For more than forty years, SCI has supported and recognised the excellence of early career scientists, by aiding their studies in the form of an SCI Scholarship.
Since 1985 more than 80 scholarships have been awarded which have not only given the recipients financial assistance, but have enabled them to broaden their network, and strengthen their skills and knowledge. SCI Scholars receive access to publishing and mentoring opportunities and are given a platform to present their work amongst esteemed scientists and industrialists, raising their profile within the scientific community.
Shaoquan Li was awarded an SCI Scholarship in 2025. At the end of their scholarship, SCI Scholars present a report to SCI. Read on to find out what he has done in his first year as an SCI Scholar.
"The scholarship-funded project focuses on investigating the mechanism and solid-electrolyte interphase (SEI) in lithium-mediated nitrogen reduction (LiNR) for ammonia synthesis and improving performance through electrode surface modification.
"Over the past year, progress has been made in understanding the SEI by conducting operando experiments using electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) and post-mortem characterisation. Operando EIS provides a unique perspective for understanding the dynamic changes of the SEI during the process and its correlation with performance. Post-mortem characterisation provides chemical and morphological information about the SEI. Current results show that the SEI consists of two major components: LiF as the inorganic phase and LiEtO as the organic phase. These components regulate mass transport from the bulk electrolyte to the deposited lithium metal surface, thereby affecting process performance. The SEI also exhibits a loose, particle-aggregated morphology, which enables electrolyte permeation and facilitates mass transport. Operando EIS showed that the SEI was gradually formed at the early stage of the experiment, and that the side reaction rate decreased after a stable SEI had formed, demonstrating the importance of the SEI. Meanwhile, experiments with different proton source concentrations showed that the proton source also plays a critical role in SEI formation.
"Although the SEI has been widely investigated in this field, current understanding remains insufficient, and this work provides a new perspective for further study. Another part of the project involves using Li-metal alloys as electrode surface modifications to enhance process performance. The modified electrodes were fabricated by electrodepositing Zn metal. Results showed the benefit of improving lithium deposition by reducing nucleation-stage kinetics. Further investigation is ongoing to verify and better understand the function of the surface modification.
"The scholarship funding was used to support the purchase of experimental chemicals, such as solvents and lithium salts. It also supported the purchase of a nitrogen gas supply setup to improve experimental conditions. Meanwhile, the scholarship enabled me to attend the RSC Electrochemistry 2025 conference to communicate with other researchers, which greatly benefited the project. I also gave a poster presentation to introduce my work to other researchers and acknowledged the contributions of SCI for supporting my project."
Shaoquan Li
PhD Student
Lancaster University
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