I-Corps Team: Sustainable Battery Electrode Manufacturing with High Active Material Loading

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The broader impact/commercial potential of this I-Corps project is the development of a battery electrode modification method to enhance lithium (Li)-ion battery performance. The most widely used cathode materials in the Li-ion battery for electrical vehicles are nickel (Ni)-rich oxides. However, the low chemical and electrochemical stability, the large inactive material requirement (typically 10-15%), and the high cost needed for the storage of these materials due to the water adsorption on the surface hinder the further advancement and large-scale implementation of the Ni-rich material for the battery cathode. Through the proposed technology, the assembled cathode achieves higher chemical and electrochemical stability, ultra-low inactive material content in the cathode (less than 1%), and a significant reduction in the storage cost to repel water in the air due to the stability in ambient air. This new electrode manufacturing method may enable longer driving mileage of electric vehicles and a longer battery life span.This I-Corps project is based on the development of a new battery cathode manufacturing process, leveraging a unique gas phase conducting polymer coating technique using oxidative chemical vapor deposition (oCVD). A multi-functional conducting polymer prepared through oCVD achieves ultra-high active materials concentration (up to 99%) due to the high conductivity and adhesive function of the oCVD polymers. The oCVD polymers protect the cathode surface by limiting unfavorable reactions and phases such as detrimental cathode/electrolyte interfacial phases and water adsorption on the cathode surface. The increased active material concentration and the protection ability effectively contribute to the enhancement of lithium-ion battery capacity (10% higher), rate performance (14% higher), and cycle life (550% longer), compared to those without oCVD polymer coating. The proposed battery manufacturing technique is expected to mitigate the performance degradation issues for high nickel cathode materials where a trade-off exists between high battery capacity and high performance-retention due to the interfacial phases and water adsorption.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.