#FaradayPathways Jake Brittain, Faradion

Jake shares his career journey, from his PhD at the University of Oxford and his research for the Faraday Institution’s NEXGENNA project, to his current role as Battery Materials Scientist at Faradion. He explains how his career was driven by his passion for sustainability and why he decided to move into industry.

After enjoying STEM subjects at school, Jake went to study Chemistry at the University of Oxford.

“I went to a state school in Devon. It wasn’t typical for students from my school to apply to Oxford, and I had no idea what to expect. But I had such a positive experience and would absolutely encourage anyone thinking of applying to do so. I enjoyed the sciences at school and chose to study chemistry because the course was quite varied, with modules in maths, physics, biology, as well as all the practical lab work.”

In the final year of his degree, he carried out a research project on solid-state catalysts for the decomposition of ammonia.

“I always had an interest in sustainability and wanted to use my chemistry degree to have a positive impact on the climate crisis. Ammonia is an excellent option for longer term energy storage and can be used as a carbon-free fuel. It should definitely be in the conversation alongside hydrogen.

“During the first three years of my degree, I was certain that I would apply for jobs in industry and not stay in academia, but this final year project allowed me to get a feel for what research was really like and it completely changed my mind.”

Photo of Jake Brittain in the lab Jake stayed at the University of Oxford to do his PhD, working on sodium-ion battery technology. It was half funded by the company Faradion that Jake works for now.

“It was the perfect PhD for me because it combined scientific research with an industry-driven project, and it was working on sustainable battery materials, which are a crucial component in the drive to net zero.

“My PhD and masters supervisor, Professor Bill David, was a huge inspiration to me. He taught me so much – from crystallography to the art of supervising. Dr Richard Heap and Dr Jerry Barker, from Faradion, were brilliant mentors during my PhD and sparked my passion for sodium-ion battery technology.”

Whilst writing up his PhD, Jake began working as a Post-doctoral Research Associate for the Faraday Institution’s NEXGENNA project on sodium-ion batteries.

“Learning to balance my PhD and my post-doc position was certainly a challenge but the projects were complementary, meaning I could write my PhD thesis whilst continuing sodium-ion research on new and exciting projects for NEXGENNA. I set up a battery laboratory at the Harwell Campus for the group’s battery research. Seeing the lab develop, enabling electrode formulation through to battery testing, was a very rewarding process.

“The NEXGENNA project was my first experience with the Faraday Institution. It was inspiring to be part of a wider collaboration between several universities, with everyone working on different parts of the battery. Until then, my sole focus was the cathode, but NEXGENNA really opened my eyes to all aspects of battery research.

“I also benefitted from the seminars and networking events that the Faraday Institution organised, with many opportunities to present my work.”

Jake also had the opportunity to develop his mentoring skills through the Faraday Institution’s FUSE undergraduate summer intern programme, where he supervised a student project.

“It was a fantastic opportunity; planning the project, training the student and seeing it all the way through to completion with a poster presentation at the end. It helped develop my project planning and supervision skills.”

In 2022, Jake started working as a Battery Materials Scientist at Faradion where he continues to develop cathode materials for sodium-ion batteries.

“My plan was always to move to industry – I believe it’s where I can have the biggest impact. This job allows me to apply everything I have learnt from both academia and the Faraday Institution and apply it to commercially driven projects. My goal is for a future commercialised battery product to contain a sustainable sodium-ion cathode material that I have worked on – that would be brilliant!”

Faradion is one of a number of UK-based battery development companies that benefit from the experience of Faraday Institution Research Fellows as they make a move to industry.

When you welcome talent from the Faraday Institution, you’re not just adding team members to your team, you’re adding proactive, forward-thinking, innovative individuals with previous experience working on battery technologies”
Sam Vallance, People Support Lead at Faradion

What advice would Jake give to early career researchers?

“Be curious, ask lots of questions, and work on expanding your network. If you’re interested in battery research, being part of the Faraday Institution is the perfect way to do this, whether that is through a FUSE summer internship, PhD, or attending one of their events.”

#FaradayPathways story written by Nancy Stitt, Science Communications Intern, published September 2023