This course equips graduate students with core organic chemistry principles—such as acid-base behavior, nucleophilic/electrophilic substitution, and radical reactions—relevant to battery materials. Emphasis is placed on understanding functional groups (ethers, esters, fluorinated compounds, polymers) and their reactivity under electrochemical environments, fostering the ability to evaluate and design stable organic components for battery systems.

Students are expected to have the “basic knowledge” about General Chemistry and Electrochemistry.

Attendance (10), Participation (10), Midterm exam (40), Individual project (40)

Lecture materials will be prepared by PDF file.

This course provides a foundation in organic chemistry tailored to battery research. Students will explore the structure and reactivity of key functional groups such as ethers, esters, fluorinated organics, and polymers. Fundamental concepts—acid-base chemistry, nucleophilic/electrophilic interactions, and radical reactions—will be discussed in the context of electrolyte stability, interphase formation, and degradation mechanisms. Spectroscopic techniques (e.g., NMR, FTIR, MS) will be introduced for characterizing organic compounds and tracking chemical changes during cycling. By bridging core organic chemistry with practical battery applications, this course prepares students to critically analyze and engineer organic materials for next-generation energy storage systems.

Lecture & individual presentation