Justin Connell preview image

Justin Connell

Materials Scientist

Biography

Justin Connell is a Materials Scientist in the Electrochemical Materials and Interfaces Group of the Materials Science Division, Deputy Director for Science in the Center for Steel Electrification by Electrosynthesis (C-STEEL), and manager of the Electrochemical Discovery Laboratory. He is also a member of the Consortium for Advanced Science and Engineering affiliated with the Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering at the University of Chicago. His current research interests focus on utilizing a combination of vacuum synthesis, electrochemical analysis and spectroscopic tools to understand the bulk and interfacial (electro)chemical processes that govern the stability and reversibility of materials and electrolytes for energy storage, critical materials recovery and domestic manufacturing applications.

Education:

  • Ph.D. Materials Science and Engineering,  Northwestern University, 2013
  • B.S. Chemistry, The College of William and Mary, 2008

Selected Recent Publications:

  • Shukla, G. H., H.; Lavan, S. N.; Assary, R. S.; Carino, E. V.; Connell, J. G. Alizarin Multilayers Adsorbed onto Glassy Carbon Electrodes for Electrochemical Sequestration of Manganese, Sodium, and Lithium Cations. Industrial & Engineering Chemistry Research 64 (2025) 16133–16143. doi: 10.1021/acs.iecr.5c01193
  • Kim, T.; Hood, Z. D.; Mane, A. U.; Lagunas, F.; Tepavcevic, S.; Elam, J. W.; Connell, J. G. Suppressing Atmospheric Degradation of Sulfide-Based Solid Electrolytes via Ultrathin Metal Oxide Layers. ACS Materials Letters 6 (2024) 5409-5417. doi: 10.1021/acsmaterialslett.4c01923
  • Ilic, S.; Lavan, S. N.; Connell, J. G. Anion-Derived Contact Ion Pairing as a Unifying Principle for Electrolyte Design. Chem 10 (2024) 2987-3007. doi: 10.1016/j.chempr.2024.07.031
  • Ilic, S. Lavan, S. N.; Leon, N. J,; Liu, H.; Jain, A.; Key, B.; Assary, R. S.; Liao, C.; Connell, J. G. Mixed-Anion Contact Ion-Pair Formation Enabling Improved Performance of Halide-Free Mg-Ion Electrolytes.ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces 16 (2024) 435-443. doi: 10.1021/acsami.3c11293
  • Ilic, S.; Counihan, M. J.; Lavan, S. N.; Yang, Y.; Dhakal, D.; Mars, J.; Antonio, E.; Jiang, Y.; Fister, T. T.; Zhang, Y.; Toney, M. F.; Klie, R. F.; Connell, J. G.; Tepavcevic, S. Role of Antisolvent Additives in Aqueous Zinc Sulfate Electrolytes for Zinc Metal Anodes: The Case of Acetonitrile.ACS Energy Letters 9 (2024) 201-208. doi: 10.1021/acsenergylett.3c02504
  • Driscoll, D. M.; Lavan, S. L.; Zorko, M.; Redfern, P. C.; Ilic, S.; Agarwal, G.; Fister, T. T.; Assary, R. S.; Cheng, L.; Strmcnik, D.; Balasubramanian, M.; Connell, J. G. Emergent Solvation Phenomena in Non-aqueous Electrolytes with Multiple Anions. Chem 9 (2023) 1955-1971. doi: 10.1016/j.chempr.2023.03.021
  • Hood, Z. D.; Mane, A. U.; Sundar, A.; Tepavcevic, S.; Zapol, P.; Eze, U. D.; Adhikari, S. P.; Lee, E.; Sterbinsky, G. E.; Elam, J. W.; Connell, J. G. Multifunctional Coatings on Sulfide-Based Solid Electrolyte Powders with Enhanced Processability, Stability, and Performance for Solid State Batteries. Advanced Materials 35 (2023) 2300673. doi: 10.1002/adma.202300673
  • Connell, J. G.; Zorko, M.; Agarwal, G.; Yang, M.; Liao, C.; Assary, R. S.; Strmcnik, D.; Markovic, N. M. Anion Association Strength as a Unifying Descriptor for the Reversibility of Divalent Metal Deposition in Nonaqueous Electrolytes. ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces 12 (2020), 36137–36147. doi: 10.1021/acsami.0c09404