1. Diagnosing and correcting anode-free cell failure via electrolyte and morphological analysis
- Author
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Matt Coon, A. J. Louli, Matthew Genovese, Remi Petibon, Zhe Deng, Shawn J. H. Cheng, Jack deGooyer, Rochelle Weber, J. R. Dahn, Sunny Hy, Thomas Rodgers, Robin T. White, A. Eldesoky, and Jaehan Lee
- Subjects
Work (thermodynamics) ,Range (particle radiation) ,Materials science ,Renewable Energy, Sustainability and the Environment ,business.industry ,Scanning electron microscope ,Energy Engineering and Power Technology ,chemistry.chemical_element ,02 engineering and technology ,Electrolyte ,010402 general chemistry ,021001 nanoscience & nanotechnology ,01 natural sciences ,0104 chemical sciences ,Electronic, Optical and Magnetic Materials ,Anode ,Fuel Technology ,chemistry ,Optoelectronics ,Degradation (geology) ,Lithium ,0210 nano-technology ,business ,Capacity loss - Abstract
Anode-free lithium metal cells store 60% more energy per volume than conventional lithium-ion cells. Such high energy density can increase the range of electric vehicles by approximately 280 km or even enable electrified urban aviation. However, these cells tend to experience rapid capacity loss and short cycle life. Furthermore, safety issues concerning metallic lithium often remain unaddressed in the literature. Recently, we demonstrated long-lifetime anode-free cells using a dual-salt carbonate electrolyte. Here we characterize the degradation of anode-free cells with this lean (2.6 g Ah−1) liquid electrolyte. We observe deterioration of the pristine lithium morphology using scanning electron microscopy and X-ray tomography, and diagnose the cause as electrolyte degradation and depletion using nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy and ultrasonic transmission mapping. For the safety characterization tests, we measure the cell temperature during nail penetration. Finally, we use the insights gained in this work to develop an optimized electrolyte, extending the lifetime of anode-free cells to 200 cycles. Anode-free batteries have emerged as a promising storage means to offer high energy density but still suffer from long-term reversibility. The authors analyse the cell failure mechanisms and present an optimized electrolyte to extend the lifetime of anode-free pouch cells.
- Published
- 2020