Key Materials for Rechargeable Batteries

The key requirements for a material to be successfully used as a cathode in a rechargeable lithium battery are as follows. 

The composite cathode usually consists of an inert conducting material, the polymer/salt electrolyte, and the solid active insertion particles. The key requirements for a material to be successfully used as a cathode in a rechargeable lithium battery are as follows ... 

A.R. Jha, author of 10 books on alternative energy and other topics, outlines rechargeable battery requirements for electric vehicles (EVs), hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs), and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs). He identifies the unique materials for electrolytes, cathodes, and anodes that are most cost-effective with significant improvements in weight, size, efficiency, reliability, safety, and longevity. Since electrode kinetics play a key role in the efficient operation of fuel cells, the book also provides you with a foundation in the basic laws of electrochemical kinetics. 

A number of factors have to be considered in the choice of the intercalation compound, such as reversibility of the intercalation reaction, cell voltage, variation of the voltage with the state of charge, and availability and cost of the compound. Table 34.5 lists the key requirements for the intercalation materials and Table 34.6 presents some of the characteristics of the intercalation and other compounds that have been used in lithium rechargeable batteries. The electrochemical potentials of several lithium intercalation compounds versus those of lithium, metal and the variation of voltage with the amount of intercalation are shown in Fig. 34.2. 

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