EPSD Colloquium

Buried interfaces govern performance, stability, and efficiency across energy storage, energy conversion, and advanced separations technologies, yet remain challenging to probe under realistic operating conditions. This talk highlights how advanced X-ray tools enable direct interrogation of these hidden regions to reveal structure–function relationships in complex, evolving systems. In energy storage, X-ray diffraction and three-dimensional tomography are used to track chemo-mechanical dynamics in real time, capturing phase evolution, strain development, and morphological changes that drive degradation and failure in next-generation batteries. For energy conversion systems, X-ray probes provide insight into water mobility, transport pathways, and interfacial dynamics that control reaction kinetics and device efficiency, particularly in electrochemical and catalytic environments. In advanced separations, unique spectroscopic and imaging approaches unravel how nanoscale confinement alters molecular organization and transport, uncovering mechanisms by which confinement can enhance selectivity and throughput. Together, these operando and multiscale X-ray methodologies establish a powerful framework for connecting buried interfacial phenomena to macroscopic performance, enabling rational design of materials and architectures for resilient, high-performance energy and separation technologies.