Christopher Kompella Email & Phone Number

Irvine, Ca, Us

Ramped battery module production lines in Normal, IL and combined experience with equipment, process, and materials to inform future DFM opportunities-Ongoing support in R2 battery module design with focus on materials and product development-Led the team that executed production validation builds for Max Pack. Built the first 500+ battery modules to improve the design maturity and proved the next-gen (higher energy) cell could be utilized in the current module design as a complete drop-in replacement. Saved the company >$200M and 6 months while seamlessly transitioning cell supply to launch the 400+ mile range vehicle.-Drove scrap reduction efforts stemming from part inconsistency that manifested themselves as laser weld fallout. Worked with Keyence in-line metrology systems including LJX, TM, CM, and CL-series sensors to establish IQC methods and prevent excursions from suppliers from generating scrap on the line-Supported local MFG team in line ramp on cell interconnect (laser welding) and EOL test. Developed workflows for defect flagging and defect pareto analysis to root cause subpar yield. Managed projects to improve welder availability.

Irvine, Ca, Us

Developed expertise in cell assembly and formation equipment and process to unblock bottlenecks of large-format prismatic cell manufacturing.-Owned manufacturing processes and equipment through RFI/vendor search, design review, acceptance testing, and install/commission-Landed equipment and developed processes for large-format prismatic cells at kWh and MWh line capacities with focus on cell assembly (heat press, leak check, and E-fill) and formation-Leveraged experience in separators and electrolytes to design and realize benchtop equipment that provided foundational understanding of product sensitivities to develop product and process specifications for manufacturability-Filed 2 patents and 3 trade secrets for expedited electrolyte infiltration including electrode design and process innovation

Directed battery design and engineering from start to finish to address technology gaps in the Department of Defense. Consulted technically for Amionx (subsidiary) for technology transfer for proprietary safety technology. De-risked scale up and adoption in consumer electronics applications for OEMs including Facebook, Stanley Black & Decker, and several other Fortune 100 companies.-Developed knowledge of high energy and high power cell chemistries including familiarity with Li metal, nano Si/SiOx/Li-Si alloys, high voltage LCO, and high Ni cathode materials-Experienced in Z-stack and wound pouch cell battery manufacturing processes and processing conditions to address material-specific obstacles-Managed a successful R&D contract to develop a high power and high energy battery with low temperature operation that enables vertical takeoff and lift functionality in Class I unmanned aerial systems by extending operating temperature from -20 to -40 °C-Proposed and secured $0.25M in funding through the AFWERX program to develop a zero-volt tolerant Li-ion battery to enable SmallSatellite resilience (patent awarded)

Battery R&D engineer aiming to enable safe, high power energy storage to extend lifetime and range for military vehicles and other applications.-Subcontractor for CERDEC and NSWC to develop intrinsically safe man-portable power for infantry-Invented a corrosion-inhibiting coating for protection of positive current collector in imide-based electrolytes towards enabling cheaper, high-temperature batteries with air/water-stable electrolytes (patent awarded)-Responsible industry partner in NSF DMREF program to prove localized high-concentration electrolyte technology in pouch cell form factors applicable to consumer electronics-Discovered and evaluated transition opportunities, collaborated with government primes to scope requirements and build work plan. Maintained project scope, schedule, and budget while delivering reliable superior product. Brought in >$0.5M in government funding for the company.

M.S. thesis research under the tutelage of Prof. Ying Shirley Meng exploring superionic conductors as promising solid electrolytes in lithium and sodium all solid-state batteries. Published two papers and presented work at several conferences.-Synthesized sulfide-based glass/glass-ceramic solid electrolytes via conventional solid-state synthesis and mechanochemical milling and investigated the effects of different synthesis pathways on morphology, crystallinity, and performance-Improved conductivity by more than 2000% through investigation of aliovalent doping as a strategy to increase charge carriers for higher ionic conductivity-Utilized novel sintering techniques including hot isotactic pressing and spark plasma sintering to yield a densified electrolyte for an ionic conductivity approaching theoretical limits-Achieved one of the highest room temperature ionic conductivities for a sodium solid electrolyte-Demonstrated feasibility of sodium solid electrolyte in an all-solid-state battery-Conducted failure analysis on all-solid-state batteries to better understand the decomposition mechanism of sulfide solid electrolytes-Employed advanced surface science characterization techniques to determine chemical components of the solid electrolyte interphase-Investigated effects of aliovalent doping on the composition of the solid electrolyte interphase and identified halide doping as a pathway for stabilizing the solid electrolyte interphase, improving the battery cycle life by more than 50%

Palo Alto, Ca, Us

Worked with Power Delivery & Utilization (PDU) sector on Energy Efficiency and Energy Storage technical reports. Co-published "State-of-the-Art of Building Energy Management Systems: An Assessment" and "Energy Storage Case Studies: 2012"-Surveyed energy efficiency systems and software platforms for residential, commercial, and industrial buildings including lighting, HVAC, security, elevators, renewables integration and backup, and more-Explored regulations and protocol infrastructure for controls systems to receive and/or send communication from/to utilities regarding usage-Evaluated solutions and their ability to provide demand response during peak periods and rated them based on their level of automation (i.e. manual, semi-automated, fully-automated)-Performed basic cost-benefit analyses of different levels of automated demand response-Compiled list of energy storage deployments which would later become the Department of Energy's Energy Storage Exchange-Explored forms of energy storage including electrochemical, electromechanical, hydrogen, pumped hydro, and thermal with an emphasis on Li-ion batteries-Spoke with project managers, utilities representatives, politicians and policymakers, local emergency response, cell suppliers, pack manufacturers, electronics manufacturers to gain insight into the deployment process, specifications, and lessons learned-Evaluated energy storage for functions including peak shaving, load levelling, renewables shifting and firming, and many other ancillary services

Master Of Science (M.S.), Nanoengineering

Bachelor Of Science (B.S.), Nanoengineering - Materials Science