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I may believe in the inherent goodness of people more than is warranted, but I hold out hope. I see more people doing the little things that are the foundation of goodness. Kindnesses can be as simple as holding doors and stepping aside for others, paying for the next person in line at the coffee shop, lending a hand when someone is struggling to move something. All of these random acts of kindness are most impactful when they are done without being asked, and they add up. They brighten the day for people on both sides of the encounter. So, let's show the world that all electrochemists and solid-state scientists, besides being good-looking, smart, and incredibly interesting, are very, very kind.

This year I'm saying "yes" as much as I can, especially when it comes to travelling to meet, visit, reconnect, and reengage face-to-face with members of the global ECS community. What a thrill to be back on the road, meeting with old friends and colleagues, making new connections, and sharing the ECS mission in a far more personal, direct way than was possible these past several years. It has been amazing going out into the world, visiting places I haven't seen in a long time—or ever before.

Highlights of the 243rd ECS Meeting with SOFC-XVIII

Websites of Note selected for you by Alice Suroviec

ECS remembers beloved member and Nobel laureate John B. Goodenough

The capstone chemical engineering senior process design course at Penn State in spring 2023 tasked students with designing a caustic soda process to partially meet the global demand for commoditized sodium hydroxide. This article disseminates our experience teaching senior chemical engineering students the core tenets of electrochemical engineering in a single class period for designing an electrolytic caustic soda process. In this E-Chem Education article, we relate key concepts found in chemical engineering (such as sizing up a reactor volume), which chemical engineering seniors are adept with, to electrochemical engineering principles (e.g., current density, voltage, and membrane electrode assembly area) for sizing up and costing out a chlor-alkali electrolyzer. Furthermore, we also discuss alternative electrolyzer designs outside the traditional chlor-alkali process, such as oxygen depolarized cathode (ODC) chlor-alkali and bipolar membrane electrodialysis (BPMED), for caustic soda production and the pros and cons of the alternative process designs.

A collection of technology highlights pulled from recent papers published in ECS journals.

Introduction to the Special Issue on on Commercialization of Electrochemistry and Material Science Technologies

The question: is Commercialization of Intellectual Property Feasible in an Academic Environment. There are many factors, unique and disparate between Academia and Commercialization and Licensing. There are substantial misalignments of the objectives. A fundamental idea inaugurated in an academic lab follows a complex path to commercialization. Along the way, the PI wears many hats. Here, some of the challenges for an academic PI navigating the path are counterbalanced with investors' perspectives on commercialization.

For large-scale energy storage, flow batteries present many advantages. These benefits include, but are not limited to, decoupling power rating from energy capacity and projected lower cost energy storage and long cycle life. Several reviews and a comprehensive handbook have come available recently describing the various flow battery chemistries and the details of cell and stack construction. However, none of the chemistries proposed are perfect and the commercialization path to widespread adoption remains challenging. For the purposes of this article, we will take a closer look at the concept and development of an all-iron slurry flow battery and the intellectual property (IP) protection and commercialization process that occurred within an academic environment.

This article will follow the path from initial scientific discovery to product concept and eventual commercialization. We will utilize the history of new nanocrystalline metal materials made by electrodeposition at Xtalic as a case study for what worked and what didn't work.

One of the most difficult challenges in translating electrochemical technologies into agriculture is the lag in education about the impact of electrochemical technologies in the field. Other challenges include lack of (1) investment and resources for translational research; (2) effective mechanisms to derisk investment; (3) a workforce prepared to translate and operate such technologies; (4) policy, legal infrastructure, and holistic business growth models; and (5) diverse and inclusive leadership "agents of change" to transition the technologies into the market. Opportunities to translate research into the market require strong partnerships with industry, universities, government, and stakeholders. An effective model is the National Science Foundation (NSF) Engineering Research Center (ERC) model. An NSF ERC Gen-4 launched in August 2022 is the Center for Advancing Sustainable and Distributed Fertilizer Production (CASFER). Industry and other practitioner organizations are actively involved at the very early stage (articulation of the vision) and during operation in activities such as: participation in strategic planning, joint research, providing input into workforce development programs, mentoring students, and engagement in proof-of-concept testbeds. All these activities and engagement are key to accelerating technology transfer and to transitioning technologies from the lab to the market, while training an effective workforce for industry.

The Call for Papers for the 245th ECS Meeting in San Francisco, May 26–30, 2024

Fall 2023 Society News includes publications updates, editorial updates, 2022-23 peer reviewers, and Division News.

Fall 2023 People News includes Yury Gogotsi and Eric Wachsman inducted into the US National Academy of Inventors and In Memoriams for Alvin (Al) W. Czanderna, Peter William Faguy, Sri R. Narayan, and Glenn Stoner

Your connection to the ECS community, career opportunities, and industry-related news and events

The Fall 2023 Section News features updates from the Canada and Twin Cities Sections and Section Leadership.

The Fall 2023 Awards Program recognizes Society, Division, Section, and Student award winners.

ECS is proud to announce the following new members for April, May, and June 2023.

Fall 2023 Student News includes news from the Boston, Case Western Reserve, Indian Institute of Technology Madras, University of Michigan, Münster, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Purdue, TU Ilmenau, and University of Texas at Austin ECS Student Chapters.