Ritambhara Gond | Energy Storage | Young Scientist Award

Dr. Ritambhara Gond |Energy Storage | Young Scientist Award

Dr. Ritambhara Gond is a Postdoctoral Fellow at Ångström Laboratory, Uppsala University, specializing in polyanionic insertion materials for sodium-ion and lithium-ion batteries. With a Ph.D. from the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bangalore, her research spans electrochemical investigations, electrolyte development, and inorganic material synthesis. Dr. Gond has been a Visiting Researcher at prestigious institutions globally, including MAX IV Beamline and NUS. She has received several accolades, including the 2024 Best Poster Award at IMLB-2024 and ECS F.M. Becket Summer Fellowship. Her expertise includes powder diffraction, spectroscopy analysis, and computational modeling for ion migration studies.

profile:

Orcid

Scholar

 

🎓 Education:

Doctor of Philosophy (Ph. D.) (2014-2019) Faraday Materials Laboratory, Materials Research Centre, Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bangalore, India Thesis: Electrochemical and electrocatalytic investigation of pyrophosphate and metaphosphate family of battery insertion materials Advisor: Prof. Prabeer Barpanda. Master of Science (M. Sc.) (2011-2013) Department of Chemistry, Banaras Hindu University (BHU), Varanasi, India. Bachelor of Science (B. Sc. Hons.) (2008-2011) Department of Chemistry, Banaras Hindu University (BHU), Varanasi, India

🏢 Professional Experience:

  • Postdoctoral Fellow (2020-present)
    • Department of Chemistry, Ångström Laboratory, Structural Chemistry, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden
    • Advisors: Prof. Reza Younesi and Dr. Jiefang Zhu
    • Funded by ÅForsk and the Swedish Energy Agency
  • Visiting Researcher (1 week, Nov 2023)
    • MAX IV Beamline BALDER, synchrotron radiation facility in Lund, Sweden
    • Beamline Scientist: Dr. Susan Nehzati
    • Funded by the STINT project in collaboration with Sejong University, South Korea
  • Research Associate (Aug-Oct 2019)
    • Materials Research Centre, Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bangalore, India
    • Advisor: Prof. Prabeer Barpanda
    • Funded by University Grants Commission, Govt. of India
  • Visiting Graduate Student (Sep-Oct 2018) (Oct 2017)
    • Laboratoire de Cristallographie et Science des Matériaux (CRISMAT), Caen, France
    • Host: Prof. Valerie Pralong
    • Funded by LAFICS: The Indo-French Laboratory for Solid State Chemistry
  • Visiting Student (1 week, Nov 2018)
    • ECHIDNA Beamline, Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organization (ANSTO), Kirrawee, Australia
    • Host: Prof. Max Avdeev
    • Funded by the Department of Science and Technology DST, Govt. of India
  • Visiting Graduate Student (June 2017)
    • Department of Materials Science and Engineering, National University of Singapore (NUS)
    • Host: Prof. Stefan Adams
  • Visiting Project Trainee (1 month, Nov-Dec 2013)
    • Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC), Fuel Reprocessing and Chemistry Division, Anushaktinagar, Bombay
    • Hosts: Prof. Subhash Chandra Tripathi and Prof. Avesh Kumar Tyagi
  • Junior Research Fellow (July 2013-May 2014)
    • Department of Chemistry, Indian Institute of Technology Banaras Hindu University (BHU)
    • PI: Prof. Dhanesh Tiwari
    • Funded by the Board of Research in Nuclear Sciences, Govt. of India
  • Summer Intern Student (May-June 2012)
    • Inorganic Chemistry Department, Indian Association for the Cultivation of Science (IACS), India
    • Host: Prof. Abhishek Dey
    • Funded by Indian Academy of Science, IAS

🏅 Awards & Honors:

2024 Best Poster Award (HKD 1500) – 22nd International Meeting on Lithium Batteries (IMLB-2024), HKSAR, 2024 ÅForsk Travek Grant (SEK 27000) – ÅForsk Foundation, Sweden, 2019 ECS F.M. Becket Summer Fellowship (USD 5000) – The Electrochemical Society (ECS), USA, 2019 Ludo-Frevel Crystallography Scholarship Award (USD 2500) – The International Centre for Diffraction Data (ICDD), USA, 2019 Gandhian Young Technological Innovation Award – Society for Research & Initiatives for Sustainable Technologies, India, 2017 Best Poster Award (SGD 200) – ICMAT-2017 Biennial Conference, IUMRS-MRS Singapore, 2013 Qualified for Junior Research Fellowship (JRF) – University Grants Commission (UGC), India, 2012 Qualified for National Eligibility Test (NET National Level Competition) – University Grants Commission (UGC), India, 2011 Summer Research Fellowship – Indian Academy of Science (IAS), India

🔬 Research Focus:

Polyanionic insertion materials for sodium-ion batteries and lithium-ion batteries, Polyanionic electrocatalysts as an air-cathode for metal-air batteries, Electrolytes for long-lasting and fast-charging Sodium ion Batteries, Hard carbon as anode and the complex interfaces in sodium-ion batteries, Inorganic material synthesis (sol-gel, hydrothermal, combustion, wet chemistry, etc.), Crystallographic structural analysis (Rietveld refinement using GSAS, FullProf software), Evaluation of electrochemical and electrocatalytic properties, Computational modeling (ion migration study by Bond Valence Site Energy calculations)

🛠️ Skills:

Inorganic materials synthesis (solid-state and suites of solvothermal synthesis). Powder diffraction (X-ray, Synchrotron, Neutron diffraction methods, Rietveld analysis). Physical analyses (electron microscopy, thermal analysis, Raman/UV-VIS/FT-IR spectroscopy). Spectroscopy analysis (Mössbauer, ICP-OES, X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy). Electrochemical characterization (Conductivity measurements, galvanostatic charge-discharge, ICI, GITT/PITT, impedance spectroscopy, chronoamperometry, electrocatalysis, particularly O2 electrocatalysis in alkaline media). Soft BV calculation for migration barrier calculation (Soft BV software)

Publication:📝

  • Title: Non-flammable liquid electrolytes for safe batteries
    Authors: R Gond, W van Ekeren, R Mogensen, AJ Naylor, R Younesi
    Journal: Materials Horizons
    Year: 2021
    Volume: 8
    Issue: 11
    Pages: 2913-2928
    Citations: 81

 

  • Title: Sodium cobalt metaphosphate as an efficient oxygen evolution reaction catalyst in alkaline solution
    Authors: R Gond, DK Singh, M Eswaramoorthy, P Barpanda
    Journal: Angewandte Chemie
    Year: 2019
    Volume: 131
    Issue: 25
    Pages: 8418-8423
    Citations: 74

 

  • Title: Na₂.³²Co₁.⁸⁴(SO₄)₃ as a new member of the alluaudite family of high-voltage sodium battery cathodes
    Authors: D Dwibedi, R Gond, A Dayamani, RB Araujo, S Chakraborty, R Ahuja, …
    Journal: Dalton Transactions
    Year: 2017
    Volume: 46
    Issue: 1
    Pages: 55-63
    Citations: 67

 

  • Title: Bifunctional electrocatalytic behavior of sodium cobalt phosphates in alkaline solution
    Authors: R Gond, K Sada, B Senthilkumar, P Barpanda
    Journal: ChemElectroChem
    Year: 2018
    Volume: 5
    Issue: 1
    Pages: 153-158
    Citations: 51

 

  • Title: Enabling the Electrochemical Activity in Sodium Iron Metaphosphate [NaFe(PO₃)₃] Sodium Battery Insertion Material: Structural and Electrochemical Insights
    Authors: R Gond, SS Meena, SM Yusuf, V Shukla, NK Jena, R Ahuja, S Okada, …
    Journal: Inorganic Chemistry
    Year: 2017
    Volume: 56
    Issue: 10
    Pages: 5918-5929
    Citations: 36

 

  • Title: Bio-derived hard carbon nanosheets with high rate sodium-ion storage characteristics
    Authors: HD Asfaw, R Gond, A Kotronia, CW Tai, R Younesi
    Journal: Sustainable Materials and Technologies
    Year: 2022
    Volume: 32
    Pages: e00407
    Citations: 34

 

  • Title: Fluorophosphates as efficient bifunctional electrocatalysts for metal–air batteries
    Authors: L Sharma, R Gond, B Senthilkumar, A Roy, P Barpanda
    Journal: ACS Catalysis
    Year: 2019
    Volume: 10
    Issue: 1
    Pages: 43-50
    Citations: 34

 

  • Title: Cubic Sodium Cobalt Metaphosphate [NaCo(PO₃)₃] as a Cathode Material for Sodium Ion Batteries
    Authors: R Gond, RP Rao, V Pralong, OI Lebedev, S Adams, P Barpanda
    Journal: Inorganic Chemistry
    Year: 2018
    Volume: 57
    Issue: 11
    Pages: 6324-6332
    Citations: 23

 

  • Title: Revisiting the alluaudite NaMnFe₂(PO₄)₃ sodium insertion material: Structural, diffusional and electrochemical insights
    Authors: D Dwibedi, PW Jaschin, R Gond, P Barpanda
    Journal: Electrochimica Acta
    Year: 2018
    Volume: 283
    Pages: 850-857
    Citations: 21

 

Ritambhara Gond | Energy Storage | Women Researcher Award

 Dr. Ritambhara Gond |Energy Storage |Women Researcher Award

Dr. Ritambhara Gond is a Postdoctoral Fellow at Ångström Laboratory, Uppsala University, specializing in polyanionic insertion materials for sodium-ion and lithium-ion batteries. With a Ph.D. from the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bangalore, her research spans electrochemical investigations, electrolyte development, and inorganic material synthesis. Dr. Gond has been a Visiting Researcher at prestigious institutions globally, including MAX IV Beamline and NUS. She has received several accolades, including the 2024 Best Poster Award at IMLB-2024 and ECS F.M. Becket Summer Fellowship. Her expertise includes powder diffraction, spectroscopy analysis, and computational modeling for ion migration studies.

profile:

Orcid

Scholar

 

🎓 Education:

Doctor of Philosophy (Ph. D.) (2014-2019) Faraday Materials Laboratory, Materials Research Centre, Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bangalore, India Thesis: Electrochemical and electrocatalytic investigation of pyrophosphate and metaphosphate family of battery insertion materials Advisor: Prof. Prabeer Barpanda. Master of Science (M. Sc.) (2011-2013) Department of Chemistry, Banaras Hindu University (BHU), Varanasi, India. Bachelor of Science (B. Sc. Hons.) (2008-2011) Department of Chemistry, Banaras Hindu University (BHU), Varanasi, India

🏢 Professional Experience:

  • Postdoctoral Fellow (2020-present)
    • Department of Chemistry, Ångström Laboratory, Structural Chemistry, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden
    • Advisors: Prof. Reza Younesi and Dr. Jiefang Zhu
    • Funded by ÅForsk and the Swedish Energy Agency
  • Visiting Researcher (1 week, Nov 2023)
    • MAX IV Beamline BALDER, synchrotron radiation facility in Lund, Sweden
    • Beamline Scientist: Dr. Susan Nehzati
    • Funded by the STINT project in collaboration with Sejong University, South Korea
  • Research Associate (Aug-Oct 2019)
    • Materials Research Centre, Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bangalore, India
    • Advisor: Prof. Prabeer Barpanda
    • Funded by University Grants Commission, Govt. of India
  • Visiting Graduate Student (Sep-Oct 2018) (Oct 2017)
    • Laboratoire de Cristallographie et Science des Matériaux (CRISMAT), Caen, France
    • Host: Prof. Valerie Pralong
    • Funded by LAFICS: The Indo-French Laboratory for Solid State Chemistry
  • Visiting Student (1 week, Nov 2018)
    • ECHIDNA Beamline, Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organization (ANSTO), Kirrawee, Australia
    • Host: Prof. Max Avdeev
    • Funded by the Department of Science and Technology DST, Govt. of India
  • Visiting Graduate Student (June 2017)
    • Department of Materials Science and Engineering, National University of Singapore (NUS)
    • Host: Prof. Stefan Adams
  • Visiting Project Trainee (1 month, Nov-Dec 2013)
    • Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC), Fuel Reprocessing and Chemistry Division, Anushaktinagar, Bombay
    • Hosts: Prof. Subhash Chandra Tripathi and Prof. Avesh Kumar Tyagi
  • Junior Research Fellow (July 2013-May 2014)
    • Department of Chemistry, Indian Institute of Technology Banaras Hindu University (BHU)
    • PI: Prof. Dhanesh Tiwari
    • Funded by the Board of Research in Nuclear Sciences, Govt. of India
  • Summer Intern Student (May-June 2012)
    • Inorganic Chemistry Department, Indian Association for the Cultivation of Science (IACS), India
    • Host: Prof. Abhishek Dey
    • Funded by Indian Academy of Science, IAS

🏅 Awards & Honors:

2024 Best Poster Award (HKD 1500) – 22nd International Meeting on Lithium Batteries (IMLB-2024), HKSAR, 2024 ÅForsk Travek Grant (SEK 27000) – ÅForsk Foundation, Sweden, 2019 ECS F.M. Becket Summer Fellowship (USD 5000) – The Electrochemical Society (ECS), USA, 2019 Ludo-Frevel Crystallography Scholarship Award (USD 2500) – The International Centre for Diffraction Data (ICDD), USA, 2019 Gandhian Young Technological Innovation Award – Society for Research & Initiatives for Sustainable Technologies, India, 2017 Best Poster Award (SGD 200) – ICMAT-2017 Biennial Conference, IUMRS-MRS Singapore, 2013 Qualified for Junior Research Fellowship (JRF) – University Grants Commission (UGC), India, 2012 Qualified for National Eligibility Test (NET National Level Competition) – University Grants Commission (UGC), India, 2011 Summer Research Fellowship – Indian Academy of Science (IAS), India

🔬 Research Focus:

Polyanionic insertion materials for sodium-ion batteries and lithium-ion batteries, Polyanionic electrocatalysts as an air-cathode for metal-air batteries, Electrolytes for long-lasting and fast-charging Sodium ion Batteries, Hard carbon as anode and the complex interfaces in sodium-ion batteries, Inorganic material synthesis (sol-gel, hydrothermal, combustion, wet chemistry, etc.), Crystallographic structural analysis (Rietveld refinement using GSAS, FullProf software), Evaluation of electrochemical and electrocatalytic properties, Computational modeling (ion migration study by Bond Valence Site Energy calculations)

🛠️ Skills:

Inorganic materials synthesis (solid-state and suites of solvothermal synthesis). Powder diffraction (X-ray, Synchrotron, Neutron diffraction methods, Rietveld analysis). Physical analyses (electron microscopy, thermal analysis, Raman/UV-VIS/FT-IR spectroscopy). Spectroscopy analysis (Mössbauer, ICP-OES, X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy). Electrochemical characterization (Conductivity measurements, galvanostatic charge-discharge, ICI, GITT/PITT, impedance spectroscopy, chronoamperometry, electrocatalysis, particularly O2 electrocatalysis in alkaline media). Soft BV calculation for migration barrier calculation (Soft BV software)

Publication:📝

  • Title: Non-flammable liquid electrolytes for safe batteries
    Authors: R Gond, W van Ekeren, R Mogensen, AJ Naylor, R Younesi
    Journal: Materials Horizons
    Year: 2021
    Volume: 8
    Issue: 11
    Pages: 2913-2928
    Citations: 81

 

  • Title: Sodium cobalt metaphosphate as an efficient oxygen evolution reaction catalyst in alkaline solution
    Authors: R Gond, DK Singh, M Eswaramoorthy, P Barpanda
    Journal: Angewandte Chemie
    Year: 2019
    Volume: 131
    Issue: 25
    Pages: 8418-8423
    Citations: 74

 

  • Title: Na₂.³²Co₁.⁸⁴(SO₄)₃ as a new member of the alluaudite family of high-voltage sodium battery cathodes
    Authors: D Dwibedi, R Gond, A Dayamani, RB Araujo, S Chakraborty, R Ahuja, …
    Journal: Dalton Transactions
    Year: 2017
    Volume: 46
    Issue: 1
    Pages: 55-63
    Citations: 67

 

  • Title: Bifunctional electrocatalytic behavior of sodium cobalt phosphates in alkaline solution
    Authors: R Gond, K Sada, B Senthilkumar, P Barpanda
    Journal: ChemElectroChem
    Year: 2018
    Volume: 5
    Issue: 1
    Pages: 153-158
    Citations: 51

 

  • Title: Enabling the Electrochemical Activity in Sodium Iron Metaphosphate [NaFe(PO₃)₃] Sodium Battery Insertion Material: Structural and Electrochemical Insights
    Authors: R Gond, SS Meena, SM Yusuf, V Shukla, NK Jena, R Ahuja, S Okada, …
    Journal: Inorganic Chemistry
    Year: 2017
    Volume: 56
    Issue: 10
    Pages: 5918-5929
    Citations: 36

 

  • Title: Bio-derived hard carbon nanosheets with high rate sodium-ion storage characteristics
    Authors: HD Asfaw, R Gond, A Kotronia, CW Tai, R Younesi
    Journal: Sustainable Materials and Technologies
    Year: 2022
    Volume: 32
    Pages: e00407
    Citations: 34

 

  • Title: Fluorophosphates as efficient bifunctional electrocatalysts for metal–air batteries
    Authors: L Sharma, R Gond, B Senthilkumar, A Roy, P Barpanda
    Journal: ACS Catalysis
    Year: 2019
    Volume: 10
    Issue: 1
    Pages: 43-50
    Citations: 34

 

  • Title: Cubic Sodium Cobalt Metaphosphate [NaCo(PO₃)₃] as a Cathode Material for Sodium Ion Batteries
    Authors: R Gond, RP Rao, V Pralong, OI Lebedev, S Adams, P Barpanda
    Journal: Inorganic Chemistry
    Year: 2018
    Volume: 57
    Issue: 11
    Pages: 6324-6332
    Citations: 23

 

  • Title: Revisiting the alluaudite NaMnFe₂(PO₄)₃ sodium insertion material: Structural, diffusional and electrochemical insights
    Authors: D Dwibedi, PW Jaschin, R Gond, P Barpanda
    Journal: Electrochimica Acta
    Year: 2018
    Volume: 283
    Pages: 850-857
    Citations: 21