Researchers from the Nanofabrication, Optoelectronics and Energy Applications (NOA) Group at the International Iberian Nanotechnology Laboratory (INL) played a central role in the organisation and scientific programme of the Battery Science & Innovation Forum 2026, held on 20–21 May 2026 at INL in Braga, Portugal.
The two-day forum brought together researchers, industry representatives, policymakers, and technology developers working across the battery value chain to discuss the latest advances in electrochemical energy storage, sustainable battery materials, manufacturing, recycling, and system integration. The event was jointly organised by INL, CeNTI, dstgroup, and the Sociedade Portuguesa de Materiais (SPM).
The NOA group contributed to the organization by Pedro Salomé and to the scientific coordination of the event through the participation of Jennifer Teixeira in the Scientific Committee, alongside representatives from IST, University of Minho, CeNTI, ISEP, and Vasco da Gama CoLAB.
The forum featured keynote lectures from internationally recognised experts, including Patrik Johansson, Director of Battery 2030+ and Professor at Uppsala University, and Frédéric Aguesse from CIDETEC Energy Storage, who addressed the future of next-generation battery technologies and the challenges of scaling advanced battery systems from laboratory research to industrial implementation.
The scientific contributions associated with the NOA group included:
- “Real-Time EIS for Monitoring Battery Degradation and SEI Evolution” — Filipa Silva, Carleane Reis, Carolina Fernandes, Sara Silva, Jennifer Teixeira, and Pedro Salomé;
- “Capacitance from Electrochemical Impedance Spectroscopy for Rapid State-of-Health Diagnosis of Lithium-Ion Batteries” — Carleane Reis, Filipa Silva, Carolina Fernandes, Jennifer Teixeira, Sara Silva, and Pedro Salomé;
- “Post-Mortem Characterization of Aging Processes in Lithium-Ion Battery Electrodes” — Carleane Reis, Filipa Silva, Clara Silva, Pedro Salomé, Jennifer Teixeira, and Carolina Fernandes;
- “Application of Ni-substitutes Li2ZrCl6 in thin-film batteries” — Joel Canhoto Cardoso, Guilherme Araújo, Carolina Fernandes, Jennifer Passos Teixeira, and Pedro M. P. Salomé;
- “Aggregating Distributed Energy Resources through Virtual Power Plants: A Case Study in Portugal” — Vítor Lopes, Jennifer Teixeira, Luís Paula, Marco Martins, Pedro Faria, Ricardo Faia, José Amador, Marco Costa, Ricardo Lopes, Francisco Cordeiro, João Cunha, Modesto Morais, Ricardo Rodrigues, Vítor Silva, Maria Petiz, Rui Almeida, Filipe Alves, Rui Ribeiro, and Pedro Salomé;
- “Demand Response Event Participation Considering Battery Capacities of Aggregated Virtual Power Plant Members” — Ricardo Faia, Pedro Faria, Vítor Lopes, Pedro Salomé, and Zita Vale.
The participation of the NOA group highlighted the growing activity of the team in battery materials, electrochemical devices, and sustainable energy storage technologies, reinforcing ongoing collaborations between academia, research infrastructures, and industry partners within the Portuguese and European battery ecosystem.
The Battery Science & Innovation Forum 2026 also served as a platform to strengthen the visibility of the NGS – New Generation Storage initiative and to promote collaboration across the full battery value chain, from materials development to industrial implementation and circular economy strategies.