SBIR Phase II: A New Class of High-Conductivity Solid-state Composite Electrolytes for Next-Generation Lithium Batteries

这一小型企业创新研究(SBIR)第二阶段项目的更广泛影响/商业潜力是引入了不可燃、易于制造的固体电池电解液，这些电解液也与金属锂兼容。该电池架构寻求在确保安全性的同时显著提高能量密度。两个团队还寻求通过消除与热管理和爆炸遏制相关的外部成本来降低锂离子电池的成本。安全、易于制造的电解液可能会改变全球经济的电气化速度。下一代电池供电的医疗设备，其中很大一部分是在美国制造的，也可能受益于新的固体电解液的采用。此外，拟议的复合固体电解液旨在使新的电池体系具有比液体电解液系统中可能的更高的能量密度。这一小型企业创新研究(SBIR)第二阶段项目将开发一种不可燃、高导电性的复合固态电池电解液，与混合金属氧化物阴极化学和电池制造工艺兼容。当聚合物电解质以及无机硫化物和氧化物固体电解质用作整体材料时，复合电解质的形态可以弥补它们存在的缺点。所提出的固体电解质的独特异质结构使锂离子能够通过多个途径更快地扩散，同时减缓了锂树枝晶的生长，从而提高了当前的技术水平。电解液的不可燃性质使其在减少火灾危险和降低锂离子电池所需热保护系统的成本方面成为传统液体电解液的潜在替代品。与锂金属的兼容性提供了一个独特的机会，可以提高比目前使用的硅-石墨阳极的能量密度，从而转化为更低的单位存储能量成本(美元/千瓦时)。另一个优势是，这些电池不需要特殊处理，它们与螺旋绕组和平面电池形式的因素都兼容。这一奖项反映了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 Small Business Innovative Research (SBIR) Phase II project is the introduction of non-flammable, easy-to-manufacture solid battery electrolytes that are also compatible with lithium metal. The cell architecture seeks to ensure safety while enabling a significant improvement in the energy density. The teams also seeks to lower the costs of the lithium-ion batteries by eliminating extrinsic costs associated with thermal management and explosion containment. Safe, easy-to-manufacture electrolytes may alter the rate of electrification of the global economy. The next generation of battery powered medical devices, a large proportion of which are manufactured in the United States, may also benefit from the adoption of the new solid electrolyte. In addition, the proposed composite solid electrolyte aims to enable new cell architectures with significantly higher energy densities than what has been possible in liquid electrolyte systems to date.This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase II project will develop a non-flammable, high-conductivity composite, solid-state battery electrolytes that are compatible with mixed metal oxide cathode chemistries and cell manufacturing processes. The morphology of the composite electrolyte is such that it offsets disadvantages present in polymer electrolytes, as well as inorganic sulfide and oxide solid electrolytes, when they are used as monolithic materials. The unique heterostructures of the proposed solid electrolytes advance the current state-of-the-art by enabling faster diffusion of lithium ions through multiple pathways, while mitigating the growth of lithium dendrites. The electrolyte's nonflammable nature makes it a potential replacement for conventional liquid electrolytes in reducing fire hazards and reducing the costs of reqired thermal protection systems in lithium-ion batteries. The compatibility with lithium metal presents a unique opportunity for improvement in the energy density over currently used silicon-graphite anodes, that translates to a lower cost per unit of stored energy ($/kWh). An additional advantage is that these batteries do not require special handling and they are compatible with both spiral wound and planar battery form factors.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.