Yan Yao, Hugh Roy and Lillie Cranz Cullen Distinguished Professor in the Electrical and Computer Engineering Department at the University of Houston, has been named the 2025 recipient of the ACS Energy & Fuels (ENFL) Division Research Excellence Award in Electrochemical Energy Storage.
The award, sponsored by Capchem USA, was formally announced at the American Chemical Society Spring Meeting in Atlanta. A dedicated award symposium honoring Yao’s contributions will be held at the ACS Fall Meeting in Chicago this August, featuring a slate of key collaborators from his research career. Yao is also principal investigator at the Texas Center for Superconductivity at UH.
“I am deeply honored by this recognition from the ACS ENFL Division,” Yao said. “This award is a testament to the dedication and brilliance of my students, postdocs, and collaborators over the past 14 years. I am particularly grateful to Dr. Yunlong Zhang at Aramco for his nomination and for his long-standing support.”
A Leader in Next-Generation Storage
The Research Excellence Award is a prestigious mid-career honor intended to recognize and support scientists who have made groundbreaking contributions in energy storage. Yao was selected for his leadership in developing "beyond-lithium-ion" technologies, including multivalent, solid-state, and aqueous batteries.
Yao’s research sits at the intersection of electrochemistry and materials science, focusing on sustainable, earth-abundant alternatives to traditional battery chemistries. This work is essential for meeting the surging global demand for energy storage, which recently surpassed 2.3 TWh annually.
“Most of us know Yan from his contributions toour programming and leading our strong battery symposia,” said Yingwen Cheng, the 2025 ACS ENFL Division Chair. “He is an internationally recognized leader in the field of electrochemical energy storage, particularly known for his pioneering work on battery chemistries beyond lithium-ion.”
National Impact and Innovation
Beyond his scholarly achievements, which include more than 170 publications and ranking as a Clarivate Highly Cited Researcher, Yao plays a central role in the United States’ energy storage research. He currently serves as a Principal Investigator and leader for several flagship Department of Energy (DOE) initiatives, including the Battery500, Energy Storage Research Alliance (ESRA), and Low-cost Earth-abundant Na-ion Storage (LENS) consortia.
At the University of Houston, Yao is establishing the state’s first Solid-State Battery Prototyping Facility, bridging the gap between fundamental discovery and scalable manufacturing. He has also co-founded two startup companies, LiBeyond and Solid Design Instruments, to commercialize advanced sodium battery chemistries and specialized operando characterization tools.
Yao is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry and a senior member of both the National Academy of Inventors and the IEEE. His recent accolades also include the prestigious 2025 Edith and Peter O’Donnell Award in Engineering from TAMEST.