Featuring Experts in Battery Technology, Renewable Energy. Meeting celebrates the 25th Anniversary of Lithium-Ion Battery

HONOLULU – The largest and most significant joint research conference of its kind in the world known as PRiME 2016 kicked-off yesterday at the Hawaii Convention Center on Oahu welcoming more than 4,000 pioneering scientists and engineers including those specializing in battery technology and renewable energy. 

Three scientific societies – The Electrochemical Society, The Electrochemical Society of Japan and The Korean Electrochemical Society – will hold its joint scientific meeting October 2-7, 2016, which will include 56 topical symposia and 4,128 technical presentations – including the 6th International Electrochemical Energy Summit and celebration of the 25th anniversary of the commercialization of the lithium-ion battery. 

PRiME 2016 is expected to generate an approximately $20 million in visitor spending and $1.9 million in state tax revenue providing a significant boost to Hawaii’s economy. 

“Meetings like PRiME 2016 which brings attendees together in Hawaii from east and west are exactly the types of scientific gatherings we’re looking for to boost our meetings, incentives, conventions and exhibitions business in the Aloha State,” said Leslie Dance, vice president of marketing and product development for the Hawaii Tourism Authority (HTA). “We’ve been fortunate to enjoy a long standing relationship with The Electrochemical Society who have found Hawaii’s geographic locations and inspiring atmosphere an ideal and productive environment to accomplish their business. We wish them a wonderful time in the islands.” 

  • Throughout the week, meeting attendees will benefit from a full program consisting of lectures by keynote speakers, such as: 
  • World-renowned scientist Christian Amatore, who will speak on a new mechanism based on analytical measurements that could give novel insight into Alzheimer disease.
  • John B. Goodenough, widely recognized for his role in the development of the rechargeable Lithium-ion battery best known for powering handheld electronics.
  • This year’s winner of the ECS Charles W. Tobias Young Investigator Award, Y. Shirley Meng, who will discuss her recent research into understanding how batteries work and ultimately, how they may help to combat the effects of greenhouse gases. 


Below are some programming highlights from PRiME 2016.   

25th Anniversary of the Lithium-ion Battery
(Sunday, Oct. 2)

The impact that the development of the Li-ion battery has made on society cannot be overemphasized. From powering medical devices to enabling hand-held electronics and even providing potential storage for a renewable gird, Li-ion technology has revolutionized the way we think about energy. PRiME 2016 will celebrate the 25th anniversary of this technology by hosting talks by some of the pioneering scientists who helped transform Li-ion technology from a laboratory curiosity into the backbone for many devices.   

The symposium will feature lectures and an evening reception and talk by Yoshio Nishi, former employee of Sony. Other speakers include John B. Goodenough, widely recognized for his role in the development of the rechargeable Li-ion battery; M. Stanley Whittingham, a key figure in battery technology whose developments allowed Exxon to commercialize the first rechargeable Li-ion battery; Michael Thackeray, known for his identification of new cathodes that led to advances in lithium technology; Zempachi Ogumi, recognized for his work focusing on interfacial phenomena in Li-ion batteries and fuel cells; and Martin Winter, who has focused on Li-ion R&D for nearly 25 years.   
 

6th International Electrochemical Energy Summit
(Sunday, Oct. 2)
With population growth and industrialization, global energy needs continue to rise. The 6th International Electrochemical Energy Summit will be focused on Recent Progress in Renewable Energy Generation, Distribution and Storage – facilitating interactions and fostering the exchange of ideas between leading policy makers, researchers, and energy experts about society’s needs and technological energy solutions through a variety of formats, including: keynote presentations, poster sessions, and networking opportunities.   

Speakers will include Mark Glick (Hawaii State Energy Office), Richard Rocheleau (Hawaii Natural Energy Institute), , Eiji Ohira (New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization), and Won-Yong Lee (Korea Institute of Energy Research).   

Photoelectrochemical Cells for the Generation of Electricity and Fuels from Sunlight
(Monday, Oct. 3) 
Michael Graetzel, pioneer in the field of energy conversion, will deliver a talk describing his research on the development of nanostructured systems to convert sun to electricity and fuels, all taking inspiration from green plant photosynthesis.   

Advanced Materials Diagnosis and Characterization for Enabling High Energy Long Life Rechargeable Batteries
(Tuesday, Oct. 4) 
This year’s winner of the ECS Charles W. Tobias Young Investigator Award, Y. Shirley Meng, will discuss her recently published research into understanding how batteries work at the smallest-scale in order to create better batteries and ultimately combat the effects of greenhouse gases. 

Alzheimer Disease and Oxidative Stress: Thou Shalt not Breathe nor Think!
(Monday, Oct. 3) 
World-renowned scientist Christian Amatore will discuss a new mechanism based on analytical measurements that could give novel insight into Alzheimer disease.   

Mixed Potential Sensors for Hydrogen Safety and Automotive Applications
(Wednesday, Oct. 5) 
Los Alamos National Laboratory researcher, Rangachary Mukundan, will talk about the evolution of sensors and how hydrogen safety sensors could help accelerate a sustainable automotive industry and implement new hydrogen fueling stations across the country.   

Other highlights include more than 50 symposia in the following areas: 

  • Batteries and energy storage
  • Carbon nanostructures and devices
  • Corrosion science and technology
  • Dielectric science and materials
  • Electrochemical/electroless deposition
  • Electrochemical engineering
  • Electronic materials and processing
  • Electronic and photonic devices and systems
  • Fuel cells, electrolyzers, and energy conversion
  • Luminescence and display materials, devices, and processing
  • Organic and bioelectrochemistry
  • Physical and analytical electrochemistry, electrocatalysis, and photoelectrochemistry
  • Sensors

Media Registration Free registration is available to credentialed representatives of the press. Please email ECS Marketing and Communications Director Rob Gerth at Rob.Gerth@electrochem.org for further information. 

- pau- 

About ECS
Founded in 1902, ECS is led by scientists, for scientists. ECS advances electrochemistry and solid state science by publishing peer-reviewed scholarly journals, convening scientific meetings, and supporting emerging scientists in our fields. With Free the Science, ECS envisions a new publishing model without costs to authors and readers so that collectively we can achieve a cleaner, safer, healthier, and greener world for us all. Visit www.electrochem.org for more information.   

About Meet Hawai‘i
Meet Hawai‘i is a collaboration of the Hawai‘i Visitors and Convention Bureau (HVCB) and Hawai‘i Convention Center (HCC) to reinforce the brand of the Hawaiian Islands as a world-class destination for business meetings, conventions, and incentive programs. The marketing efforts of the Meet Hawai‘i team are overseen by the Hawai‘i Tourism Authority (HTA), the state of Hawai‘i’s tourism agency. HTA was established in 1998 to ensure a successful visitor industry well into the future. Its mission is to strategically manage Hawai‘i tourism in a sustainable manner consistent with the state of Hawai‘i’s economic goals, cultural values, preservation of natural resources, community desires, and visitor industry needs. For information about Meet Hawai‘i and the hosting of meetings, conventions and incentives, please visit MeetHawaii.com.  

Media Contacts:

Nathan Kam
Anthology Marketing Group
(808) 741-2763 (m)
Nathan.Kam@AnthologyGroup.com

Rob Gerth
The Electrochemical Society
(609) 737-1902, ext. 114
Rob.Gerth@electrochem.org