BPI Seminar by Dr. Sang-Young Lee
June 18, 2026, 3:00 pm to 4:00 pm
Nanocellulose as a Green Architect for PFAS-Free Battery Electrodes
Location: CHBE #202, 2360 East Mall Vancouver BC V6T 1Z4
Agenda
- 3:00 PM Introduction by Dr. Feng Jiang
- 3:05 PM Presentation by Dr. Sang-Young Lee, Professor, Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Yonsei University, South Korea
- 3:45 PM Q&A
*Light refreshments will be provided.
Abstract
Rechargeable batteries are essential for electrified mobility and grid-scale energy storage, but their manufacturing still relies heavily on fluorinated binders such as poly(vinylidene fluoride) and polytetrafluoroethylene. These materials have enabled commercial electrode processing for decades, yet they are increasingly challenged by sustainability concerns associated with PFAS. Developing PFAS-free electrode technologies is therefore not only an environmental requirement, but also an opportunity to redesign how battery electrodes are structured and manufactured. In this talk, I will present nanocellulose as more than a renewable binder substitute. Its high-aspect-ratio fibrillar structure, strong mechanical properties, chemically accessible surface, tunable colloidal interactions, and swelling-resistant crystalline core make it a powerful green platform for engineering battery electrodes. These features allow nanocellulose to control particle dispersion, slurry rheology, adhesion, electrolyte wetting, ion transport, and interfacial chemistry, key parameters that determine practical cell performance. Key examples will be highlighted. Cellulose elementary fibrils homogenize active materials and conductive nanocarbons, enabling high-areal-capacity cathodes. Cationically functionalized cellulose nanofibrils stabilize high-mass-loading slurries through electrostatic and rheological control, suppressing particle migration during drying. In solvent-free dry electrodes, functionalized biopolymer binders replace PTFE by improving fibrillation, adhesion, wettability, and structural uniformity. I will also discuss single-ion-conducting cellulose nanofibrils for sulfide-based all-solid-state cathodes and cellulose-derived interfacial coatings for fast-charging graphite anodes. These studies show that nanocellulose can move beyond sustainable substitution and serve as a molecularly programmable electrode architect for PFAS-free, manufacturable, and high-performance rechargeable batteries.
About the Speaker
Sang-Young Lee is a distinguished professor in the Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering at Yonsei University, Korea. He received BA in Chemical Engineering from Seoul National University in 1991, MS, and PhD in Chemical Engineering from KAIST in 1993 and 1997, respectively. From 2001 to 2002, he conducted postdoctoral research at Max-Planck Institute for Polymer Research. Prior to joining academia, he worked as a principal research scientist at LG Chem’s Batteries R&D Center from 1997 to 2008, where he led the development of ceramic-coated separators (SRS®), which is now a global industry standard in EV batteries. He is a fellow of both Korean Academy of Science and Technology and National Academy of Engineering of Korea. His research interests include the high-mass-loading electrodes, organic material-based solid-state batteries, cellulose-based paper batteries, and flexible/wearable power sources. He has authored over 230 peer-reviewed publications, filed more than 300 patents, and his work has been cited over 18,000 times, with an h-index of 74. He received the 2025 ECS battery division technology award. He currently serves as a director of the Yonsei Battery Research Center, a head of the battery engineering department, and an editor for the Journal of Power Sources.