Energy Storage Devices

Modern technological advancements critically depend on efficient energy storage devices (batteries). Among the various candidate battery technologies, lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) are at the forefront of research and consumer use; however, the raw materials used in LIBs (namely, lithium and cobalt) are neither earth-abundant nor evenly distributed globally (creating geopolitical tensions, particularly in the case of Co). The anticipated depletion in raw materials, along with the rising demand for energy storage devices, has prompted significant interest in beyond-lithium ion batteries. 

Among the viable alternatives to LIBs, multivalent batteries, such as magnesium-ion, calcium-ion, and zinc-ion batteries, have attracted significant attention as next-generation electrochemical energy storage devices. In our group, we examine and predict the suitable anode, cathode, and electrolyte materials for these next-generation batteries. Moreover, using large-scale quantum mechanical simulations, we study the formation and evolution of solid-electrolyte interphases in these batteries.

Relevant Publications

1. Banerjee, Subhadeep, and Sharma SRKC Yamijala. Formation and evolution of the solid electrolyte interphase at calcium surfaces. ACS Applied Energy Materials 8, no. 9, 5936-5947, (2025). Full text

2. Narwal, Ankita, Subhadeep Banerjee, Sandeep K. Reddy, and Sharma SRKC Yamijala. AB–stacked bilayer β12–borophene as a promising anode material for alkali metal-ion batteries. Journal of Energy Storage 102, 114023, (2024). Full text

3. Dandigunta, Babuji, V. G. Abhijitha, Sharma SRKC Yamijala, and B. R. K. Nanda. α-Graphyne with ultra-low diffusion barriers as a promising sodium-ion battery anode and a computational scheme for accurate estimation of theoretical specific capacity. Nanoscale ,16, 36, 16900-16912, (2024). Full text

4. Banerjee, Subhadeep, Ankita Narwal, Sandeep K. Reddy, and Sharma SRKC Yamijala. Promising anode materials for alkali metal ion batteries: a case study on cobalt anti-MXenes. Physical Chemistry Chemical Physics, 25, no. 16, 11789-11804, (2023). Full text

5. Banerjee, Subhadeep, Kalpak Ghosh, Sandeep K. Reddy, and Sharma SRKC Yamijala. Cobalt anti-MXenes as promising anode materials for sodium-ion batteries. The Journal of Physical Chemistry C 126, no. 25, 10298-10308, (2022). Full text

6. Sharma SRKC Yamijala, Hyuna Kwon, Juchen Guo, Bryan M Wong. Stability of Calcium Ion Battery Electrolytes: Predictions from Ab Initio Molecular Dynamics Simulations. ACS Appl. Mater. Interfaces, 13, 11, 13114–13122, (2021). Full text