Patent application number | Description | Published |
20130164635 | USE OF EXPANDED GRAPHITE IN LITHIUM/SULPHUR BATTERIES - The present invention relates to a solid composite for use in the cathode of a lithium- sulphur electric current producing cell wherein the solid composite comprises 1 to 75 wt.-% of expanded graphite, 25 to 99 wt.-% of sulphur, 0 to 50 wt.-% of one or more further conductive agents other than expanded graphite, and 0 to 50 wt.-% one or more binder, based on the total amount of the solid composite, a lithium-sulphur electric current producing cell comprising (i) a cathode comprising the solid composite, (ii) an anode and (iii) an electrolyte interposed between said cathode and said anode, and a process for preparing the solid composite comprising the steps (I) preparing a slurry comprising sulphur, expanded graphite, and optionally further components in a liquid medium by dispersing the sulphur, the expanded graphite, and optionally the further components in the liquid medium; (H) casting the slurry provided in step (I) on a substrate or placing the slurry provided in step (I) into a mold; and (III) removing some or all of the liquid medium from the slurry cast in step (II) to form a solid composite. | 06-27-2013 |
20130316072 | ELECTROCHEMICAL CELLS COMPRISING POROUS STRUCTURES COMPRISING SULFUR - The present invention relates to the use of porous structures comprising sulfur in electrochemical cells. Such materials may be useful, for example, in forming one or more electrodes in an electrochemical cell. For example, the systems and methods described herein may comprise the use of an electrode comprising a conductive porous support structure and a plurality of particles comprising sulfur (e.g., as an active species) substantially contained within the pores of the support structure. | 11-28-2013 |
20140062411 | SEPARATION OF ELECTROLYTES - Methods and articles relating to separation of electrolyte compositions within lithium batteries are provided. The lithium batteries described herein may include an anode having lithium as the active anode species and a cathode having sulfur as the active cathode species. Suitable electrolytes for the lithium batteries can comprise a heterogeneous electrolyte including a first electrolyte solvent (e.g., dioxolane (DOL)) that partitions towards the anode and is favorable towards the anode (referred to herein as an “anode-side electrolyte solvent”) and a second electrolyte solvent (e.g., 1,2-dimethoxyethane (DME)) that partitions towards the cathode and is favorable towards the cathode (and referred to herein as an “cathode-side electrolyte solvent”). By separating the electrolyte solvents during operation of the battery such that the anode-side electrolyte solvent is present disproportionately at the anode and the cathode-side electrolyte solvent is present disproportionately at the cathode, the battery can benefit from desirable characteristics of both electrolyte solvents (e.g., relatively low lithium reactivity of the anode-side electrolyte solvent and relatively high polysulfide solubility of the cathode-side electrolyte solvent). | 03-06-2014 |
20140079994 | RELEASE SYSTEM FOR ELECTROCHEMICAL CELLS - Electrochemical cells, and more specifically, release systems for the fabrication of electrochemical cells are described. In particular, release layer arrangements, assemblies, methods and compositions that facilitate the fabrication of electrochemical cell components, such as electrodes, are presented. In some embodiments, methods of fabricating an electrode involve the use of a release layer to separate portions of the electrode from a carrier substrate on which the electrode was fabricated. For example, an intermediate electrode assembly may include, in sequence, an electroactive material layer, a current collector layer, a release layer, and a carrier substrate. The carrier substrate can facilitate handling of the electrode during fabrication and/or assembly, but may be released from the electrode prior to commercial use. | 03-20-2014 |
20150180037 | POLYMER FOR USE AS PROTECTIVE LAYERS AND OTHER COMPONENTS IN ELECTROCHEMICAL CELLS - Polymers for use as protective layers and other components in electrochemical cells are provided. In some embodiments, the electrochemical cell is a lithium-based electrochemical cell. | 06-25-2015 |
20150180084 | APPLICATION OF FORCE IN ELECTROCHEMICAL CELLS - The present invention relates to the application of a force to enhance the performance of an electrochemical cell. The force may comprise, in some instances, an anisotropic force with a component normal to an active surface of the anode of the electrochemical cell. In the embodiments described herein, electrochemical cells (e.g., rechargeable batteries) may undergo a charge/discharge cycle involving deposition of metal (e.g., lithium metal) on a surface of the anode upon charging and reaction of the metal on the anode surface, wherein the metal diffuses from the anode surface, upon discharging. The uniformity with which the metal is deposited on the anode may affect cell performance. For example, when lithium metal is redeposited on an anode, it may, in some cases, deposit unevenly forming a rough surface. The roughened surface may increase the amount of lithium metal available for undesired chemical reactions which may result in decreased cycling lifetime and/or poor cell performance. The application of force to the electrochemical cell has been found, in accordance with the invention, to reduce such behavior and to improve the cycling lifetime and/or performance of the cell. | 06-25-2015 |
20150188194 | ELECTRICALLY NON-CONDUCTIVE MATERIALS FOR ELECTROCHEMICAL CELLS - Articles, systems, and methods related to the configuration of electrically non-conductive materials and related components in electrochemical cells are generally described. Some inventive electrochemical cell configurations include an electrically non-conductive material (e.g., as part of the electrolyte) that is configured to wrap around the edge of an electrode to prevent short circuiting of the electrochemical cell. In some embodiments, the electrically non-conductive material layer can be arranged such that it includes first and second portions (one on either side of an electrode) as well as a third portion adjacent the edge of the electrode that directly connects (and, in some cases, is substantially continuous with) the first and second portions. The electrically non-conductive material layer can be relatively thin while maintaining relatively high electrical insulation between the anode and the cathode, allowing one to produce an electrochemical cell with a relatively low mass and/or volume. The arrangements described above can be formed, for example, by forming a multi-layer structure comprising an electrode and an electrically non-conductive material layer (e.g., as a coating), and folding the multi-layer structure such that the electrically non-conductive material covers the convex surface portion of the resulting crease. | 07-02-2015 |
20160118651 | ION-CONDUCTIVE COMPOSITE FOR ELECTROCHEMICAL CELLS - Articles and methods including composite layers for protection of electrodes in electrochemical cells are provided. In some embodiments, the composite layers comprise a polymeric material and a plurality of particles. | 04-28-2016 |