Library · Materials, chemistry & fabrication
What Fuel Cell & Battery Cycling Protocols got wrong, from 45 theses
Summary written by a model from the records below: The evaluated records document numerous methodological and operational failures encountered during battery and fuel cell cycling, testing, and lifecycle modeling. These failures span degradation models that diverge under transient dynamics, aggressive charging protocols that induce lithium plating, and flow battery cycling regimes that trigger rapid active material decomposition. These records come from graduate theses, 2021 to 2026, each labeled with its degree where the repository states it, and each links to its thesis. They were extracted by language models reading the full text, so treat each as a lead to read, not a verdict.
Plus 10 problems the authors left open, listed at the end.
Failure modes, by theses reporting them
Select a mode to jump to its records.
Battery degradation models and state estimation algorithms fail under dynamic cycling or domain shifts
Simplified equivalent circuit representations, linearized degradation formulations, and data-driven predictors frequently diverge or produce unphysical estimates during long-term transient cycling. These approaches fail to capture nonlinear overpotentials, cycle-depth dynamics, and late-life capacity loss when facing domain shifts, parameter drift, or elevated operating rates.
Tried and failed
differential capacity curve-fitting degradation analysis applied to elevated temperature battery aging data. Outcome: did not converge. Reason: fitting produced unphysical trends of increasing electrode capacity and decreasing loss of active material after extended cycling
The effect of micro and nano scale phenomena on system level design and engineering of hybrid pemfc systems · Imperial · PhD
Tried and failed
sequence-to-sequence LSTM for trajectory forecasting applied to long-term battery capacity degradation. Outcome: unstable. Reason: exhibited sudden initial prediction discontinuities and severe overestimation of degradation rates
Data-driven early prediction and modeling of lithium-ion battery capacity degradation · Iowa State · PhD
Tried and failed
current-independent equivalent circuit model applied to dynamic battery voltage prediction. Outcome: did not generalise. Reason: linear circuit parameters failed to capture nonlinear overpotentials during high dynamic current rates and low state-of-charge
A tool for analyzing the evolution of non-uniformities in lithium-ion cylindrical battery cells at the module level under various operating conditions · Virginia Tech · Master's
Tried and failed
lumped thermal model parameter estimation applied to battery degradation mode quantification. Outcome: no signal. Reason: High C-rate charging datasets produced weak, non-robust minima in the optimization objective function.
A novel diagnostic technique for the quantification of lithium-ion battery degradation modes under in- operando conditions · Imperial · PhD
Tried and failed
low state-of-charge internal resistance feature applied to battery cycle life prediction across protocols. Outcome: did not generalise. Reason: formation temperature variations disrupted the correlation between resistance and lifetime
Interpretable Approaches for Optimizing the Pulse Diagnostics and Formation for Lithium-ion Batteries · MIT · PhD
Tried and failed
delta learning from simulation to experiment applied to battery state of health estimation. Outcome: did not generalise. Reason: poor extrapolation when bridging domain shifts between simulation and experimental datasets
Computational and data-enabled approaches for modeling and prognostics of engineered systems · Iowa State · PhD
Tried and failed
Linearized degradation model approximation applied to Battery energy storage control. Outcome: worse than baseline. Reason: Omitted cycle-depth dynamics, causing unprofitable fluctuations compared to rainflow-based degradation modeling
Reinforcement learning for enhancing the stability and management of power systems with new resources · UT Austin · PhD
Tried and failed
zero-dimensional heat generation model without diffusion applied to degraded battery cells at high C-rates. Outcome: did not generalise. Reason: omitting diffusion dynamics smoothed out characteristic peaks and troughs under high operational rates
A novel diagnostic technique for the quantification of lithium-ion battery degradation modes under in- operando conditions · Imperial · PhD
Tried and failed
transfer learning for long-term degradation prediction applied to battery state of health estimation. Outcome: did not generalise. Reason: model failed to extrapolate capacity loss during late-life aging phases beyond trained cycle horizons
Modeling and Simulation of Power System with High Penetration of Inverter-based Resources · Georgia Tech · PhD
Considered and rejected
Considered and rejected: Rejected using battery discharge capacity alone for RUL prediction because capacity oscillations cause inaccurate predictions.
NOVEL ARCHITECTURE AND MACHINE LEARNING MODELS FOR SYSTEM PROGNOSTIC AND REMAINING USEFUL LIFE PREDICTION WITH UNCERTAINTY QUANTIFICATION · Georgia Tech · PhD
Considered and rejected
Considered and rejected: Offline fixed lookup-table parameterization across battery lifetime was rejected for HBS control because module parameter drift during degradation led to inaccurate SOC estimation and poor power allocation tracking.
An integrated battery unit regulation strategy · Cranfield · PhD
Accelerated testing and diagnostic protocols mischaracterize true degradation mechanisms
Shortened capacity tests, rapid cyclic voltammetry scans, and simplified half-cell configurations introduce transients or mass transport limitations that distort long-term aging trends. Standardized ambient screening and fixed capacity metrics also yield fluctuating ratings that fail to reflect actual full-cell degradation under operational conditions.
Considered and rejected
Considered and rejected: Rejected simple capacity-limited (CL) half-cell cycling for evaluating foil stability because dynamic lithium inventory buildup obscured true degradation mechanisms in full cells
Design of composite foil anodes for lithium-ion batteries · UT Austin · PhD
Considered and rejected
Considered and rejected: Rejected using the 4-h Standard 145.2 capacity test because it overestimates degradation rate by up to 2.7 times due to initial fast degradation transient.
Ozone removal air cleaning devices : test method and performance assessment · UT Austin · PhD
Considered and rejected
Considered and rejected: Rejected the potentiometric battery entropy testing method due to test durations spanning multiple days per cell.
High-powered electric motorcycle integrated performance studies · Nottingham · PhD
Tried and failed
standardised datasheet specifications and ambient convection testing applied to battery cell performance ranking. Outcome: did not generalise. Reason: rankings inverted under realistic thermal cooling and dynamic load conditions
Thermal characterisation and performance of cylindrical lithium-ion batteries · Imperial · PhD
Lost to a baseline
In LFP||Li capacity cycling at 0.1–1 C, the three-electrode coin cell yielded slightly lower capacity and higher variability between cycles compared to the standard two-electrode configuration.
NOVEL METHODS AND MECHANISTIC UNDERSTANDING OF BATTERY MATERIALS AND INTERFACES · Cornell · PhD
Considered and rejected
Considered and rejected: Rejected cyclic voltammetry (20 mV/s) for liquid cell degradation studies because high scan rate causes mass transport limitations and peak broadening, failing to match galvanostatic battery degradation
Towards reproducible lithium-ion battery cycling using liquid-phase transmission electron microscopy · EPFL · PhD
Considered and rejected
Considered and rejected: Rejected defining anionic redox reversibility as the ratio of discharge capacity to charge capacity, because transition metal and Ru reduction during discharge convolute the separate evaluation of oxygen redox reduction.
Considered and rejected
Considered and rejected: Rejected relying on half-cell potential and chloride sampling for capacity rating because data fluctuated heavily and contradicted physical strand condition.
Experimental Investigations of Residual Strength and Repaired Strength of Corrosion Damaged Prestressed Bridge Beams · Virginia Tech · Doctorate
Considered and rejected
Considered and rejected: Enforcing total positive and negative electrode capacity constraints (Qtot,max) from independent experimental measurements during MSMR parameter estimation; rejected in favor of letting total capacities be unconstrained emergent fit parameters due to active loading uncertainties in commercial cells and degradation during cycling.
Development of Whole-Cell Diagnostic Techniques and Tools for Lithium-ion Batteries · University of Washington · PhD
High rate and fast charging cycling protocols trigger transport limitations and lithium plating
Imposing elevated charging rates or forced convection protocols leads to severe transport bottlenecks, concentration buildup, and excessive overpotentials. Under sub-zero temperatures or high electrode mass loadings, these aggressive cycling rates accelerate cell degradation by causing active ion loss and metallic lithium plating.
Tried and failed
forced electrolyte convection at high initial concentration applied to electrochemical battery cells. Outcome: worse than baseline. Reason: concentration buildup reduced electrolyte conductivity and increased ohmic drops, lowering accessed capacity
Modeling and Analysis of a Lithium-ion Convection Battery · MIT · PhD
Lost to a baseline
Sulfur-loaded MOF cells suffered significant capacity drops compared to sulfur-mixed composites at high discharge rates above 2C.
METAL-ORGANIC FRAMEWORKS: A MULTIDISCIPLINARY PLATFORM TO IMPROVE THE PERFORMANCE AND FUNDAMENTAL UNDERSTANDING OF LITHIUM-SULFUR BATTERIES · Johns Hopkins · PhD
Lost to a baseline
2 m KFSI in TEP full cell achieved only 8% accessible capacity at 5C compared to 34% for the hypothetical KFSI:DME equivalent cell
Characterisation and modelling of potassium-ion batteries · Oxford · PhD
Lost to a baseline
Room-temperature C/3 cycling of DMOHC cells caused lithium plating and failed compared to standard EC-based baseline electrolytes due to excessive viscosity.
Li-ion Cell Electrolytes For Enhanced Performance at High Temperatures · Dalhousie · PhD
Tried and failed
high-current pulse charging protocol applied to low-temperature battery charging. Outcome: worse than baseline. Reason: severe lithium plating and transport limitations at sub-zero temperatures degraded cell lifetime faster than standard charging
Lithium-ion battery fast charging: understanding the effects of transport properties and thermal heterogeneity on lithium plating · Imperial · PhD
Tried and failed
non-conjugated redox polymers for fast cycling applied to high-rate battery electrodes. Outcome: worse than baseline. Reason: lack of electronic conjugation limited charge transport at high discharge rates above 10 C
AN ELECTROANALYTICAL ASSESSMENT OF ORGANIC REDOX TRANSFORMATIONS IN BATTERY AND ELECTROSYNTHETIC APPLICATIONS · Cornell · PhD
Lost to a baseline
At fast cycling rates (0.2 A g-1 and above), dendritic copper-templated carbon achieved lower specific capacity than spheroidal and flake carbons (17 mAh g-1 at 2.0 A g-1 vs 54 and 92 mAh g-1, respectively).
Purposeful design of carbon material architectures for the advancement of lithium & sodium-ion batteries · UT Austin · PhD
Lost to a baseline
High loading cells at 20 °C cycled at C/2 reached 92% capacity retention at 6000 h, beaten by C/4 cycling (97%) and regular loading baseline (99%) due to Li plating
EXTENDED LIFETIME AND INCREASED ENERGY DENSITY STUDIES FOR LI-ION CELLS · Dalhousie · PhD
Lost to a baseline
Li/LFP cells with TE-300 had lower discharge capacity at 0.5C and 1.0C compared to 140 mAh/g at 0.1C due to network diffusion limits
Cross-linked Polymer Membranes for Safer Lithium Batteries · Cornell · PhD
Energy management and dispatch strategies induce cell imbalance and accelerated cycling degradation
Disregarding cycle-dependent degradation costs or battery state-of-charge limits in dispatch algorithms leads to progressive depletion and excessive wear. Furthermore, active balancing schemes applied during discharge or across thermal gradients fail to eliminate capacity mismatches and reduce total delivered pack energy.
Tried and failed
negative state feedback balancing applied to heterogeneous multi-cell battery packs. Reason: nonzero average current combined with capacity mismatch prevents dissipation of state-of-charge heterogeneity
Modeling and Management of Energy Storage Systems · Texas Tech · PhD
Considered and rejected
Considered and rejected: Canonical generation-centric dispatch (GCD) model that disregards battery cycling degradation costs, leading to higher overall social costs and financial losses for storage.
Efficiency and Market Power in Electricity Markets with Inelastic Demand, Energy Storage, and Hybrid Energy Resources · Johns Hopkins · PhD
Considered and rejected
Considered and rejected: Sequential/combined DP+PMP for speed planning and energy management co-optimization, rejected because omitting battery SoC constraints results in 5-33% higher fuel consumption on fast driving cycles
Predictive energy management of fuel cell electric trucks Prädiktives Energiemanagement für Brennstoffzellen-Lkw · TU Wien · PhD
Tried and failed
cell balancing during discharge applied to series-connected battery pack with thermal gradients. Outcome: worse than baseline. Reason: warmer cells shift to lower state of charge, reducing total pack energy without capacity gains
Considered and rejected
Considered and rejected: Rejected using pure average-load forecast alone in the EMS without a battery SoC correction term, as high-load cycles led to progressive battery depletion.
Predictive power demand, energy and thermal management for fuel cell electric tractors · TU Wien · PhD
Considered and rejected
Considered and rejected: Restricting ES voltage smoothing to active power ramp rate control only (Technique I), rejected due to excessive battery cycling and lack of visibility into broader grid disturbances.
Interphase power flow control and voltage regulation in distribution systems with high photovoltaic generation · UT Austin · PhD
Considered and rejected
Considered and rejected: Rejected continuously targeting a strict 50% state-of-energy for battery ramp-rate smoothing, adopting a 40–60% SOE band instead to avoid excessive cycling, degradation, and conversion losses
Power Intermittency and Technoeconomic Performance of Solar Photovoltaic Systems With Energy Storage · Dalhousie · Master's
Flow battery cycling protocols fail due to active species degradation and membrane crossover
Subjecting organic quinones, coordination complexes, and bipolar redox molecules to flow cell cycling causes severe capacity fade from chemical decomposition and high overpotential splitting. In addition, continuous electrolyte flow accelerates membrane breakdown and crossover, while post-cycling electrolyte remixing fails to recover lost capacity.
Tried and failed
transition metal coordination complexes as redox electrolytes applied to aqueous redox flow batteries. Outcome: unstable. Reason: rapid capacity fade caused by structural degradation of the coordination complex during flow cell cycling
Development of Iron Complex-based Aqueous Redox Flow Batteries for Large-scale Energy Storage · Harvard · PhD
Lost to a baseline
In the flow mode, HGO-BC composite membrane discharge capacity retention reached only 70% after 100 cycles compared to ~91% over 400 cycles in static mode due to electrolyte flow accelerating membrane disintegration and exacerbating crossover.
Highly concentrated electrolyte design for high-energy and high-power redox flow batteries · UT Austin · PhD
Tried and failed
Sequential multi-electron transfer with disparate redox potentials applied to redox flow battery active materials. Outcome: worse than baseline. Reason: Large potential splitting between electron transfer steps causes severe voltaic efficiency losses under current.
Rational design strategies for redox flow batteries · MIT · PhD
Tried and failed
introducing multiple ionic solubilizing groups to quinones applied to neutral aqueous organic redox flow batteries. Outcome: unstable. Reason: exhibited rapid chemical or electrochemical degradation leading to a high capacity fade rate during cycling
Development of Redox Organics for Aqueous Flow Batteries · Harvard · PhD
Tried and failed
equal-volume remixing of degraded electrolytes applied to redox flow battery capacity recovery. Reason: mixing spent posolyte and negolyte failed to provide significant capacity recovery due to irreversible side-reaction drift
Tried and failed
symmetric bipolar redox molecule cycling in batteries applied to single-molecule non-aqueous redox flow batteries. Outcome: unstable. Reason: both positive and negative redox states suffered rapid chemical degradation into unidentifiable electroactive species
The Synthesis and Application of 1,4-Dithiins, Thianthrenes, and Other Sulfur-Rich Scaffolds · MIT · PhD
Lost to a baseline
C60Fc2 without polarity switching experienced 1.01% capacity fade per cycle, performing worse than C60Fc1 at 0.33% per cycle.
Multi-Electron Charge Carriers for Next-Generation Flow Batteries · Nottingham · PhD
Formation protocols and initial interphase conditioning cause parasitic growth and short circuits
Applying constant-potential holding or slow formation rates during early cycling promotes secondary interphase growth and severe irreversible capacity loss. In solid-state systems, initial low nucleation currents and interfacial cycling fail to suppress dendrites and consume applied current through continuous parasitic reactions.
Tried and failed
slow initial nucleation current during electrodeposition applied to anode-free solid-state battery cycling. Outcome: no signal. Reason: did not improve cycling lifetime or prevent dendrite-induced short-circuiting during subsequent cycles
Probing Interfacial Dynamics in Solid-State Lithium Metal Batteries · Georgia Tech · PhD
Tried and failed
electrochemical cycling of solid electrolyte interfaces applied to symmetric solid-state lithium metal cells. Outcome: no signal. Reason: applied current consumed entirely by continuous parasitic interphase growth rather than metal deposition
Probing Interfacial Dynamics in Solid-State Lithium Metal Batteries · Georgia Tech · PhD
Tried and failed
slow formation charging rate applied to battery solid electrolyte interphase formation. Outcome: worse than baseline. Reason: extended time allowed secondary layer growth, yielding higher impedance and worse passivation than faster protocols
Tried and failed
constant-potential protocol for initial electrochemical interphase formation applied to lithium-ion battery cells. Outcome: unstable. Reason: caused severe irreversible active ion loss, capacity drop, and internal cell short-circuiting
Understanding and addressing the rate-limiting phenomena in energy-dense lithium-ion batteries · UT Austin · PhD
Left open by the authors
Problems the authors named and did not get to.
Left open
Test battery degradation and heterogeneity under dynamic EV power profiles and parallel string loads using coupled thermal-ECN simulation and experiments. Blocker: Requires battery pack cycling hardware/cyclers or unreleased parameterised pack models under dynamic drive cycles
Understanding the effects of heterogeneities on battery pack lifetime · Imperial · PhD
Left open
Address rapid degradation, poor fast-charging, thermal abuse tolerance, and air instability in high-voltage oxide cathodes under extreme temperatures. Blocker: Requires a wet chemistry and battery testing laboratory to synthesize, modify, and test physical cathode materials.
High-voltage oxide cathodes for high-energy-density lithium-ion batteries · UT Austin · PhD
Left open
Evaluate EIS-based battery health prognostics on a single cell subjected to varying drive cycles across its lifetime. Blocker: Requires a physical battery testing lab and potentiostat to run cycling and EIS measurements across varied drive cycles
Lithium-Ion Battery State of Health Estimation and Remaining Useful Life Prediction: Practical Techniques for Varied Operating Conditions · University of Windsor · Master's
Left open
Quantify degradation mechanisms and lifespan of novel high-nickel battery chemistries under real-life operating conditions. Blocker: Requires battery testing lab facilities, physical cells, and extensive long-term cycling experiments
Life-cycle modelling of lithium-ion batteries for electric vehicles · Imperial · PhD
Left open
Test the electrothermal state estimation method across NMC, LFP, solid-state chemistries and pouch and prismatic cell formats. Blocker: Requires physical battery testing hardware and physical cells of various chemistries/formats for experimental validation.
Electrothermal State Estimation of Lithium-Ion Cells for Cold-Climate Battery Management · Carleton University · Master's
Left open
Perform pressure vessel trace gas and GC testing on failed lithium-ion cells at 30%, 50%, and 70% SOC to detect toxic gases. Blocker: Requires a physical lab setup with a pressure vessel, GC analytical equipment, and battery failure test apparatus.
Towards an investigation framework for lithium-ion battery fire forensics · UT Austin · PhD
Left open
Integrate 3D porous ceramic frameworks with high-voltage cathodes and test long-term stability under fast charging and thermal cycling. Blocker: Requires a wet chemistry and battery fabrication lab to assemble cells and perform extreme condition testing
Process Engineering for High-Energy Density and High-Power Lithium Metal Batteries · Georgia Tech · PhD
Left open
Experimentally test CO2 electrolyzer degradation mechanisms, catalyst stability, and stack lifetime under dynamic cycling and prolonged open-circuit operation. Blocker: Requires a wet-lab experimental setup and physical CO2 electrolyzer hardware
A framework for scalable CO₂ reduction : process modeling and techno-economics to identify performance and cost tradeoffs · UT Austin · PhD
Left open
Study chemo-mechanical damage, contact maintenance, and lithium trapping for aluminum foil anodes in solid-state electrolyte cells under high stack pressure. Blocker: Requires a physical wet-lab setup to build and test solid-state battery cells under high stack pressure.
Analyzing the Electro-Chemo-Mechanical Behavior of Aluminum Foil Anodes for Lithium-Ion Batteries · Georgia Tech · PhD
Left open
Simulate parallel battery packs under pulsed charging to study the impact of rebalancing currents and uneven heat generation on protocol optimization. Blocker: None
Lithium-ion battery fast charging: understanding the effects of transport properties and thermal heterogeneity on lithium plating · Imperial · PhD
Who has worked on this
Authors of the public theses cited on this page, most-cited first.
- Anna Iwona Tomaszewska · Imperial · PhD · 2023
Lithium-ion battery fast charging: understanding the effects of transport properties and thermal heterogeneity on lithium plating - Ryan Prosser · Imperial · PhD · 2022
A novel diagnostic technique for the quantification of lithium-ion battery degradation modes under in- operando conditions - John A. Lewis · Georgia Tech · PhD · 2022
Probing Interfacial Dynamics in Solid-State Lithium Metal Batteries - Jinwook Rhyu · MIT · PhD · 2026
Interpretable Approaches for Optimizing the Pulse Diagnostics and Formation for Lithium-ion Batteries - Preston T Abadie · Texas Tech · PhD · 2026
Modeling and Management of Energy Storage Systems - Shane Hu · Carleton University · Master's · 2026
Electrothermal State Estimation of Lithium-Ion Cells for Cold-Climate Battery Management - Soham Suneel Dange · Virginia Tech · Master's · 2025
A tool for analyzing the evolution of non-uniformities in lithium-ion cylindrical battery cells at the module level under various operating conditions - Christian Varlese · TU Wien · PhD · 2025
Predictive power demand, energy and thermal management for fuel cell electric tractors - Ahnaf Akif Rahman · University of Windsor · Master's · 2025
Lithium-Ion Battery State of Health Estimation and Remaining Useful Life Prediction: Practical Techniques for Varied Operating Conditions - Minsu Kim · Georgia Tech · PhD · 2024
Process Engineering for High-Energy Density and High-Power Lithium Metal Batteries - Siyao Cai · Georgia Tech · PhD · 2024
Modeling and Simulation of Power System with High Penetration of Inverter-based Resources - Mohamed Waseem Jazal Marzook · Imperial · PhD · 2024
Thermal characterisation and performance of cylindrical lithium-ion batteries
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