Guest Editors
Alexandra Zagalskaya
University of Massachusetts Amherst
Alexandra Zagalskaya is an assistant professor in the Department of Chemical Engineering at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, where she began her faculty appointment in January 2025. She previously served as a postdoctoral researcher in the Quantum Simulations Group at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory from 2022 to 2025, working with Dr. Tuan Anh Pham. She received her PhD in materials engineering from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln in 2022, under the guidance of Dr. Vitaly Alexandrov. Her research focuses on the development of advanced models to capture the realistic behavior of the electrochemical interfaces.
Shubham Chatterjee
University of Massachusetts Amherst
Dr. Shubham Chatterjee is a postdoctoral research associate in the Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, where he focuses on modeling heterogeneous catalytic pathways, polymer degradation mechanisms, and developing machine-learning potentials to accelerate catalysis simulations. He earned his PhD in chemistry from The University of Texas at Dallas, where he researched homogeneous catalysis, including protein inhibition and catalysis mechanisms. Dr. Chatterjee has authored multiple peer-reviewed publications, served as a reviewer for several scientific journals, and presented his work at several conferences. His interdisciplinary expertise bridges chemistry, biology, and chemical engineering, with a strong emphasis on computational modeling and method development for catalytic systems.
Collection Overview
Electrochemical materials and interfaces are central to the food-water-energy nexus, including electrocatalysis, energy storage, corrosion protection, and electrochemical separations. Despite rapid experimental and computational advances, performance and stability are often governed by dynamic interfacial phenomena, such as restructuring, solvation, charge transfer, and degradation, that remain poorly understood and difficult to control. Addressing these challenges is critical for the rational design of next-generation electrochemical systems that are efficient, durable, and scalable.
This Topical Collection aims to bring together cutting-edge experimental, theoretical, and data-driven studies that advance fundamental understanding of electrochemical materials and their interfaces under operating conditions. The collection will highlight progress in operando and in situ characterization, atomistic and multiscale modeling, machine-learning-accelerated discovery, and interface-focused design principles across diverse electrochemical applications.
