biography

  • Dr. Bilal El-Zahab is an Associate Professor of Mechanical and Materials Engineering at Florida International University (FIU), Miami, FL, USA. He also serves as the Graduate Program Director for the department. He completed his postdoctoral studies at MIT and LSU. He obtained his Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering from the University of Akron and a BS in Chemical Engineering from Middle East Technical University.

    Dr. El-Zahab's current research interests focus on advancing the field of electrochemical energy storage, with a primary emphasis on next-generation battery technologies beyond lithium-ion. His work encompasses catalyst design, polymer science, molecular dynamics, and mathematical analyses to address challenges in advanced battery systems. Dr. El-Zahab has published over 53 journal articlesand he is the inventor of 27 issued and pending U.S. and international patents, and his patents have been licensed internationally. His research has been funded by NSF, DOE, DOD, private foundations, and industry. He has mentored 20 doctoral and postdoctoral researchers and 3 MS students, along with numerous undergraduate researchers.

    Dr. El-Zahab has received FIU Top Scholar award in 2020 for research and creative activities, the college's Excellence in Teaching Faculty Award for 2017-2018, and the college's Excellence in Mentorship Faculty Award for 2016-2017. He is an active member of the Electrochemical Society and has served as Chair for their Lithium-ion symposium in multiple meetings. Dr. El-Zahab was elected as a Senior Member of the National Academy of Inventors (NAI) in 2022.

research interests

  • Lithium-ion batteries, electrolyte and electrolyte additives, gel-polymer electrolytes, electrolytes fillers, solid-state electrolyte glasses, reaction battery catalysis, lithium-air batteries, lithium-sulfur batteries, all-solid-state batteries, and development of in situ analytical tools for the determination of the source of capacity fade and the capacity fade mechanism in various battery systems.

selected scholarly works & creative activities

full name

  • Bilal El-Zahab

visualizations

publication subject areas