Martin Z. Bazant - Electrokinetic Control of Interfacial Instabilities

This talk will describe three examples of interfacial patterns – viscous fingers, deionization shocks, and metal dendrites – whose stability can be controlled by electrokinetic phenomena in charged porous media, as evidenced by both theory and experiments. Potential applications include electrically enhanced oil recovery, water desalination and purification by shock electrodialysis, and energy storage with rechargeable metal batteries.