PFI-TT: Biomimetic Aramid Separators for Long-Lifetime Lithium-Sulfur Batteries

该创新-技术转化伙伴关系（PFI-TT）项目的更广泛影响/商业潜力将是解决锂硫电池商业化的关键技术挑战，这是新一代电动汽车（EV）的一种有前途的解决方案。 提高扩展电池容量将增加续驶里程并降低成本。 我们将开发一种材料，这是一个重要的电池元件，使用的方法来自研究材料，如凯夫拉（TM）。 材料设计过程将包括新的实验技术和新的计算方法，可用于测试不同制造商为许多不同电动汽车制造的电池。该项目的一个重要组成部分将是培养研究生和本科生中的新一代企业家。该项目将解决锂硫电池的主要问题，锂硫电池是高容量，高放电率电荷存储设备的潜在解决方案，但目前由于枝晶生长和多硫化锂的阳极到阴极传输而导致循环寿命短。这些问题的解决需要一种新的材料，结合离子选择性与特殊的鲁棒性。 该项目将利用软骨的结构设计，以机械和传输特性的特殊组合而闻名，以设计具有所需特性的新离子传导膜。该团队将通过计算重建软骨样神经网络，并根据来自凯夫拉（TM）织物的芳纶纳米纤维，用所需的参数合成它们。 这些芳纶复合材料可以作为电池的隔膜，使其充电-放电周期延长80%。将测试新型分离器防止枝晶生长和多硫化物的自发扩散。 特别关注芳纶纳米纤维隔膜的可扩展卷对卷加工的开发及其在高容量电池中的应用。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值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 Partnerships for Innovation - Technology Translation (PFI-TT) project will be to address the key technological challenges of commercialization of lithium sulfur batteries, a promising solution for a new generation of electric vehicles (EVs). Improving the extended battery capacity would increase driving range and reduce the cost. We will develop a material that is an important element of the battery, using methods derived from studying materials like Kevlar(TM). The material design process will include both new experimental techniques and novel computational methods that can be used to test batteries made by various manufacturers for many different EVs. An important part of this project will be the education of a new generation of entrepreneurs among graduate and undergraduate students.The proposed project will address major issues in lithium sulfur batteries, a potential solution for high-capacity, high-discharge rate charge storage devices but currently limited by short cycle life due to the growth of dendrites and undesirable anode-to-cathode transport of lithium polysulfides. Resolution of these problems requires a new material combining ion-selective properties with exceptional robustness. This project will utilize the structural design of cartilage known for an exceptional combination of mechanical and transport properties to engineer new ion-conducting membranes with the required properties. The team shall computationally recreate cartilage-like nanofiber networks and synthesize them with the desired parameters based on aramid nanofibers derived from Kevlar(TM) fabric. These aramid nanofiber composites can potentially serve as separators in batteries, enabling up to 80% extension of their charge-discharge cycles. The new type of separators will be tested for prevention of dendrite growth and spontaneous diffusion of the polysulfides. Special attention will be given to the development of scalable roll-to-roll processing of the aramid nanofibers separators and their implementation in high-capacity batteries.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.