ANN ARBOR, Mich. (Aug. 2, 2023) – The Electrochemical Society (ECS) has named Dr. John Muldoon, senior principal scientist at the Toyota Research Institute of North America (TRINA), a Fellow in its Class of 2023. Additionally, Dr. Muldoon has earned the prestigious Battery Division Technology Award for 2023, the first time in the award’s 30-year history that a representative of an automotive original equipment manufacturer (OEM) has received it.

Dr. Muldoon’s outstanding research leadership has greatly contributed to Toyota’s ‘beyond lithium-ion’ battery research programs, shaping global research trends including multivalent ion, lithium sulfur and solid-state lithium metal batteries. Dr. Muldoon will be formally recognized for these two achievements in October at the 244th ECS Meeting in Gothenburg, Sweden.

“I am deeply honored to receive the Battery Technology Award, and to be named a Fellow of the ECS, Class of 2023. I am deeply appreciative of all the strong support of my colleagues,” said Dr. Muldoon. “I am confident that Toyota will continue to push the boundaries of beyond lithium-ion and lithium-ion technologies to pave the way for the next-generation of batteries.”

Established in 1989, the designation of ECS Fellow is reserved for advanced individual technological contributions in the field of electrochemical and solid-state science and technology and for service to the Society. The Battery Division Technology Award, created in 1993, recognizes significant achievements in the development of battery and fuel cell technology.

“These recognitions are among the highest level from the world’s scientific community, and Toyota joins a small handful of organizations with significant contributions to battery field,” said Kristen Tabar, group vice president, Advanced Mobility Research and Development at Toyota Motor North America. “It is a testament to our commitment to innovation with superior research expertise that Toyota has in-house.”

Dr. Muldoon is an elected member of the ECS Battery Division committee and has been instrumental in the establishment of ECS symposiums on beyond Li-ion battery technologies. Further, Dr. Muldoon is an advocate for bridging fundamental research to application and supporting younger scientists. His cultivation of a relationship between the ECS and Toyota resulted in establishment of the ECS Toyota Young Investigator Fellowship in 2016. This award supports young professors and scholars pursuing innovative electrochemical research in green energy technology.

In addition to his technical contributions and involvement in the activities of ECS, Dr. Muldoon is a Fellow of The Royal Society of Chemistry, and an active member of the American Chemical Society and Material Research Society.