Sarat – profile
Role: Second year PhD student, Department of Chemical Engineering. Imperial College London
Subject area: Sustainable materials for sodium ion batteries
Nationality: Nigerian
I am a second year PhD student in chemical engineering where I conduct research on sodium ion batteries. I am originally from Nigeria but studied and worked in the USA for about three years before coming to Imperial.
Interview with Sarat
Hear from Sarat, who is researching why batteries degrade and investigating the use of more sustainable sodium ion batteries.
Education
GCSE (or equivalent): Nigerian Senior Secondary School examinations - Maths, Further Maths, Biology, Physics, Chemistry, English, and Geography
A-Level (or equivalent): Nigerian university entrance exams - Chemistry, Physics and Biology
Degrees:
• BSc Applied Chemistry, Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Nigeria
• MSci Chemistry, Northern Illinois University, USA
• PhD in Chemical Engineering (on-going), Imperial College London
Detail about Sarat
My research
Batteries do not last as long as we would like them to. They also contain materials that are not abundant and can be toxic. My research focuses on understanding why batteries degrade and studies sodium ion batteries because they are safer, cost effective and use more abundant materials.
My inspiration
I was inspired by seeing an electric vehicle for the first time. It was a big step to ensuring a more sustainable society. I wanted to do work that involved contributing to a sustainable society, so I chose to work on improving batteries.
Who is your STEM hero?
Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla, who has played a huge role in the development of electric vehicles and batteries. This includes sponsoring academic research in this field and making many of their patents open source for the benefit of society.
Most significant discovery/invention?
Batteries. They have enabled energy storage and their development plays a crucial role in reducing global warming and saving the world.
Career options after study
- Battery specialist at automotive companies for electric vehicles
- Developing batteries for electric planes in the aerospace industry
- Materials scientist/engineer developing materials for semiconductor chips
- Alternative fuels specialist for the space industry
- Technical consultant
- Research associate or lecturer at a university
My hobbies
I love cooking, reading books that open up my imagination to the rest of the world and travelling. I also watch some TV and find quiz shows and reality shows interesting.
Sarat talks about her research
Sarat talks about her research into developing more sustainable batteries.
