Electrolytes for Lithium Ion Batteries

0.0.0.0.1 Mitigating safety and practicality concerns of high-voltage lithium ion battery electrolytes.

0.1 Developing Safer, Wide-Temperature Liquefied Gas Electrolytes for Lithium Ion Batteries

Collaborators: US Army Research Laboratory (Oleg Borodin, Principle PI), University of Southern California, USC CARC (Marco Olguin), University of Southern California San Diego, and South 8 Technologies

The team working on this project endeavored to demonstrate an enhanced safety feature inherent in liquefied gas electrolytes and show the viability of using difluoromethane as a liquefied gas solvent, which has lower pressure, lower flammability, and improved maximum operation temperature characteristics compared with fluoromethane.

Using ab initio molecular dynamics simulations and anode-electrolyte/cathode-electrolyte interface calculations based on Density Functional Theory (DFT), they were able to study the complex interfacial reaction mechanisms of novel liquefied gas electrolytes with lithium metal anodes and high-voltage cathodes. This methodology allowed the team to create a custom-built setup to enable liquefied gas electrolyte characterization through Raman spectroscopy.

The demonstrated use of such alternative liquefied gas solvents opens a path towards the further development of high-energy and safe batteries that can operate in a wide-temperature range.