Venkataraman Thangadurai
Citizenship	Canada
Alma mater	Indian Institute of Science
Known for	Solid state batteries, Li garnets, Energy Storage, Fuel Cells, Materials Chemistry
Scientific career
Doctoral advisor	PhD: Prof J.Gopalakrishnan, Prof A.K.Shukla, PDF: Prof Werner Weppner
Website	www.ucalgary.ca/thangadurai-group

Venkataraman Thangadurai PhD, FRSC (UK), FECS, FRSC is a scientist and researcher known for his contributions to the field of solid state ionics and solid-state chemistry.^[1] He is a Professor and Research Excellence Chair at the University of Calgary in the Department of Chemistry.^[2][3] He’s also the Founder and director of Western Canada Battery Consortium (WCBC) and Associate Director of Calgary Advanced Energy Storage and Conversion Research (CAESR). He acts as the Vice-Chair of the Canada Section Electrochemical Society (ECS) and Associate Editor of ACS Applied Materials and Interfaces. He is a fellow of The Electrochemical Society (USA), Royal Society of Chemistry (UK), and Royal Society of Canada and in the Editorial Advisory Board Journal of Solid State Electrochemistry, Chemistry of Materials, Energy Technology, Journal of Materials Chemistry A, Materials Advances, and International Journal of Ionics. Thangadurai’s over 30 years of experience in solid-state chemistry is showcased by his over 250 international publications and 13 patent applications.^[4]

Early life and education

Born in India, Thangadurai developed an early interest in Chemistry and pursued his academic career with a focus on solid-state chemistry. He obtained his bachelor's degree in Chemistry from Sacred Heart College, Tirupattur, Tamil Nadu, and his Master’s degree from Muthurangam Government Arts College, Vellore, Tamil Nadu, affiliated with the University of Madras, Chennai, India in 1989 and 1991, respectively.  He later went on to earn his Ph.D. in Solid State Chemistry from the Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore India, in 1999. He did his postdoc at the Faculty of Engineering, University of Kiel, Germany. He received a PDF fellowship from the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation, Bonn, Germany.^[5] In 2004, Thangadurai received his Habilitation degree from the University of Kiel.

Career and research

Thangadurai's research primarily revolves around the development of novel materials for energy storage and conversion applications, with particular emphasis on solid oxide fuel cells, batteries, and gas separation membranes. His work has significantly contributed to the understanding of ion transport mechanisms in various solid electrolytes and has led to the development of high-performance materials for energy-related applications.^[6] He is a pioneer in the development of Li-based garnets for all-solid-state Lithium metal batteries. Throughout his career, he has published numerous research papers in reputable scientific journals and has received several accolades and awards for his contributions to the field.^[7][8] Thangadurai is also actively involved in collaborative research projects with leading industrial partners and research institutions, aiming to translate fundamental research into practical applications.^[9][10] He is the co-founder of Ion Storage Systems and Superionics Inc.^[11]

Awards and Recognition

• HWK-Fellowhsip, Hanse-Wissenschaftskolleg, Delmenhorst, Germany^[12] (2021)
• Research Excellence in Materials Chemistry, Chemical Institute of Canada (2021)^[13]
• Parex Innovation Fellow, University of Calgary (2020)^[14]
• Peak Scholar, University of Calgary (2019)^[15]
• Keith Laidler Award, Canadian Society for Chemistry, The Chemical Institute of Canada (2016)^[16]
• Outstanding Invention of 2013, University of Maryland College Park, USA (2013)^[17]
• German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) Guest Professor, Faculty of Engineering, University of Kiel, Germany (2005)^[18]
• Alexander von Humboldt (AvH) PDF scholarship, Chair for Sensors and Solid-State Ionics, Faculty of Engineering, University of Kiel, Germany (2002)^[19]

Selected publications

• Murugan, Ramaswamy; Thangadurai, Venkataraman; Weppner, Werner (2007-10-15). "Fast Lithium Ion Conduction in Garnet‐Type Li 7 La 3 Zr 2 O 12". Angewandte Chemie International Edition. 46 (41): 7778–7781. doi:10.1002/anie.200701144. ISSN 1433-7851. PMID 17803180.
• Han, Xiaogang; Gong, Yunhui; Fu, Kun (Kelvin); He, Xingfeng; Hitz, Gregory T.; Dai, Jiaqi; Pearse, Alex; Liu, Boyang; Wang, Howard; Rubloff, Gary; Mo, Yifei; Thangadurai, Venkataraman; Wachsman, Eric D.; Hu, Liangbing (May 2017). "Negating interfacial impedance in garnet-based solid-state Li metal batteries". Nature Materials. 16 (5): 572–579. Bibcode:2017NatMa..16..572H. doi:10.1038/nmat4821. ISSN 1476-4660. OSTI 1433807. PMID 27992420.
• Thangadurai, Venkataraman; Narayanan, Sumaletha; Pinzaru, Dana (2014). "Garnet-type solid-state fast Li ion conductors for Li batteries: critical review". Chemical Society Reviews. 43 (13): 4714–4727. doi:10.1039/c4cs00020j. ISSN 0306-0012. PMID 24681593.
• Stramare, S.; Thangadurai, V.; Weppner, W. (2003-10-01). "Lithium Lanthanum Titanates: A Review". Chemistry of Materials. 15 (21): 3974–3990. doi:10.1021/cm0300516. ISSN 0897-4756.
• Thangadurai, Venkataraman; Kaack, Heiko; Weppner, Werner J. F. (March 2003). "Novel Fast Lithium Ion Conduction in Garnet-Type Li 5 La 3 M 2 O 12 (M = Nb, Ta)". Journal of the American Ceramic Society. 86 (3): 437–440. doi:10.1111/j.1151-2916.2003.tb03318.x.
• Samson, Alfred Junio; Hofstetter, Kyle; Bag, Sourav; Thangadurai, Venkataraman (2019). "A bird's-eye view of Li-stuffed garnet-type Li 7 La 3 Zr 2 O 12 ceramic electrolytes for advanced all-solid-state Li batteries". Energy & Environmental Science. 12 (10): 2957–2975. doi:10.1039/C9EE01548E. ISSN 1754-5692. S2CID 203133846.
• S. Sarkar, B. Chen, C. Zhou, S.N. Shirazi, F. Langer, J. Schwenzel, and V. Thangadurai,* “Synergistic Approach toward Developing Highly Compatible Garnet-Liquid Electrolyte Interphase in Hybrid Solid-State Lithium-Metal Batteries,”  Adv. Energy Mater., 13 (8),  2203897 (14 pages) (2023) (cover page)
• T. Boteju, A. M. Abraham, S. Ponnurangam* and V. Thangadurai,* “Theoretical Study on the Role of Solvents in Lithium Polysulfide Anchoring on Vanadium Disulfide Facets for Lithium-Sulfur Batteries,” J. J. Phys. Chem. C. 127 (9),  4416 – 4424 (2023).  
• A. Sivakumaran,  A.J. Samson,  and. V. Thangadurai,* “Progress in Sodium Silicates for All-Solid-State Sodium Batteries — a Review,” Energy Technol. 11, 2201323 (18 pages) (2023).
• A. M. Abraham, T. Boteju, S. Ponnurangam* and V. Thangadurai,* “A Global Design Principle for Polysulfide Electrocatalysis in Lithium-Sulfur Batteries – A Computational Perspective,” Battery Energy, 20220003 (11 pages), (2022).
• V. Thangadurai,* and B. Chen, “Solid Li- and Na-Ion Electrolytes for Next Generation Rechargeable Batteries,” Chem. Mater.,  34, 6637–6658 (2022) (Invited John Goodenough at 100 issue).
• A. Ndubuisi, S. Abouali, K. Singh, V. Thangadurai,* “Recent Advances, Practical Challenges and Perspectives of Intermediate Temperature Solid Oxide Fuel Cell Cathodes,” J. Mater. Chem. A, 10, 2196-2227 (2022) (Invited).

References