SBIR Phase I: A New Class of High-conductivity Solid-state Composite Electrolytes for Next-generation Lithium Batteries

这个小企业创新研究（SBIR）项目的更广泛的影响/商业潜力是使高性能、安全的锂基电池成为可能；这是一个价值400亿美元的市场，并且在电动汽车和电网存储需求的推动下迅速增长。该项目将开发一种安全（不易燃）的电解质，可以在高压（用于增加电池容量）和高温（用于快速充电）下工作。在当今的制造业基础设施中，这种电解质是一种即时替代。关键的实验将使团队对材料特性有一个基本的了解，并使其能够绕过关键的性能限制。作为全固态电池的推手，这项创新将以更低的成本提高电动汽车电池的性能，加快美国制造的电动汽车和动力系统在全球市场的渗透速度。这个小企业创新研究（SBIR）第一阶段项目将开发、测试、扩大规模，并开始商业化下一代固态复合电解质，用于本质上安全、高性能的锂/锂离子电池。电解质应具有高电化学稳定性、高离子电导率、高热稳定性、高锂转移数、低界面电阻，并将具有固有的不可燃性。将制造200毫安时的全电池并进行性能测试。在第一阶段的工作中，NextGen将证明其新型电解质能够满足早期市场采用者所要求的先进电解质的导电性、温度、安全性等目标。该项目有四个关键任务：(1)陶瓷材料的合成与表征；(2)与聚合物共混形成薄且无针孔的复合固态电解质体系，以同时实现与正极/负极材料的高离子电导率和低电阻界面；(3)复合电解质体系的电化学和热表征；(4)全电池的组装和测试，以证明电解质满足系统性能要求。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，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 Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) project is to enable high-performance, safe, lithium-based batteries; a $40B market today and growing rapidly driven by the needs of electric vehicles and grid-based storage. This project will develop a safe (non-flammable) electrolyte that can operate at both high voltages (for increased battery capacity) and high temperature (for rapid charging). The proposed electrolyte is a drop-in replacement in today’s manufacturing infrastructure. Key experiments will allow the team to develop a fundamental understanding of the materials properties and allow it to circumvent crucial performance limiters. As an enabler for an all solid-state battery, the innovation will improve performance of electric vehicle batteries at reduced costs, accelerating the rate of penetration of US-made electric vehicles and power trains in world markets. This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project will develop, test, scale-up, and begin commercialization of a next-generation solid-state composite electrolyte for inherently safe, high-performance lithium-/lithium-ion batteries. The electrolyte should have high electrochemical stability, high ionic conductivity, high thermal stability, a high lithium transference number, low interfacial resistance, and will be inherently non-flammable. Full cells 200 mAh will be constructed and performance tested. During the Phase I effort, NextGen will demonstrate that its new electrolyte will meet the conductivity, temperature, safety, etc. goals for advanced electrolytes required by early market adopters. The project has four key tasks: (1) ceramic materials synthesis and characterization, (2) blending with a polymer to form a thin, pinhole-free composite solid-state electrolyte system to achieve simultaneously a high ionic conductivity and a low resistance interface with the cathode/anode materials, (3) electrochemical and thermal characterization of the composite electrolyte system, and (4) assembly and test of full cells to demonstrate that the electrolyte meets the system performance requirements.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.