DC04 - Karlsruhe Institute of Technology - Germany
Title: Application of single-ion conducting polymer electrolytes in high-performance and scalable Li/S batteries
Objective:
DC4 will develop Li/S batteries using single ion polymer electrolytes (SIPEs, provided by DC1, UCBL, Lyon, France, and by LIST, Luxembourg) both as separator membrane and as additive in the sulfur cathode. The main objectives are: i) the identification of suitable cathode configuration to include high active material mass loading (≥3 mg/cm2) and the polymer electrolyte as additive; ii) the optimization of SIPE membranes to allow for satisfactory transport properties and efficient protection of the lithium metal anode within the challenging chemistry of the Li/S battery electrochemical process; iii) the combination of the most suitable cathode and SIPE in room temperature Li/S polymer battery, which will be thoroughly characterized via physical-chemical and electrochemical advanced techniques.
Expected results:
DC4 will achieve Li/S batteries benefiting from high safety content and remarkable energy density (450 – 500 Wh kg-1) thanks to the exploitation of SIPE membranes and sulfur cathodes with high active material mass loading. The best combination of SIPE and sulfur cathode will be established in collaboration with DC6 (NIC, Ljubljana, Slovenia) through thorough characterization of the single components of the battery focusing both on physical-chemical and electrochemical properties. The optimized battery will use a sulfur cathode with active material mass loading of ≥3 mg/cm2 to deliver an areal capacity of 3 mAh cm-2, a thin lithium metal anode to enhance the specific energy density, and a proper SIPE to allow for a cycle life of >500 cycles. The most performing Li/S cathode configuration will be shared with VARTA to perform the scale-up of the electrode for application in double layer pouch cells.
SUPERVISORS
