Anodes, lithium polymer batteries

E—Lithium Lithium anode Iodine, sulfur dioxide, thionyl chloride, and iron disulfide Secondary Lithium-iron disulfide batteries, lithium-ion batteries, and lithium polymer batteries... 

This type of Li battery has already widely diffused in the electronic consumer market, however for automotive applications the presence of a liquid electrolyte is not considered the best solution in terms of safety, then for this type of utilization the so-called lithium polymer batteries appear more convenient. They are based on a polymeric electrolyte which permits the transfer of lithium ions between the electrodes [21]. The anode can be composed either of a lithium metal foil (in this case the device is known as lithium metal polymer battery) or of lithium supported on carbon (lithium ion polymer battery), while the cathode is constituted by an oxide of lithium and other metals, of the same type used in lithium-ion batteries, in which the lithium reversible intercalation can occur. For lithium metal polymer batteries the overall cycling process involves the lithium stripping-deposition at the anode, and the deintercalation-intercalation at the anode, according to the following electrochemical reaction, written for a Mn-based cathode ... 

Electrodes and cell components must be thin to minimise the internal resistance of the batteries the total cell can be less than 0.2 mm thick. Figure 12.11 shows the construction of a multi-layer film, rechargeable lithium polymer battery, using a solid polymer electrolyte. A thin lithium metal foil acts as an anode. The electrolyte is polyethylene oxide containing a lithium salt, and the cathode is a composite of the electrolyte and a... 

Arie et al. [116] investigated the electrochemical characteristics of phosphorus-and boron-doped silicon thin-film (n-type and p-type silicon) anodes integrated with a solid polymer electrolyte in lithium-polymer batteries. The doped silicon electrodes showed enhanced discharge capacity and coulombic efficiency over the un-doped silicon electrode, and the phosphorus-doped, n-type silicon electrode showed the most stable cyclic performance after 40 cycles with a reversible specific capacity of about 2,500 mAh/g. The improved electrochemical performance of the doped silicon electrode was mainly due to enhancement of its electrical and lithium-ion conductivities and stable SEI layer formation on the surface of the electrode. In the case of the un-doped silicon electrode, an unstable surface layer formed on the electrode surface, and the interfacial impedance was relatively high, resulting in high electrode polarization and poor cycling performance. 

Arie AA, Chang W, Lee JK (2010) Electrochemical characteristics of semi conductive silicon anode for lithium polymer batteries. J Electroceramics 24 308-312... 

Choi I, Ahn H, Park MJ (2011) Enhanced performance in lithium-polymer batteries using surface-functionalized Si nanoparticle anodes and self-assembled block copolymer electrolytes. Macromolecules 44 7327-7334... 

These polymer electrol5rtes were exploited in the late 1990s for the fabrication of large-sized, laminated battery modules based on cells formed by a lithium foil anode and a vanadium oxide cathode, developed jointly by Hydro Quebec in Canada and 3M company in the United States [7,8]. The battery module had very good performance in terms of energy density (155 Wh kg ) and cycle life (600 cycles at 80% depth of discharge (DOD)), and it was proposed as a power source for EVs, a very futuristic concept back in 1996. However, despite this and other successful demonstration projects, the lithium polymer battery project was abandoned and only very recently reconsidered for use in an EV produced in France [9]. 

The early literature (until 1982) is summarized in Refs. [1] and [2], Hundreds of papers have been published since then (most of them in since 1994) and it is impossible to summarize all of them here. The Proceedings of the conferences mentioned above are good, sources of recent developments though sometimes incomplete. Since the early 1980s new systems have been introduced. The most important of these are lithium-ion batteries (which have lithiated carbonaceous anodes) and polymer-electrolyte batteries. Until 1991 very little was published on the Li/polymer-electrolyte interface [3, 4], The application of the SEI model to Li-PE batteries is ad-... 

It is now well established that in lithium batteries (including lithium-ion batteries) containing either liquid or polymer electrolytes, the anode is always covered by a passivating layer called the SEI. However, the chemical and electrochemical formation reactions and properties of this layer are as yet not well understood. In this section we discuss the electrode surface and SEI characterizations, film formation reactions (chemical and electrochemical), and other phenomena taking place at the lithium or lithium-alloy anode, and at the Li. C6 anode/electrolyte interface in both liquid and polymer-electrolyte batteries. We focus on the lithium anode but the theoretical considerations are common to all alkali-metal anodes. We address also the initial electrochemical formation steps of the SEI, the role of the solvated-electron rate constant in the selection of SEI-building materials (precursors), and the correlation between SEI properties and battery quality and performance. 

As to anodes, in most of the research work a generously dimensioned sheet of lithium metal has been used. Such an electrode is rather irreversible, but this is not noticed when a large excess of lithium is employed. Li-Al alloys and carbon materials inserting lithium cathodically during recharging can be used as anodes in nonaqueous solutions. Zinc has been used in polymer batteries with aqueous electrolyte (on the basis of polyaniline). 

Wilson AM, Zang G, Eguchi K, Xing W, Dahn JR. Pyrolysed silicon-containing polymers as high capacity anodes for lithium-ion batteries. J Power Sources 1997 68 195-200. 

As mentioned above, a coin type Li polymer battery has high performance. In particular, the PMMA gel electrolyte is very stable toward lithium anodes. 

Carbon powder mixed with polymeric binder (PVdF, PTFE) has been widely used as anode material for lithium ion batteries and as the electrode material for EDLC with liquid electrolyte solutions. When such composite electrodes composed of carbon powder and polymer binder were used in all-solid-state EDLC, the performance was not good enough because of poor electrical contact between the electrode s active mass and the electrolyte. By having the electrolyte inside the composite electrode, the contact between the active mass in the electrode and the electrolyte can be considerably improved and hence the capacitance can... 

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