Skip to content

Materials Science · Electrochemistry · Energy Storage

Dr. Ayush Chandra Pundir

Engineering Materials, Interfaces and Cell Architectures for Next-Generation Energy Storage

Materials Science and Engineering researcher specialising in lithium-sulfur, sodium-sulfur, lithium-ion and sodium-ion batteries, with expertise spanning porous carbon architectures, functional separators, catalytic interfaces, electrochemical characterisation and cell-level engineering.

Open to faculty opportunities, academic collaboration and battery R&D partnerships

  • Ph.D. · IIT Roorkee
  • Former Project Scientist · IIT Kanpur
  • 4 Peer-Reviewed Publications
  • Published Indian Patent Application
  • M.Tech Gold Medalist

Research problem

The Scientific Problems Behind Better Batteries

Sulfur and sodium chemistries fail for reasons that are chemical, structural and kinetic at once. Each problem below connects to a material or cell-level response investigated in this work.

Scientific challenge

Polysulfide shuttling

Soluble intermediates formed at the cathode migrate across the separator, react at the metal anode and are lost to the working reaction.

Material and cell-level response

  1. Polar adsorption
  2. Functional separator
  3. Catalytic conversion
  4. Improved active-material retention

Method

A Materials-to-Cell Research Architecture

A single sequence runs from precursor selection to mechanism interpretation. Select a stage to see the techniques applied at that point.

  • Precursor screening
  • Earth-abundant chemistry
  • Biowaste precursors
  • Literature-led design
  • Hydrothermal synthesis
  • Sol-gel synthesis
  • Chemical activation
  • Composite preparation
  • XRD
  • Rietveld refinement
  • Raman spectroscopy
  • TGA
  • XPS
  • HR-TEM
  • EELS
  • FE-SEM
  • EDS
  • BET and pore-size analysis
  • Slurry preparation
  • Coating and drying
  • Loading control
  • Separator functionalisation
  • Glove-box handling
  • Electrolyte control
  • Interlayer integration
  • Cell sealing
  • CV
  • GCD
  • EIS
  • GITT
  • Rate capability
  • Long-term cycling
  • Controlled cell disassembly
  • Recovered-component imaging
  • Surface chemistry of cycled parts
  • Diffusion analysis
  • Polarisation analysis
  • Structure-performance correlation
  • Architecture refinement
  • Loading and electrolyte tuning
  • Design iteration

Evidence

Selected Research Contributions

Four research outputs, each stated with its challenge, material architecture, mechanism and verified result. Publication status is recorded exactly as it stands.

01Published

Orange-Peel-Derived Hierarchical Porous Carbon

Challenge
Sulfur is electronically insulating and its intermediate species dissolve into the electrolyte during cycling.
Material architecture
A hierarchical porous carbon derived from orange peel was used as a sulfur host, providing a conductive framework with an ion-accessible pore network.
Mechanism
Physical confinement of sulfur inside a hierarchical pore structure, with the carbon framework supplying the electronic pathway the sulfur lacks.
Verified result
Initial discharge capacity of 870 mAh g⁻¹ at 0.2 C, retaining approximately 57% of capacity after 200 cycles.
  • Chemical activation
  • BET and pore-size analysis
  • XRD
  • Raman
  • FE-SEM
  • GCD
  • EIS
Biomass and Bioenergy, 180, 106999 (2024)DOI
02Published

Nano-TiO₂-Grafted Carbon Interlayer

Challenge
Soluble lithium polysulfides diffuse away from the cathode and across the separator, removing active material from the reaction.
Material architecture
Polar TiO₂ phases were grafted onto a conductive carbon sheet and placed between cathode and separator as a functional interlayer.
Mechanism
Chemical interaction between the polar oxide and polysulfide species, combined with a conductive sheet that keeps intercepted material electrochemically accessible.
  • Hydrothermal synthesis
  • XRD
  • XPS
  • HR-TEM
  • CV
  • GCD
  • EIS
Energy Technology, 12, 2400846 (2024)DOI
03Published

2D-MoS₂-Functionalised Separator

Challenge
Physical confinement alone does not address the slow redox conversion of trapped polysulfide intermediates.
Material architecture
A 2D-MoS₂-functionalised separator was paired with a hierarchical porous carbon/sulfur nanoparticle composite cathode.
Mechanism
Adsorption at the separator coupled with catalytic acceleration of polysulfide conversion, reducing the driving force lost to slow kinetics.
Verified result
Initial discharge capacity of 1360 mAh g⁻¹ at 0.5 C with reduced voltage polarisation of approximately 0.15 V.
  • Hydrothermal synthesis
  • Separator coating
  • XPS
  • FE-SEM
  • CV
  • GCD
  • EIS
  • Rate capability
Journal of Energy Storage, 112, 115594 (2025)DOI
04Patent application · under review

rGO/MgO Dual-Functional Separator

Challenge
Polysulfide migration and electrode volume variation degrade capacity retention over extended cycling.
Material architecture
A flexible reduced-graphene-oxide framework was combined with polar MgO as a lithiophilic separator coating.
Mechanism
The rGO network accommodates mechanical variation and conducts electrons, while polar MgO provides chemical affinity for migrating species.
Verified result
Initial capacity of 1389.2 mAh g⁻¹ at 0.1 C, with 754.5 mAh g⁻¹ retained after 200 cycles.
  • Composite coating
  • XRD
  • FE-SEM
  • XPS
  • GCD
  • Long-term cycling
  • Post-mortem analysis
Indian patent application 202511060875 (published). Associated manuscript is under review.

Academic record

A Verified Research Profile

Counts and distributions drawn only from recorded outputs. No citation metrics are displayed, because no verified figures are held here.

4

Peer-reviewed journal articles

6

Manuscripts under review

1

Published Indian patent application

4

Conference presentations

3

Major battery research families

1

M.Tech Gold Medal

Peer-reviewed articles by year

  • 20242
  • 20252

Research output by topic

  • Lithium-Sulfur3
  • Other Materials Research1

Published versus under review

4 published6 under review

Counts only. Citation metrics and h-index are not shown because no verified figures are recorded here.

Publications

Peer-Reviewed Journal Index

Four peer-reviewed articles. Six further manuscripts are under review and are listed separately, never counted among published work.

  1. 01

    2024 · Journal article · First Author

    Orange peel derived hierarchical porous carbon/sulfur composite cathode material for Li-S batteries

    Ayush Pundir and Anjan Sil · Biomass and Bioenergy, 180, 106999

  2. 02

    2024 · Journal article · First Author

    Nano-TiO₂ grafted carbon sheet interlayer for Li-S batteries

    Ayush Pundir and Anjan Sil · Energy Technology, 12, 2400846

  3. 03

    2025 · Journal article · First Author

    Synergetic effect of 2D-MoS₂ nanoflakes functionalized separator supported by hierarchical porous carbon/sulfur nanoparticle composite cathode for improved polysulfide conversion in Li-S batteries

    Ayush Chandra Pundir and Anjan Sil · Journal of Energy Storage, 112, 115594

  4. 04

    2025 · Journal article · Co-Author

    Design and development of La₂O₃-doped ZnO p-n heterostructures: structural, optical and photocatalytic properties for dye degradation applications

    Manoj Kumar, A. Rehman, T. Dar and Ayush Chandra Pundir · Optical and Quantum Electronics, 57, 363

    DOI not recorded

Capability

Experimental and Analytical Capabilities

Techniques performed directly during doctoral and project research, grouped by the stage of work they belong to.

Wet-chemical routes for carbons, oxides and sulfides used as hosts, catalysts and coatings.

  • Hydrothermal synthesis
  • Sol-gel synthesis
  • Porous carbon synthesis
  • Metal oxide nanostructures
  • Metal sulfide nanostructures
  • Heteroatom-doped carbons

Trajectory

From Functional Oxides to Advanced Battery Interfaces

Fifteen years of training that moved from mechanical engineering, through functional oxides, into sulfur electrochemistry and cell-level design.

  1. 2010–2014

    B.Tech, Mechanical Engineering

    Dehradun Institute of Technology

    Thermodynamics, transport and mechanical behaviour.

  2. 2015–2017

    M.Tech, Materials Science and Engineering

    National Institute of Technology Hamirpur

    Gold Medalist. Research on single-phase zinc stannate.

  3. 2018–2025

    Ph.D., Materials Science and Engineering

    Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee

    Cathode architecture and cell design for lithium-sulfur batteries.

  4. 2025

    Project Scientist

    Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur

    Sodium-ion cathode and solid-state electrolyte component development, August to November 2025.

  5. Ahead

    Independent research programme

    Proposed direction

    Advanced and sustainable electrochemical energy-storage systems.

Vision

Building a Research Programme Beyond Individual Materials

Three horizons, stated as intent rather than achievement. Nothing here is presented as completed work.

Horizon 01Near term

Materials and Interfaces

  • Porous carbon hosts
  • Functional separators
  • Catalytic interlayers
  • Na-ion cathodes
  • Electrochemical mechanism studies
Horizon 02Medium term

Integrated Cell Systems

  • High-loading electrodes
  • Reduced-electrolyte configurations
  • Full-cell development
  • Solid-state interfaces
  • Cell-level degradation studies
Horizon 03Long term

Sustainable Battery Ecosystems

  • Earth-abundant materials
  • Biowaste-derived carbons
  • Battery recycling
  • Resource recovery
  • Circular materials pathways

Teaching

Teaching Science Through Systems, Evidence and Application

A teaching model that moves from governing principle to independent inquiry, using measured data rather than idealised examples.

  1. 01

    Fundamentals

  2. 02

    Real-world context

  3. 03

    Scientific problem

  4. 04

    Experimental evidence

  5. 05

    Data interpretation

  6. 06

    Design thinking

  7. 07

    Independent inquiry

Potential teaching and course-contribution areas

  • Materials Science and Engineering
  • Energy Materials
  • Electrochemistry
  • Battery Science and Technology
  • Nanomaterials
  • Materials Characterisation
  • Sustainable Energy Technologies

Engagement

Collaboration Pathways

Ways in which this research capability can be engaged. These are open pathways, not existing partnerships.

01

Academic Collaboration

Shared scientific questions, characterisation access and co-authored studies.

  • Joint research proposals
  • Shared characterisation
  • Co-authored studies
  • Student projects
  • Interdisciplinary battery research
02

Industry R&D

Applied evaluation of materials and cell components against practical constraints.

  • Materials screening
  • Electrode development
  • Cell-component evaluation
  • Failure analysis
  • Technology validation
03

Faculty and Institutional Opportunities

Departments where this research programme and teaching portfolio would fit.

  • Materials Science
  • Mechanical Engineering
  • Energy Engineering
  • Metallurgical Engineering
  • Chemical Engineering
  • Interdisciplinary energy programmes

Advancing Energy Storage Through Materials, Interfaces and Scientific Collaboration

Open to faculty opportunities, academic collaboration, interdisciplinary research, conference engagement and industry-oriented battery R&D.