The Office of Naval Research is sponsoring an effort to understand Li-ion battery safety issues at electrode microscale. The research is collaborative with Prof. Scott Barnett at Northwestern University and Dr. Graham Goldin at ANSYS, Inc. Profs. Robert Kee and John Berger are leading the research at CSM. Based upon battery electrode reconstructions using focused-ion-bean—scanning-electron-microscopy (FIB-SEM), models are developed to represent electrochemical, thermal, and structural behavior of the electrodes. The three-dimensional models are being developed to investigate phenomena such as micro-crack propagation and fracture as functions of thermal transport and Li-intercalation processes.