Professor Dr Sir Peter Bruce

Research Priorities: Batteries, energy storage, electrochemistry, solid-state chemistry
Peter Bruce is a British materials scientist. He researches in the fields of materials chemistry and electrochemistry, with a particular emphasis on energy storage materials for lithium and sodium batteries. In his research he focuses on developing a fundamental understanding of the properties of materials and the processes taking place in batteries.
Peter Bruce is a pioneer of the lithium-air battery, which has the highest theoretical energy density of any battery and could transform energy storage. His research interests span materials chemistry and electrochemistry from energy storage materials and devices. He is currently researching three key topics: solid-state batteries, new anionic redox materials for lithium-ion batteries, and the lithium-air battery. He is also interested in understanding the fundamentals of materials chemistry, the synthesis of new materials and their applications in energy storage.
Replacing the flammable organic liquid electrolyte with a solid will enable the use of an alkali metal anode. Recent work in this field has investigated the processes occurring during cycling, such as dendrite and void formation, which ultimately lead to the failing of solid-state cells. Peter Bruce is investigating strategies to mitigate these issues.
In addition he researches cathode materials necessary for increasing the energy density of lithium-ion cells. Current research concerns compounds which can store additional charge, beyond the transition metal redox capacity, by participation of oxide ions in the redox processes. For this purpose Peter Bruce analyses the role played by molecular oxygen.