This e-mail is to announce that Anand David will be defending his dissertation, Effect of Manufacturing Conditions on the Performance of Lithium-Ion Batteries, on Tuesday, October 1st, at 1:30 p.m. in FRNY 3062A. The dissertation is being directed by Dr. Caruthers, and the abstract is below. All are welcome to attend. Lithium ion batteries are a fascinating area of research. Lithium ion batteries are found almost everywhere people are in America, including in homes, schools, hospitals, offices, and laboratories. They power many of today's electronics such as cell phones, laptops, tablet PCs, and e-readers that are widely used by many people. In addition to these applications, lithium ion batteries are being used in electric vehicles that have been introduced in recent years by companies such as General Motors and Tesla Motors. Lithium ion batteries are also being actively investigated for use in military applications. To be used in auto and military applications, these batteries, including the underlying electrodes used, must be made consistently to ensure proper performance and safety. To date, much of the research in academia relating to lithium ion batteries has dealt with new chemistries that provide higher capacities and rate capabilities. This is a very important and intriguing area of research. At the same time, there has been a lack of research related to manufacturing defect detection and the effects of manufacturing defects on battery performance. A flash thermography technique has been recently developed that can rapidly detect a number of different manufacturing defects in electrode films, and the relationship between these defects and resulting battery performance has been investigated. Catherine Field, Ph.D. Graduate Program Administrator/Counselor School of Chemical Engineering Forney Hall of Chemical Engineering 480 Stadium Mall Drive West Lafayette, IN 47907-2050 Telephone: 765-494-4057 Fax: 765-494-0805 www.engineering.purdue.edu/ChE/<http://www.engineering.purdue.edu/ChE/>