New technology for better lithium battery life
Read more news and analysis from Materials World on the IOM3 website, here: https://www.iom3.org/materials-world-magazine
Credit: DONGHAI WANG
By Idha Valeur
A new solid-electrolyte interphase could improve the life, performance and safety of lithium batteries, researchers from Pennsylvania State, USA, say.
The need for a better preforming battery is increasing, with the worlds demand for better performing batteries for use in cars, phones and drones, the stability of the solid-electrolyte interphase has been a hindrance for the development. This is due to a layer of salt on the battery’s lithium electrode surface, which insulates it and administers lithium ions.
Pennsylvania State University professor of mechanical and chemical engineering Donghai Wang said in a press release, ‘This layer is very important and is naturally formed by the reaction between the lithium and the electrolyte in the battery. But it doesn't behave very well, which causes a lot of problems.’ Due to the formation of dendrites – branch-looking formations growing from the battery’s lithium electrode – the performance and safety of the battery is reduced. According to Wang, this is the reason behind the limited lifetime of lithium metal batteries.
‘In this project, we used a polymer composite to create a much better SEI,’ said Wang.
The new developed SEI is a reactive polymer composite comprise of thin layers of polymeric lithium salt, lithium fluoride nanoparticles and graphene oxide sheets.
Using this new reactive polymer will also reduce the weight and cost to produce it, which will also aid the future of lithium metal batteries.
‘With a more stable SEI, it’s possible to double the energy density of current batteries, while making them last longer and be safer,’ according to Wang.
The study, Polymer-inorganic solid-electrolyte interphase for stable lithium metal batteries under lean electrolyte conditions was published in Nature Materials.
Read more news and analysis from Materials World on the IOM3 website, here: https://www.iom3.org/materials-world-magazine