of three dimensional image reconstruction that can study the time dependent changes in structures.

ID: MPS/DMR/BMAT(7623) 0804113 PI: Leckband, Deborah ORG: Illinois-Urbana/Champaign

Title: Mechanism and Dynamics of Protein Interactions with Polymer Brushes

INTELLECTUAL MERIT: The proposal aims to identify engineering design rules for controlling protein and cell interactions with biomaterials. A central and persistent problem confronting biomaterials design is the uncontrolled adsorption of proteins to material surfaces. There is currently no general consensus on how to design a protein-resistant coating. A major gap in current knowledge is the limited understanding of the basic mechanisms of protein adsorption to polymer interfaces in aqueous media. Absent this information, it is difficult to define engineering approaches to control specific behavior. This research plan will address this knowledge gap by using a combination of synthetic chemistry and complementary experimental approaches that probe the mechanisms by which proteins interact with grafted polymers. In Objective 1, polymer gradients will be used as high throughput screening platforms to identify polymer brush properties that support protein adsorption. In Objective 2, a combination of fluorescence techniques will quantify the diffusivity of adsorbed proteins as a function of the brush parameters. In Objective 3, neutron reflectivity measurements with deuterated proteins will determine where adsorbed proteins localize relative to the polymer brush. Finally, Objective 4 will quantify the magnitude and range of attractive and repulsive forces between proteins and polymers that are responsible for protein adsorption behavior. The work will help to develop an understanding of the interactions of proteins with polymer brushes and could advance the design and preparation of surfaces resistant to protein adsorption and biofouling.

BROADER IMPACTS: Success of this project will shed new and useful light on the mechanisms by which polymer brush coatings may protect surfaces from unwanted protein adsorption. With respect to broadening participation, the project will continue the PI's on-going efforts to involve students from underrepresented groups in science and engineering in the research endeavor. These efforts will include inclusion of females and underrepresented minorities in graduate level research and participation in the Summer Research Opportunity Program that provides opportunities for minority undergraduate students to participate in research.

A 2008 National Academy report on Integrated Computational Materials Engineering noted that in a rapidly changing and increasingly competitive global market, integrated innovative design and rapid product development must be supported by computationally based designs, fast engineering analysis, and efficient data management tools. This project addresses the National Materials Review Board recommendations of reducing the cycle from the design of new materials to the fabrication of new devices using new materials. To address the materials-to-devices cycle challenge, the project focuses on the potential of capturing, curating, correlating and coordinating materials-to-devices digital data in a real-time and trusted manner before fully archiving and publishing the data for wide access and sharing. The software developed in this project is useful throughout the materials science and device fabrication fields, by automatically collecting, archiving, and providing collected information on all phases of materials and device fabrication development.

The project develops the Timely and Trusted Curation and Coordination (T2-C2) Data Framework, consisting of two data blocks:
1) T2-C2 Curator, providing real-time acquisition and curation of digital data from selected materials-making / characterization and device-fabrication instruments in the collaborative research units at the university, the Material Research Lab (MRL) and the Micro-and-Nanotechnology Lab (MNTL) , and
2) T2-C2 Coordinator, where collected data are filtered, correlations among data and dependency relations are identified, and the results are connected to other data processing capabilities.
The goal of the T2-C2 framework is to enable reduction of the development time and cost of materials-making /characterization to device-making processes.

Through open-source software licenses and training programs, the project impacts material science, device fabrication and other fields within the university, and other interdisciplinary research institutions and their materials design and manufacturing processes. Through courses, tutorials, workshops, and outreach, the project develops interdisciplinary scientists, teaches the next generation of students, and informs broader audiences about the potential of timely and trusted data collection, curation, spatio-temporal analytics, and correlations between material-making/characterization and device-fabrication processes.

Nearly all modern electronic systems are hitting a power density wall where further improvements in power density pose significant challenges. The NSF Engineering Research Center for Power Optimization for Electro-Thermal Systems (POETS), aims to enhance or increase the electric power density available in tightly constrained mobile environments by changing the design. The management of high-density electrical and thermal power flows is a safety-critical societal need as recent electrical vehicles and aircraft battery fires illustrate. Engineering education conducted in silos limits systems-level approaches to design and operation. POETS will create the human capital that is explicitly trained to think, communicate, and innovate across the boundaries of technical disciplines. The Engineering Research Center (ERC) will institute curricular reform to train across disciplines using a systems perspective. It will develop pedagogical tools that allow greater stems-level understanding and disseminate these throughout the undergraduate curriculum. POETS will target undergraduate curriculum modifications aimed at early retention and couple it with undergraduate research and K-12 teacher activities. POETS' research will directly benefit its industry stakeholders comprised of power electronics Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEM) and Small to Medium sized businesses in the OEM supply chain. An Industry/Practitioner Advisory Board will help direct efforts towards ready recipients of POETS research developments. POETS will harness the outputs of the ecosystem and drive research across the "valley of death" into commercialization.

POETS uses system level analysis tools to identify barriers to increased power density. Design tools will be used to create optimal system-level and subsystem-level designs. Novel algorithm tools will address the multi-physics nature of the integrated electro-thermal problem via structural optimization. Once barriers are identified, POETS will cultivate enabling technologies to overcome them. The operation of these systems necessitates development of heterogeneous decision tools that exploit multiple time scale hierarchies and are not suitable for real-time use. Implementation of these management approaches requires new 3D power electronics architectures that surpass current 2D designs. The thermal management will be tightly coupled with new 3D electronic systems designs using topology optimization for power electronics, storage, etc. The new designs will tightly interweave elements such as solid state thermal switches and modular multi-length scale elements; i.e. spreaders, storage units, phase change and mass flow system interacting with convection units. Fundamental research advances will support development of the 3D component technologies. New materials systems will be developed by manipulating nanostructures to provide tunable directionality for in plane and out-of-plane thermal power flows. These will be coupled with micro- and nano-scale thermal routing based on new conduction/convection systems. Buffers made from phase change material will be integrated into these systems to augment classes of autonomic materials with directed power flow actuation. Novel tested systems will integrate the system knowledge enabling technologies and fundamental breakthrough into modular demonstrations.

Project Abstract The goal of this R21 proposal is to develop a robust, minimally invasive wireless photometry system for in vivo calcium measures in freely moving behavior. To achieve this, a miniaturized, wireless, `injectable' photometry platform (~300 mm wide, ~100 mm thick and several mm long) that enables quantitative measurements of fluorescence stimulated using a high performance microscale inorganic light emitting diode (µ-ILED) and captured using a co-located, sensitive microscale inorganic photodetector (µ-IPD) is proposed. These devices directly address current limitations in measuring calcium transient activity within any environment and facilitate sensing of genetically defined neural networks in more ethologically relevant behaviors -- central goal of the BRAIN initiative and RFA-EY-16-001. These small-scale device components will mount on thin, flexible filaments with overall dimensions significantly smaller than fiber optic cables. The resulting systems will greatly reduce motion artifacts, due to their direct integration at targeted regions of the brain; when implemented using wireless schemes for power delivery and data communication, they will allow complete freedom of motion of awake, behaving animals, suitable for use in complex, three dimensional environments and in socially interacting communities. Preliminary data from using hard-wired versions of these technologies and separate demonstrations of wireless implantable platforms establish feasibility of the foundational concepts. This proposal is divided into following two aims: Specific Aim 1: To examine brain activity in real-time on awake, behaving animals using a platform of injectable µ-ILEDs and µ-IPDs, with a test case measuring the fear conditioning responses. The thin, flexible, lithographically defined photometry probes will be insert into targeted regions of the deep brain, such as the basolateral amygdala (BLA), including lateral, basal, and accessory basal nuclei using stereotactic positioning hardware and surgical procedures adopted from those used in previous wireless, injectable systems for optogenetics. Specific Aim 2: To develop wireless schemes for power delivery and data communication for these systems, with demonstrations in fear conditioning and social interaction. Further size reductions and purely wireless modes of operation will greatly enhance the technology and the opportunities in neuroscience studies. Behavior experiments including fear conditioning (outlined in Aim 1) and social interaction (known to evoke BLA activity) will serve to demonstrate and optimize the fully wireless capabilities.

Universities typically have many scientific instruments in interdisciplinary
research laboratories to conduct high-quality research in science and engineering.
Yet many of these older operating instruments are prematurely disconnected from campus networks
because they cannot operate at the speed of a modern computing devices, or use legacy operating system software
that is not updated with the latest security patches, creating potential vulnerabilities.

This project will develop a robust cloudlet-based infrastructure, called BRACELET.
BRACELET is an integrated three-tier infrastructure that integrates the
existing campus network, cloud, and security infrastructures with the NSF DIBBs program supported 4CeeD
data file upload service. Each cloudlet will be placed alongside potentially vulnerable instruments to shape traffic
and protect against external threats. The cloudlet will play a crucial role in keeping the instrument connected throughout its
lifetime, continuously providing otherwise missing or new performance and security features for the
instrument. BRACELET will extend the capabilities and useful lifetime of scientific instruments, helping to accelerate
scientific innovation and discovery.

The fundamental goal of this research project is to develop a route to form high performance photonic devices within the volume of a silicon wafer rather than on its surface, as is generally the case. Photonic devices are integral to many important applications in telecommunications, computing, data storage and transfer, and consumer electronics. Silicon photonics has enabled circuits that are miniaturized and integrated. These technologies will dramatically improve in speed, density, and energy efficiency if they can be successfully integrated at a high enough density as a multi-plane photonic integrated circuit (PIC). Two key projected societal impacts are (1) ultra-high speed data transfer within next generation computers using channels that route light in 3D within a chip or between chips and (2) advanced all-optical signal processing using a PIC that has numerous planes for performing operations. The project also includes the training of undergraduate and graduate researchers in photonic device/circuit theory, microfabrication, metrology, and numerical simulation. Research and teaching will be closely integrated through three of the PI's courses: Materials in Nanotechnology, Integrated Optoelectronics, and Principles of Experimental Research. Participation of students from underrepresented groups will be broadened through undergrad research and by leveraging large existing K-12 outreach initiatives that will impact greater than a thousand students.
The PIs propose a proof-of-concept project to realize multiple planes of interconnected micro-optic elements, waveguides, and passive photonic devices within the volume of a silicon wafer. Subsurface gradient refractive index (GRIN) devices will be fabricated within porous silicon (PSi) or silica (PSiO2 = oxidized PSi) via two-photon lithography to selectively polymerize photoresist within the porous host. This direct laser writing (DLW) approach enables index control (nPSi = 1.4-1.9, nPSiO2 = 1.15-1.3) at each voxel. Complex GRIN elements (e.g., compound apochromatic lenses, photonic nanojet emitters, diffractive and photonic bandgap structures, spiral phase plates, and index/mode matching bamboo-shaped tapers) plus conventional silicon photonic elements (e.g., interferometers, gratings, and microring multiplexers and filters) can all be fabricated in a self-aligned manner with < 1 micron critical dimensions across a 4" wafer. The research seeks to advance knowledge in the fields of subsurface fabrication and photonic integration. The interdisciplinary team of 2 PIs, 2 grad students, and 2 undergrad students will leverage their experience and training in GRIN PSi and PSiO2 optics, DLW, optical device/circuit theory and design, computational electromagnetics, imaging, metrology, and nanomanufacturing to answer fundamental scientific questions about the fabrication of complex optics by addressing five major goals:
1. Investigate and apply polymerization-based index control and optical characteristics in mesoporous scaffold-enabled two-photon lithography.
2. Measure the spectral dependence of the refractive index and absorption coefficient (400 - 1700 nm) as well as the 3D point spread function of the writing process.
3. Develop software tools to: (a) optimize the 3D index profile to achieve a given optical functionality and (b) determine the necessary two-photon lithography exposure conditions to realize said profile.
4. Design, fabricate, characterize, and model novel GRIN elements and subsurface 3D waveguides.
5. Demonstrate the aforementioned monolithically integrated 8-plane PIC and optical interposer.
Demonstration of previously unachievable photonic geometries and functionalities will not only create a new paradigm for future PIC architectures but will also lead to new scientific applications such as lab-in-chip, interferometry, metrology, imaging, and quantum optics.

This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.

NON-TECHNICAL SUMMARY:

This collaborative project combines experiments and simulation to understand micro- and nanoplastics, which are tiny pieces of plastics invisible to human eyes that have been shown to be ubiquitously present in the food chain and the environment. Micro- and nanoplatics thus pose major concerns on their unpredictable impact on human health, ecosystem, and food. For example, micro-plastics, the larger-sized population of the plastic pieces, are found in freshwaters, saltwater fish, and air, at high concentrations and in various shapes such as fragments, foam, and pellets. Nanoplastics (smaller than 100 nanometers are found in water and could be particularly worrisome for human health because their sizes fall into a regime of small grains that living cells could incorporate. Micro- and nanoplastics cannot be thoroughly examined using the conventional toolkits based on statistical averaging. It is for these reasons that the research goal of this proposal is to introduce and use liquid-phase transmission electron microscopy (TEM). This will enclose a nano-aquarium with water containing micro- and nanoplastics to record movies of their motion, interactions, and aggregation on the fly, and then be correlated with theory to inform predictive modeling. The fundamental understanding to be obtained is relevant to sustainability (e.g., upcycling of plastics by separating, harvesting, and recycling of micro- and nanoplastics) and may apply to other systems such as geological grains (sands, clays). In addition to interdisciplinary student training, the educational goal of this project is to provide previously inaccessible experimental and modeling data to the scientific community that could potentially be applied to different micro- and nanoplastics in other geographic regions. "Plastics in water" demonstrations and lectures will be developed for outreach to K-12 students and the general public. The diverse team of three co-PIs will also actively encourage women and minorities to pursue scientific careers.


TECHNICAL SUMMARY:

The research goal of this experimental?simulation collaboration is to understand the fundamental relationships among the structure (e.g., composition, size, shape), colloidal interactions, and aggregation dynamics of micro- and nanoplastics in water or in the presence of separation membranes at unprecedented nanometer resolution, thereby enabling efficient strategies to minimize the footprint of micro- and nanoplastics in the ecosystem. The generic irregularity and high dispersity of such plastic particles has resulted in a knowledge gap in understanding the principles of how structure encodes their properties and phase behaviors (such as flocculation into large aggregates or heavy sediments) which needs to be bridged in order to facilitate their removal. This research project aims to fill this gap through an integrated effort of polymer synthesis and characterization, nanoimaging and colloid simulation. New understanding will be obtained by using the special microscopy suite of low-dose liquid-phase transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM) to image the micro- and nanoplastics in liquids at nanometer and millisecond resolutions in real time. Starting with (i) mapping the nanoscale structures of model and real-life micro- and nanoplastics and how the structures relate with the intercolloidal interaction potential on the single particle and pairwise level, this project will continue with (ii) elucidating how the interaction potential affects the aggregation dynamics of micro- and nanoplastics. It will ultimately be followed by (iii) investigating the effects of environmental variations of practical relevance on structure and phase behaviors, especially in the presence of separation membranes so as to understand the fundamental adsorption and penetration dynamics.
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This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.

Lithium-ion batteries are emerging as the key energy storage technology for both the power grid and electric vehicles due to their high energy capacity and lightweight. However, they remain costly, are very difficult to recycle, and suffer significant performance degradation over time. This Future Manufacturing (FM) grant will support fundamental research to discover and develop future manufacturing concepts that enable fabrication of reliable, energy dense, and easily recyclable next generation Li-ion batteries. The novel manufacturing approach will enable battery fabrication in smaller steps and provide highly efficient thermal management, while improving electrochemical performance, lifecycle sustainability, and recyclability. The manufacturing processes will result in both reduced waste and lower energy input compared to the current state-of-the-art. The research will reduce the dependency of the United States on imported critical materials, support a circular economy through simplified battery manufacturing and recycling processes, and in doing so also reduce the cost of Li-ion batteries. The grant will also create new outreach projects and workforce development activities for K-12, undergraduate, and graduate students and professionals and transform the curricula in multidisciplinary areas related to Li-ion batteries, manufacturing engineering, thermal science, and system design.

Li-ion batteries today are manufactured via slurry-based processes, which introduce complexity, cost, and other challenges into battery manufacturing and recycling. This research will utilize a new manufacturing paradigm, which capitalizes on novel electrodeposition/de-electroplating technologies to holistically optimize Li-ion battery manufacturing for enhanced performance, lifecycle sustainability, thermal management, and recyclability. In support of this vision, the research plan is composed of four tightly coupled research thrusts, paired with extensive workforce development and education activities. In Thrust 1, the research will advance electrode and electrolyte manufacturing and assembly of cathode-electrolyte-anode stacks. In Thrust 2, the research will use the understanding developed in Thrust 1 to develop both electrochemical and innovative inside-out cell recycling concepts. In Thrust 3, the research will focus on cell design, exploiting the novel thermal and electrical properties of the electrodeposited electrodes and electrolytes to form high performance cells compatible with recycling. In Thrust 4, the research will perform extensive lifecycle analysis and reliability-based optimization, to enhance reliability and lifecycle sustainability of the Li-ion battery solution and demonstrate its performance gains over existing battery manufacturing technologies. Running through these thrusts is a holistic design strategy that integrates aspects of manufacturing, performance, recycling, and lifecycle analysis.

This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.