About

Dr. Ofodike Ezekoye is a professor of mechanical engineering and holds the Joe C. Walter, Jr. Chair in Engineering at the University of Texas. His research focuses on heat and mass transfer in high-temperature reacting systems, with applications including fire safety engineering, lithium-ion battery safety, and fire forensics. His work integrates experiments, modeling, and systems-level analysis to inform safety-driven design, emergency response, and risk mitigation across the built environment and energy systems.

Research topics

• Materials science
• Physics
• Thermodynamics
• Engineering
• Computer Science
• Chemistry
• Environmental science
• Meteorology
• Nuclear engineering
• Inorganic chemistry
• Waste management
• Forensic engineering
• Mechanics

Selected publications

• Thermal Runaway Propagation in a Prismatic Lithium-Ion Battery Module with Inter-Cell Air Gaps: Large-Scale Compartment Experiments

  Fire Technology · 2026-05-22

  articleOpen accessSenior author

  Characterizing thermal runaway propagation (TRP) within a module and racks of modules is critical for the design of compartment-level safety systems. However, there is a dearth of large-scale experimental data. This study investigated TRP in a 14-cell, 5.5 kWh prismatic nickel–manganese–cobalt oxide module in which 94-Ah cells were not in direct contact with each other. Unlike most TRP tests, in this cell arrangement radiation is the dominant heat transfer process driving TRP. Two types of experiments were conducted: (i) single-cell failure tests in a pressure vessel and open air to estimate the generated vent-gas volume and mass loss of the cells and (ii) whole-module tests performed either on a stand without confinement or in a confined rack with dummy modules. Interior compartment temperature and heat flux data were also obtained to assess TRP-driven compartment-level response. For the single-cell testing, the average vent-gas volume per cell was 238 L at a reference condition of 300 K and 1 atm, and the average mass loss was approximately 0.9 kg during intense venting. For the module tests, although per-cell TR-onset times differed across runs by up to $$\sim$$ 300 s due to variability in the test systems, the total propagation time converged to $$\sim$$ 1000 s in all module tests. The TRP rate accelerated progressively, as an increasing number of failed cells and the module housing fire convectively and radiatively preheated the remaining cells. Complementary diagnostics including temperature, video, acoustic, and gravimetric measurements were employed to enable robust characterization of TRP.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Review of ultrasonic methods for monitoring, damage detection, and processing of lithium-ion batteries throughout their life-cycle

  arXiv (Cornell University) · 2026-01-12

  preprintOpen access

  Lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) are the leading technology used in consumer electronics, electric vehicles, and grid-level electrochemical energy storage applications. The ever-increasing use of LIBs has highlighted a gap in understanding of their behavior throughout their life-cycle. Current monitoring systems rely on electrical and sometimes temperature measurements to assess the internal state which limits information about complex electrochemical processes. In response, ultrasonic testing (UT) has shown promise for non-invasive assessment due to its ease of use and sensitivity to mechanical changes which are correlated with electrochemical changes within the battery. We summarize the research in UT methods applied to LIBs throughout their life-cycle and the relevant techniques at each stage. We also discuss physics-based and data-driven modeling approaches used to interpret ultrasonic signals in the context of LIBs, with an emphasis on the existing challenge of establishing rigorous links between electrochemical behavior and elastic and poroelastic wave physics to gain insight regarding physical changes in the LIB that can be directly measured using UT. Finally, we discuss the challenges of implementing UT across the LIB life-cycle and identify opportunities for further research. This review aims to provide helpful guidance to researchers and practitioners of UT in the growing field of UT for electrochemical battery systems.

  PublisherDOI

• Review of ultrasonic methods for monitoring, damage detection, and processing of lithium-ion batteries throughout their life-cycle

  ArXiv.org · 2026-01-12

  articleOpen access

  Lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) are the leading technology used in consumer electronics, electric vehicles, and grid-level electrochemical energy storage applications. The ever-increasing use of LIBs has highlighted a gap in understanding of their behavior throughout their life-cycle. Current monitoring systems rely on electrical and sometimes temperature measurements to assess the internal state which limits information about complex electrochemical processes. In response, ultrasonic testing (UT) has shown promise for non-invasive assessment due to its ease of use and sensitivity to mechanical changes which are correlated with electrochemical changes within the battery. We summarize the research in UT methods applied to LIBs throughout their life-cycle and the relevant techniques at each stage. We also discuss physics-based and data-driven modeling approaches used to interpret ultrasonic signals in the context of LIBs, with an emphasis on the existing challenge of establishing rigorous links between electrochemical behavior and elastic and poroelastic wave physics to gain insight regarding physical changes in the LIB that can be directly measured using UT. Finally, we discuss the challenges of implementing UT across the LIB life-cycle and identify opportunities for further research. This review aims to provide helpful guidance to researchers and practitioners of UT in the growing field of UT for electrochemical battery systems.

  PublisherOA PDF

• Thermal decomposition pathways and interfacial reactivity in potassium-ion batteries: focus on the electrolyte and anode

  Energy & Environmental Science · 2026-01-01

  articleOpen access

  Anode–electrolyte reactivity and salt–solvent interactions govern low- and high-temperature thermal events, guiding the design of safer potassium-ion batteries.

  PublisherDOI

• Uncertainty quantification for thermal runaway propagation in lithium-ion battery arrays with thermal barriers using surrogate-assisted sequential Bayesian inference

  SSRN Electronic Journal · 2026-01-01

  preprintOpen accessSenior author
  PublisherDOI

• Sponge-Inspired Pressing Approach to Facilitate Electrolyte Wetting in Li-Ion Pouch Cells

  Journal of The Electrochemical Society · 2025-09-01 · 1 citations

  article

  In lithium-ion battery manufacturing, following electrode preparation and cell assembly, electrolyte filling and wetting is a critical and throughput-determining step that often takes tens of hours due to the slow electrolyte infiltration of porous electrodes. This prolonged wetting process significantly limits production efficiency and increases manufacturing costs, highlighting the need for more effective electrolyte wetting strategies. In this study, we investigated the electrolyte wetting behavior of 2 Ah LiFePO 4 (LFP)–graphite (Gr) pouch cells using ultrasonic transmission imaging and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. Although elevated temperature can moderately accelerate electrolyte wetting, the improvement remains insufficient for practical production. Inspired by the sponge-like absorption behavior in the densely packed, highly tortuous, and irregular porous structures, we developed a pulsed pressurizing strategy that applies intermittent mechanical pressure to promote electrolyte penetration, successfully reducing the impregnation time to within 1 h. Electrochemical cycling tests further confirm that applying pressure during wetting does not compromise battery performance. This work offers a practical and scalable solution to significantly shorten electrolyte wetting time and accelerate the overall production process of lithium-ion batteries.

  PublisherDOI

• Quenching thermal runaway propagation in lithium-ion battery arrays with various thermal barriers: Experimental and modeling characterization

  Applied Energy · 2025-12-15

  articleSenior authorCorresponding
  PublisherDOI

• Non-destructive testing of lithium-ion batteries via analysis of bending modes

  The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America · 2025-04-01

  article

  Lithium-ion batteries are crucial for portable electronics, electromobility, and stationary energy storage, playing a critical role in global decarbonization goals. Tracking battery performance during their lifetime ensures reliability, as various degradation mechanisms affect their operation. These changes may alter mechanical properties and thus understanding the complex relationship between electrochemistry, heat transfer, and mechanical properties therefore remains a key research challenge. Elastodynamic inspection methods, such as ultrasonic and vibrational analysis, have shown promise in detecting mechanical changes under varying states of charge (SOC) and state of health (SOH). Recent research has demonstrated the shift in the fundamental resonance frequency is a reliable metric of the SOC and SOH of Nickel-Manganese-Cobalt (NMC) pouch cells. This study presents an analysis of flexural modes for NMC cells at 0% and 100% SOC over 80 charge–discharge cycles. We employ spatial filtering to extract and enhance the response of the first three modes. We observe a correlation between the resonance frequency and the SOC/SOH for all the modes explored. The trends in resonance frequency and quality factor versus cycle from the data are explored and we propose model-based methods to extract insights regarding the evolution of mechanical properties that exploit higher modes as a function of charge level and aging.

  PublisherDOI

• Non-destructive ultrasonic monitoring of next-generation lithium-ion batteries

  The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America · 2025-10-01

  article

  Electrification of transportation and grid-scale renewable energy storage are driving an unprecedented demand for energy storage solutions. Next-generation (next-gen) battery technologies, including the use of alternatives to commercial graphite anode materials and solid-state electrolytes, offer the potential for enhanced performance compared to conventional lithium-ion batteries (LIBs). Recent research has shown that ultrasonic inspection methods provide insightful understanding of mechanical property changes that occur in lithium-ion batteries with different lithiation and aging states. This work presents preliminary research that extends the use of ultrasonic methods for next-gen batteries and compares the observations with those in conventional LIBs. We investigate contact and immersion ultrasonic testing methods to monitor the evolution of time-domain characteristics (e.g., time of flight, amplitude) and frequency-domain metrics (e.g., spectral content, attenuation) under various cycling conditions and thermal loading. By tracking these metrics, we intend to get insights into changes in mechanical properties associated with electrochemical behavior unique to next-gen cells. Ultrasonic immersion imaging provides insights into spatial heterogeneities of the inspected cells subjected to the same loading processes. These experiments, paired with physical modeling of wave phenomena in these systems, provide a framework for comparing next-gen batteries to traditional LIBs and provide insight into their unique chemistries.

  PublisherDOI

• Multimodal Characterization of Coating Defects in Graphite Electrodes for Lithium-Ion Batteries

  Journal of The Electrochemical Society · 2025-07-01 · 5 citations

  article

  The quality of lithium-ion battery (LIB) electrodes is critical to ensuring optimal performance, safety, and lifespan. Defects in graphite electrodes, such as cracks, agglomeration, and coating inhomogeneity, can severely impact battery performance by disrupting ion transport, promoting inactive lithium formation, and posing safety risks. In this study, we investigate coating defects in graphite electrodes and their influence on electrochemical performance. Among the observed defects, surface cracks were found to cause the most severe capacity degradation, likely due to local thickness variations and lithium accumulation at exposed copper sites. To enable comprehensive defect detection, we propose a multimodal characterization approach that integrates optical imaging, infrared thermography, and X-ray radiography. This strategy combines surface, thermal, and volumetric information, allowing for reliable, in-line assessment of coating uniformity and defect severity, and offering practical guidance for improving electrode manufacturing quality control.

  PublisherDOI

Recent grants

• Data and Model Requirements for Statistically Weighted Determination of Fire Origin for Fire Forensics

  NSF · $350k · 2017–2022

• CAREER: Control of Soot Growth Dynamics by Strong Tunable Acoustic Fields

  NSF · $320k · 1997–2003

Frequent coauthors

• Michael R. Haberman

  32 shared

• John R. Howell

  31 shared

• Barrett Neath

  The University of Texas at Austin

  25 shared

• Tyler McGee

  25 shared

• Joseph H. Koo

  The University of Texas at Austin

  21 shared

• Mustafa Z. Abbasi

  Walker (United States)

  20 shared

• Hakan Ertürk

  18 shared

• Kevin C. Marr

  The University of Texas at Austin

  18 shared

Labs

• UT Fire Research GroupPI