SBIR Phase I: Rechargeable Hybrid Aqueous Battery with Novel Freeze Tape Cast 3-D Zinc Electrode

该项目的更广泛的影响/商业潜力是包含新型冷冻带铸锌电极的可充电混合水电池(REHAB)的进步，这将有助于满足全球电池需求。主导大多数电气化市场的两种化学物质是锂离子和铅酸。然而，这两种化学物质都有缺陷，包括铅酸电池的循环寿命和能量较低，以及锂离子电池的价格和安全风险较高。这些缺点为修复电池化学成为铅酸和锂离子市场的临时替代品打开了大门，例如文具、重型卡车运输、数据中心备份和工业动机。康复电池的主要目标将是进入这些成熟的市场，作为当前技术的更低成本和更安全的替代品。这些目标市场的年销售额总计超过500亿美元，而且还在继续增长。这个小型企业创新研究(SBIR)第一阶段项目将利用冷冻胶带浇铸(FTC)锌电极来推进康复电池。Rehab是一种新兴的高效充电电池技术，它利用锂嵌入电极的高比能量密度和负担得起的无毒锌电极。电解液是水基的，比非水电解液更具导电性，这使得康复电池成为高倍率应用的安全替代电池。尽管修复技术具有巨大的潜力，但商用锌箔电极的低性能和镀锌电极的制造困难阻碍了修复电池的实际实施。第一阶段项目将包括三项主要任务，以促进新兴技术和建立新型FTC阳极，包括FTC锌电极的初步表征，FTC电极修复袋电池的制造，以及在不同操作条件下的初步化学性能。FTC新型电极预计将提供定向排列的有源金属支柱，以实现有序镀锌，帮助控制形状变化，并由于电流分布更均匀而显著减少树枝晶形成，从而提供更长的循环寿命。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

The broader impact/commercial potential of this project is the advancement of a Rechargeable Hybrid Aqueous Battery (ReHAB) containing a novel freeze tape cast zinc electrode that will contribute to meeting global battery demands. The two chemistries dominating the majority of electrification markets are lithium-ion and lead-acid. However, both of these chemistries have drawbacks, which include the low cycle life and energy associated with lead-acid batteries, and the high price and safety risks associated with lithium-ion batteries. These drawbacks open the door for the ReHAB battery chemistry to become a drop-in replacement to the lead-acid and lithium-ion markets such as stationary, heavy trucking, data center backup, and industrial motive. The primary goal of the ReHAB battery will be to step into these established markets as a lower cost and safer replacement to current technologies. These target markets total more than $50 billion in annual sales and continue to grow. This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project will advance the ReHAB battery by utilizing freeze tape cast (FTC) zinc electrodes. The ReHAB is an emerging, high efficiency rechargeable battery technology that utilizes the high specific energy density of lithium intercalation electrodes with affordable, nontoxic zinc electrodes. The electrolyte is water-based and is more conductive than non-aqueous electrolytes, which makes ReHAB cells a safe, alternative battery for high rate applications. Despite the enormous potential of the ReHAB technology, poor performance of commercially available zinc foil electrodes and difficulties with fabricating zinc plated electrodes have prevented practical implementation of the ReHAB battery. The Phase 1 project will be comprised of three major tasks to advance the emerging technology and establish the novel FTC anode, including initial characterization of the FTC zinc electrode, fabrication of ReHAB pouch cells with the FTC electrode, and the initial performance of the chemistry under varying operating conditions. The FTC novel electrode is anticipated to provide directionally aligned active metallic struts that will allow for ordered zinc plating, help control shape change, and dramatically reduce dendrite formation due to a more homogeneously distributed current, which will provide much longer cycle life.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.