Bio


Sanzeeda Baig Shuchi envisions a world where energy crisis is a thing of the past. She is a Ph.D. candidate in Chemical Engineering (ChemE) at Stanford University. Her current energy research focuses on improving and understanding lithium battery stability using surface science and interface engineering supervised by Prof. Stacey F. Bent and Prof. Yi Cui. She is a TomKat Center Graduate Fellow for Translational Research and a Link Foundation Energy Fellow. She completed her MS in ChemE from Stanford. She also received the Summer First Fellowship and ChemE departmental fellowship. Before Stanford, she completed her BS in the same field from Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET), where she graduated with the highest CGPA in the Faculty of Engineering and is a prime minister gold medal candidate. Other than research, she serves as the lab safety officer in Bent group and enjoys performing departmental student mentoring and student representative activities. She has also previously served as a co-organizer of Engineering Students for DEI (ES4DEI) at Stanford and the vice-president of Environment Watch: BUET. Outside the lab, she enjoys houseplants, interior decoration, painting, board games, and exploring local beaches and restaurants.

Education & Certifications


  • Master of Science, Stanford University, Chemical Engineering (2023)
  • Bachelor of Science, Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET), Chemical Engineering (2021)

All Publications


  • Recovery of isolated lithium through discharged state calendar ageing. Nature Zhang, W., Sayavong, P., Xiao, X., Oyakhire, S. T., Shuchi, S. B., Vilá, R. A., Boyle, D. T., Kim, S. C., Kim, M. S., Holmes, S. E., Ye, Y., Li, D., Bent, S. F., Cui, Y. 2024; 626 (7998): 306-312

    Abstract

    Rechargeable Li-metal batteries have the potential to more than double the specific energy of the state-of-the-art rechargeable Li-ion batteries, making Li-metal batteries a prime candidate for next-generation high-energy battery technology1-3. However, current Li-metal batteries suffer from fast cycle degradation compared with their Li-ion battery counterparts2,3, preventing their practical adoption. A main contributor to capacity degradation is the disconnection of Li from the electrochemical circuit, forming isolated Li4-8. Calendar ageing studies have shown that resting in the charged state promotes further reaction of active Li with the surrounding electrolyte9-12. Here we discover that calendar ageing in the discharged state improves capacity retention through isolated Li recovery, which is in contrast with the well-known phenomenon of capacity degradation observed during the charged state calendar ageing. Inactive capacity recovery is verified through observation of Coulombic efficiency greater than 100% on both Li||Cu half-cells and anode-free cells using a hybrid continuous-resting cycling protocol and with titration gas chromatography. An operando optical setup further confirms excess isolated Li reactivation as the predominant contributor to the increased capacity recovery. These insights into a previously unknown pathway for capacity recovery through discharged state resting emphasize the marked impact of cycling strategies on Li-metal battery performance.

    View details for DOI 10.1038/s41586-023-06992-8

    View details for PubMedID 38326593

    View details for PubMedCentralID 8580315

  • Proximity Matters: Interfacial Solvation Dictates Solid Electrolyte Interphase Composition. Nano letters Oyakhire, S. T., Liao, S., Shuchi, S. B., Kim, M. S., Kim, S. C., Yu, Z., Vila, R. A., Rudnicki, P. E., Cui, Y., Bent, S. F. 2023

    Abstract

    The composition of the solid electrolyte interphase (SEI) plays an important role in controlling Li-electrolyte reactions, but the underlying cause of SEI composition differences between electrolytes remains unclear. Many studies correlate SEI composition with the bulk solvation of Li ions in the electrolyte, but this correlation does not fully capture the interfacial phenomenon of SEI formation. Here, we provide a direct connection between SEI composition and Li-ion solvation by forming SEIs using polar substrates that modify interfacial solvation structures. We circumvent the deposition of Li metal by forming the SEI above Li+/Li redox potential. Using theory, we show that an increase in the probability density of anions near a polar substrate increases anion incorporation within the SEI, providing a direct correlation between interfacial solvation and SEI composition. Finally, we use this concept to form stable anion-rich SEIs, resulting in high performance lithium metal batteries.

    View details for DOI 10.1021/acs.nanolett.3c02037

    View details for PubMedID 37565722