SBIR Phase I: Coated metal foils for high energy density, low-cost, lithium-ion batteries

这个小企业创新研究第一阶段项目的更广泛的影响/商业潜力将集中在研究和开发铝基集流器，以取代锂离子电池中的铜箔。铜箔是锂离子电池中第三大成本（$6.50/kWh）和第三重组件（~0.5 kg/kWh）。铜被大量用于清洁技术领域，预计到2030年，铜的供需缺口将达到300 - 500万吨。到2030年，电动汽车的铜箔需求量预计将超过150万吨。该项目将探索使用专用铝箔来消除锂离子电池中的铜。这种特殊的铝箔将比铜轻三倍，可以为一辆典型的电动汽车减轻超过50磅的电池组重量。该项目的智力价值在于证明了专用铝箔可以达到电池应用所需的材料性能。必须满足三个标准：1)特种铝箔必须具有与铜相似的电化学表面性能；2)负极材料必须粘附牢固；3)特种箔必须能够超声焊接到金属片上。目前，纯铝箔被用作阴极侧的集流器，但不能用于阳极侧，因为与铝的锂合金具有低电位。开发具有独特表面性能的专用铝箔是取代电池中铜的关键。铝比铜更轻、更便宜、储量也更丰富。具有独特表面性能的特种铝箔具有广泛的应用，包括太阳能电池上的金属化层。在电池中充分展示专用铝箔也可以开辟新的研究方向，有可能改善清洁能源和相关应用中使用的关键材料。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 Phase I project will focus on researching and developing aluminum--based current collectors to replace copper foils in lithium-ion batteries. Copper foils are the third largest cost ($6.50/kWh) and third heaviest component (~0.5 kg/kWh) in lithium-ion batteries. Copper is heavily used in the clean technology space and there is expected to be a 3-5 million ton gap between the supply and demand for copper by 2030. Copper foil demand for electric vehicles is expected to exceed 1.5 million tons annually by 2030. This project will explore the use of specialized aluminum foils to eliminate copper in lithium-ion batteries. The specialty aluminum foil will be three times lighter than copper and could eliminate in excess of 50 pounds of battery pack weight in a typical electric vehicle. The intellectual merit of this project is to demonstrate that specialized aluminum foils can achieve the requisite materials properties for battery applications. There are three criteria that must be met: 1) the specialty aluminum foil must have similar electrochemical surface properties as copper; 2) the anode material must adhere strongly; and 3) the specialty foil must be able to be ultrasonically welded to metal tabs. Currently, pure aluminum foils are used as current collectors on the cathode side but cannot be used on the anode side because lithium alloys with aluminum at low potentials. Developing specialized aluminum foils that have unique surface properties is key to replacing copper in batteries. Aluminum is lighter, cheaper, and more abundant than copper. Specialty aluminum foils that achieve unique surface properties have a wide array of applications including metallization layers on solar cells. Full demonstration of specialized aluminum foils in batteries could also open up new research directions with the potential to improve the critical materials used in clean energy and related applications.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.