Prof. Rachid Yazami

Title: The key role of lithium batteries in the future energy transition

 

Abstract

Global climate changes with year-over-year atmospheric temperature rising all over the globe is one of the most serious challenges facing humanity in the next decades. Among the root causes of the "earth fever" is the accumulation of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere coming for the most from carbon-containing fuels combustion. The mitigation of the greenhouse gases emission should result from a drastic reduction of hydrocarbons consumption by transiting to alternative clean and sustainable energy sources such as solar, wind and hydrothermal energy. In this perspective lithium ion batteries (LIBs) will play a major role in energy storage to balance between energy production and consumption, therefore, improving the energy efficiency. LIBs are currently the best option to power electric vehicles, to store energy for industry and in buildings and in mobile electronics applications. The production of LIBs is about 160 GWh in 2018 and is expected to reach 880GWh by 2030. New GigaFactories are under construction in Europe, Asia and in America, showing the central role LIBs will play in the future energy transition. 

Biography 

Professor Yazami is the inventor involved in over 150 patents related to battery technology, including the graphite anode used in most commercial lithium ion batteries an over $100b business. Dr. Yazami co-authored about 250 articles in peer-reviewed journals, book chapters and international meeting proceedings.
Yazami served a visiting associate in Materials Science and in Chemistry at the California
Institute of Technology (Caltech) in collaboration with JPL/NASA together with being the
President of the International Battery Association (IBA). Dr. Yazami joined the Nanyang Technological University in Singapore (NTU) where he held the Nanyang Visiting Professor in Materials Science position together with being a PI of battery research at the TUM Create Center of e-mobility, jointly managed by NTU and the Technological University of Munich. In recognition of his invention of the graphite anode in lithium ion batteries, Yazami received several scientific awards, including from NASA, NATO, IBA, JSPS, Hawaii Battery Conference, the IEEE and the Draper Prize in 2014 considered as the Nobel Prize in Engineering. In 2014 Yazami was decorated by HM the King of Morocco. He is the recipient of the French Legion of Honor in 2016 and of the “2018’ Takreem Award” in Science and Technology Innovation, considered the Arab Scientist of the Year Award. Recently Prof. Rachid was the recipient of the 2019’ Arab Investor Award during a Forum held in the UNESCO headquarters in Paris together with the Mohamed Bin Rached Medal of Scientific Distinguishment of Life Achievement given by the Ruler of Dubai in 2020.