IFP Energies nouvelles

IFP Energies nouvelles is a French public-sector research, innovation and training center. Its mission is to develop efficient, economical, clean and sustainable technologies in the fields of energy, transport and the environment. From scientific concepts in fundamental research to technological solutions in applied research, technological innovation is at the heart of its action. IFPEN‘s originality and strength lie in its ability to ensure continuity between fundamental research, applied research and innovation. Its work on a sustainable energy mix aims to lead to economically and energy competitive solutions. IFPEN researchers develop processes, equipment, software and services through R&I programs in four main areas: climate, environment and circular economy; renewable energies; sustainable mobility and responsible oil and gas.
Thanks to more than 15 years of experience in the field of electrochemical storage systems, IFPEN is today recognized as a key player in the modeling and simulation of batteries in France and Europe. Since 2020, IFPEN has decided to widen its research field to battery materials as well, to support the industrial development of post Li-ion battery technologies.

IFPEN in figures:

  • 1,600 employees (equally divided between Paris and Lyon sites), including 1,105 R&I engineers and technicians
  • Nearly 150 PhD students, post-doctoral researchers and interns
  • Self-funded to the tune of more than 50%
  • 68% of budget dedicated to New Energy Technologies
  • 149 basic patent applications, including 93 in the field of New Energy Technologies
  • More than 600 scientific publications and conference papers
  • More than 70 ongoing collaborative research projects, including 38 involving international partners
  • More than 30 companies created

SCIENTIFIC TEAM

Mona Marie OBADIA (Principal Investigator)

Dr. Mona M. Obadia studied polymer chemistry and material sciences at ITECH, a French engineering school in Lyon (France). In 2012, she pursued a postgraduate program in Materials Processes and Technology of Composites material for aeronautics at the French engineering school ‘‘Ecole Centrale’’ in Nantes. In 2013, she undertook a PhD position in the groups of Prof. E. Drockenmuller and Dr. D. Montarnal at the University Claude Bernard Lyon 1 (France) where she developed accelerated methodologies for the synthesis of ion conducting materials suited for applications in the field of energy. In 2015, she was a visiting scholar in the group of Prof. T. Xu at the University of California in Berkeley (USA) working on diblock copolymer supramolecular assemblies. In 2018, she was appointed research and innovation engineer in the Electrochemistry and Materials department of IFP Energies Nouvelles (Solaize, France). She currently develops new materials and processes for Energy Storage technologies such as green hydrogen production by water electrolysis, or future batteries and their recycling.

Niki HALTTUNEN

Dr. Niki Halttunen graduated from Chimie ParisTech in 2012 and obtained his PhD in 2015 from the Université Pierre et Marie Curie in Paris on the topic of hybrid materials for photovoltaics. After which he worked as a post-doctoral researcher at the chemistry laboratory of the ENS Lyon on nanomaterials for medical applications until 2018. He joined IFPEN in 2020 on the topic of hybrid solid electrolytes for lithium-ion batteries. He is currently working on solid state electrolytes, mainly their processing and characterization in lab scale complete battery systems.

Sofia RUIZ-DEANCE (DC10)

Sofia Ruiz-Deance is a PhD student at IFP Energies Nouvelles, specializing in Na-batteries within the RIDERS network. She received her Bachelor’s degree in Chemical Engineering from UNAM, Mexico, in 2022, where she wrote her thesis on push-pull molecules for optoelectronic applications, carried out at ICN. She completed her Master’s degree in Materials for Energy Storage and Conversion (MESC) through the EMJD program, studying at the University of Warsaw, Université Paul Sabatier III, and the University of the Basque Country, and developed her thesis at the Kemijski Institute in Slovenia on MOFs as cathodes for multivalent batteries. Driven by a desire to innovate and improve energy systems, Sofia aspires to work at the intersection of research and industry in next-generation battery technologies. Her academic excellence has been recognized with several prestigious awards, including the EMJD full scholarship, 1st place for the best undergraduate thesis at ICN UNAM, and the ISSI 2017 scholarship.
IFP Energies nouvelles – Etablissement de Lyon
Rond-point de l’échangeur de Solaize, 69360 Solaize, France