Battery safety · Thermal science · Mechanics

Shuguo Sun

Ph.D. Student in Mechanical Engineering
The Pennsylvania State University

I am a Ph.D. student in Mechanical Engineering at The Pennsylvania State University and a member of the Energy Mechanics and Sustainability Laboratory (EMSLab), advised by Prof. Jun Xu. I received my M.Sc. in Engineering Fluid Mechanics from Imperial College London and my B.Eng. in Building Environment and Energy from Chongqing University. My research interests center on battery safety, including internal short circuits, aging, and thermal runaway under thermal and mechanical abuse.

Portrait of Shuguo Sun
University Park, Pennsylvania

Research

I study how batteries fail under thermal and mechanical abuse, with a focus on internal short circuits, aging, and thermal runaway.

My research combines controlled experiments, electrochemical and thermal diagnostics, physics-based modeling, and data-driven methods. I am particularly interested in translating degradation and failure mechanisms into measurable safety indicators and predictive tools.

  • Aging pathways and thermal runaway
  • Internal short circuits and mechanical failure
  • Physics-informed inference and machine learning
  • Cross-scale battery safety
Selected publications

News

Sep 2026

I gave a talk at ASME DRIVN 2026 in Southfield, Michigan, on the multiphysics mechanism of internal short circuits in batteries.

Jun 2026

I presented two posters at the Battery Safety Workshop in Newark, Delaware, on a physics-based inverse model for the thermal hazards of aged lithium-ion cells and the electrochemo-mechanical dynamics of internal short circuits in lithium-ion batteries.

May 2026

I presented two talks at the 249th ECS Meeting in Seattle on physics-informed prediction of full-life-cycle thermal runaway and the mechanisms of mechanically induced internal short circuits.

May 2026

I received the Best Presentation Award and the K. M. Abraham Travel Award at the 249th ECS Meeting.

May 2026

I gave a talk at the 2026 FM Fire Modeling Workshop in Norwood, Massachusetts, on a physics-based inverse model for the thermal hazards of aged lithium-ion cells.

Apr 2026

I presented two talks at the SAE WCX World Congress Experience in Detroit on aging path dependency and mechanically induced internal short circuits in lithium-ion batteries.

Nov 2025

I gave a talk at IMECE 2025 in Memphis on electrochemo-mechanical coupling in electrode materials under electrolyte-induced interactions.

Oct 2025

I received the S. Subbiah & Sarah Robson Graduate Financial Support Award from the University of Delaware.

Aug 2025

I received the Graduate Student Travel Award from the University of Delaware.

May 2025

I presented my work on aging path dependency in lithium-ion battery thermal hazards at the 2025 FM Fire Modeling Workshop in Norwood, Massachusetts.

Mar 2025

I gave a talk on aging path dependency in lithium-ion battery thermal hazards at the 14th U.S. National Congress on Computational Mechanics in Boston.

Mar 2025

I received the 14th USNCM Student Travel Award.

Selected publications

Selected work is listed below. For a complete and up-to-date record, see Google Scholar.

2026

Abstract graphic Unit-resolved detection concept for internal short circuits

Energy Storage Materials · 2026

Electrochemo-mechanical-thermal dynamics of internal short circuits in batteries

Shuguo Sun, Bo Rui, Saurabh Bahuguna, Jun Zhou, Faisal Sayeed, and Jun Xu

Paper figure Graphical abstract for metal particle foreign matter as a hidden driver of battery aging

ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces · 2026

Metal Particle Foreign Matter as a Hidden Driver of Battery Aging: A Defect-Informed Modeling Study

Keming Zhu, Shuguo Sun, Bo Rui, and Jun Xu

Graphical abstract Graphical abstract for lithium plating under stacking pressure

Nano Energy · 2026

Electrochemo-mechanics unlocks hidden dynamics of lithium plating under stacking pressure

Amit Bhowmick, Bo Rui, Shuguo Sun, Xijun Tan, Bingqing Wei, Youngwon Hahn, Sandeep Kulathu, Victor Oancea, Wenquan Lu, and Jun Xu

2025

Graphical abstract Graphical abstract for aging pathways and thermal runaway

Journal of Energy Chemistry · 2025

Aging matters: How degradation pathways govern thermal runaway in lithium-ion batteries

Shuguo Sun, Wilson Brown, Xijun Tan, Bo Rui, Gang Xiong, Yi Wang, Dong Zeng, and Jun Xu

Abstract graphic Graphical abstract for mechanical abuse and safety in sodium-ion batteries

Journal of Materials Chemistry A · 2025

Mechanical abuse and safety in sodium-ion batteries

Bo Rui, Shuguo Sun, Xijun Tan, Chanmonirath (Michael) Chak, Lin Ma, and Jun Xu

Abstract graphic Graphical abstract for the effects of electrolyte, state of charge, and strain rate on electrode and separator mechanics

Journal of Materials Chemistry A · 2025

Effects of electrolyte, state of charge, and strain rate on the mechanical properties of lithium-ion battery electrodes and separators

Shuguo Sun, Bo Rui, Xijun Tan, Saurabh Bahuguna, Jun Zhou, and Jun Xu

2024

Graphical abstract Graphical abstract for safety behaviors and degradation mechanisms of aged batteries

Energy Materials and Devices · 2024

Safety behaviors and degradation mechanisms of aged batteries: A review

Shuguo Sun and Jun Xu

Paper figure Graphical abstract for electrochemical modeling of fast charging in batteries

Advanced Energy Materials · 2024

Electrochemical modeling of fast charging in batteries

Xudong Duan, Dayong Hu, Weiheng Chen, Jiani Li, Lubing Wang, Shuguo Sun, and Jun Xu

Activities

Academic Activities

Conferences & Presentations

Sep 2026

ASME DRIVN 2026

Southfield, Michigan Oral Presentation

Multiphysics Mechanism of Internal Short Circuit in Batteries

Jun 2026

Battery Safety Workshop

Newark, Delaware Poster Presentation

  1. A Physics-Based Inverse Model for Thermal Hazards of Aged Lithium-Ion Cells
  2. Electrochemo-Mechanical Dynamics of Internal Short Circuits in Lithium-Ion Batteries
May 2026

249th ECS Meeting

Seattle, Washington Oral Presentation

  1. Physics-Informed Neural Networks for Predicting Thermal Runaway Trajectories across the Full Life Cycle
  2. Mechanism of Internal Short Circuits in Lithium-Ion Batteries Under Mechanical Abuse
May 2026

2026 FM Fire Modeling Workshop

Norwood, Massachusetts Oral Presentation

A Physics-Based Inverse Model for Thermal Hazards of Aged Lithium-Ion Cells

Apr 2026

SAE WCX World Congress Experience

Detroit, Michigan Oral Presentation

  1. Aging Path-Dependency in Thermal Hazards of Lithium-Ion Batteries
  2. Mechanism of Internal Short Circuits in Lithium-Ion Batteries under Mechanical Abuse
Nov 2025

ASME IMECE 2025

Memphis, Tennessee Oral Presentation

Electrochemo-Mechanical Coupling in Electrode Materials Under Electrolyte-Induced Interactions

May 2025

2025 FM Fire Modeling Workshop

Norwood, Massachusetts Oral Presentation

Aging Path-Dependency in Thermal Hazards of Lithium-Ion Batteries

Mar 2025

14th U.S. National Congress on Computational Mechanics

Boston, Massachusetts Oral Presentation

Aging Path-Dependency in Thermal Hazards of Lithium-Ion Batteries

Teaching Experience

Teaching Assistant

University of Delaware · Sep 2025–May 2026

  • MEEG 321: Materials Engineering
  • MEEG 346: Thermal Laboratory

Academic Service

Professional Service

  • Committee Member, ASME Technical Committee on Electrochemical Energy Conversion and Storage
  • Session Chair, ASME IMECE 2025: Electrochemical Energy Storage and Conversion Systems III and IV

Peer Review

  • Reviewer for ASME and SAE conferences
  • Reviewer for Energy Materials and Devices, Journal of Power Sources, and Journal of Electrochemical Energy Conversion and Storage