Electrochemical stability of the next generation lithium batteries

Abstract

Batteries gained a lot of attention due to a raising demand for energy storage, as required for renewable energy generation systems, portable electronics and transport applications. For the development of new battery materials understanding of fundamental processes is essential, which often relies on the development of new characterisation techniques and tools that enable to study the underlying electrochemical processes at the relevant length scales, i.e. from an atomistic to a macroscopic level. Future batteries should be able to store more energy (per unit mass and or volume) and should be safer. Battery material solutions to achieve this are in principle known, where this thesis focusses on: (1) Si being one of the most promising negative electrode based on its large Li storage capacity (ten times higher than current graphite) and (2) solid electrolytes, replacing liquid electrolytes, which would practically annihilate safety concerns of Li batteries. However, for these new battery materials the challenge is to achieve a long cycle life by slowing down, or even preventing degradation reactions at the interfaces between the electrode and the electrolyte. This is the binding theme, and the topic of the main research questions of this thesis are thus: What are these degradation mechanisms and what is the impact of strategies to prevent it and achieve a long cycle life. The focus in this thesis is on Si negative electrodes in combination with liquid electrolytes in general, and for solid electrolytes in particular