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Lithium Battery Based on 2D Materials
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Lithium Battery Based on 2D Materials

Lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) are one of the most promising and efficient energy storage devices, and they are widely utilized in electric vehicles and electronic devices. Due to their ultra-thin thickness and high surface-to-volume ratio, two-dimensional (2D) materials have recently emerged as particularly interesting possibilities for LIB electrodes. 2D materials can prevent electrodes from chalking, increase lithium-ion deposition synergy, promote lithium-ion flux via the electrolyte and electrode/electrolyte contact, and improve thermal stability, among other things. Alfa Chemistry can provide customers with unique 2D material solutions to meet customer needs. Please contact us as soon as possible so that we can help you with your LIBs application research.

Why 2D Materials

  • Planar, flexural, and folded structures in 2D materials can play a key role in the creation of ion transport channels, resulting in high ionic conductivity. This property could allow for high current densities to be supported without chemical or mechanical instability.
  • These materials exhibit excellent mechanical properties, such as high Young's modulus and flexibility. Because 2D materials can sustain high loads and strains without collapsing, they can be used as mechanical support networks for high-capacity electrode materials.
  • They also have the advantage of band gap tuning and physical property manipulation depending on the application, allowing them to improve their electrical conductivity for use as cathodes, anodes, or collectors.
  • 2D materials can also provide great thermal management applications, acting as good heat sinks to decrease the heat created in the LIB, due to their natural thermal conductivity.
  • Such materials also show good corrosion resistance. Therefore the usage of 2D materials as a protective coating for electrode corrosion or as self-supporting collectors is attracting more attention to Li-ion batteries.

Some of the highlighted merits of 2D materials.Fig 1. Some of the highlighted merits of 2D materials. (Rojaee R, et al. 2020)

These properties have led to an in-depth study of 2D materials to address the existing challenges of electrodes and electrolytes in rechargeable batteries. Alfa Chemistry is committed to addressing the current challenges faced by LIB materials. We overcome these limitations by using 2D materials.

How We Can Help You

Improving Electrical Conductivity

To obtain steady electrochemical performance, electrode materials must have a high electrical conductivity. 2D materials often provide the flexibility to tune electrical properties and introduce higher weight and volume capacities. Alfa Chemistry encapsulates, blends, wraps, and functionalizes active materials with 2D materials to reduce resistance and increase lithium-ion diffusion through electroactive materials. The addition of a graphene-based framework increases electrical contact and thus reduces interfacial impedance.

As Battery Electrodes

Due to the weak electrochemical characteristics of traditional electrode materials, 2D materials have been designed and implemented as battery electrodes. Alfa Chemistry can supply some common 2D materials that have been used as LIB electrode materials. One of the most often utilized 2D materials for negative electrodes is graphene. For high-capacity anode materials, other elemental graphene-like compounds such as phosphazene, silylene, and germanene have been produced.

Prevention of Electrode Chalking

Chalking of electrode materials during cycling is a serious difficulty for high-capacity electrodes, especially negative electrode materials, due to volume expansion and stress accumulation. Alfa Chemistry has developed graphene-encapsulated silicon/carbon nanofiber mixes that avoid cracking and improve electrochemical stability due to their outstanding mechanical qualities, solving the problem of silicon nanoparticle pulverization during cycling.

2D materials to prevent electrode pulverization. Schematic illustration of the Si/CNF-G nanostructure and its corresponding TEM image.Fig 2. 2D materials to prevent electrode pulverization. Schematic illustration of the Si/CNF-G nanostructure and its corresponding TEM image. (Wang M. S, et al. 2015)

Another way to prevent irreversible polysulfide dissolution and shuttling is to use functional groups and defect sites to bind polysulfides to 2D material surfaces. For our research, we chose MXene materials having functional groups on the surface, which are capable of chemical and physical adsorption to effectively trap polysulfides.

Controlling Lithium-Ion Electrodeposition

One of the greatest roadblocks to the development of lithium-ion batteries for practical high power and high energy applications is uneven lithium deposition/exfoliation. To overcome the problem, Alfa Chemistry looked at different physicochemical methodologies for designing electrolyte compositions, redesigned diaphragms, and electrode coatings. To address the poor mechanical, thermal, and electrochemical properties of Li-ion batteries, we used 2D materials as electrolyte diaphragms, surface protection films, and electrolyte additives.

For Thermal Stability

The strong parasitic electrochemical processes that occur during charging and discharging are one of LIBs' key issues. Thermal runaway and explosions can occur as a result of these side reactions. As a result, the battery components' temperature durability is compromised during cycling. Specific thermal behavior has been seen in 2D materials such as graphene, boron nitride, and transition metal disulfides. These materials are commonly found in substrates with low heat conductivity. Furthermore, we have used 2D materials to suppress oxygen release from cathode materials and lower the risk of thermal runaway. For example, multiple layers of rGO coating on LCO particles can moderate oxygen release under thermal abuse circumstances.

You didn't find what you were looking for? We can deliver unique solutions because of our wide skill set. Please get in touch with us to discuss your needs.

References

  1. Rojaee R, et al. (2020). "Two-Dimensional Materials to Address the Lithium Battery Challenges." ACS Nano. 14(3): 2628-2658.
  2. Ahn C, et al. (2015). "Three-Dimensional Interconnected Network of Graphene-Wrapped Silicon/Carbon Nanofiber Hybrids for Binder-Free Anodes in Lithium-Ion Batteries." ChemElectroChem . 2: 1699-1706.

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