Research Fellow - Energy Storage for SG Grid

About the role

The Meng Research Group at NTU's School of Materials Science and Engineering is seeking a Research Fellow to investigate how sodium-ion batteries can be engineered and operated to deliver grid ancillary services in Singapore, as a first step toward a sodium-ion virtual power plant. The work involves characterising battery behaviour under realistic duty cycles, developing control and bidding strategies, and validating models in NTU's test facilities.

Key responsibilities

• Support the development and operation of deployable grid assets, starting with a battery energy storage system (BESS) for the National Electricity Market's ancillary services and scaling to a full virtual power plant in the long term.
• Conduct automated materials synthesis, characterisation, electrochemical testing and data analysis for battery systems.
• Take part in project planning, data collection and analysis to produce high-quality, reproducible research outcomes.
• Prepare manuscripts for high-impact journals and contribute to grant proposals and research reports.
• Report research progress and literature updates in scheduled group and individual meetings.
• Contribute to the lab's research mission through technology development, knowledge dissemination and translational opportunities.

Required profile

• Ph.D. in Materials Science and Engineering, Chemical Engineering, Chemistry, Mechanical Engineering or a related field.
• Research experience in battery materials, electrochemistry or materials synthesis.
• Demonstrated scientific productivity through peer-reviewed publications.
• Ability to work in a multidisciplinary research environment with good communication and teamwork skills.

Required skills

• Experience with robotic systems, high-throughput experimentation or autonomous laboratory development.
• Hands-on experimental skills and the ability to develop, integrate and troubleshoot automated research workflows.