Expanding the Range of Sodium Electrolytes: Bigger Anions, Supramolecular Size Control, and Ionic Liquids

该项目涉及合成用于钠电池的新型钠电解质，含有大的弱配位阴离子，以最大限度地提高离子电导率并获得离子液体电解质。这项工作将涉及电池中这些电解质的电化学检查，特别关注固体电解质界面（SEI）的形成机制。主要目的是探索尺寸和化学成分如何与电解质稳定性和电池性能相关。研究技术包括全电池和软包电池分析，阻抗测量，循环伏安法，固态和溶液NMR光谱和使用SEM，AFM和XPS的SEI的循环后探索。该项目更广泛的目标是为钠离子电池引入改进的电解质和添加剂。

The project involves the synthesis of new sodium electrolytes for sodium batteries, containing large, weakly coordinating anions to maximise ionic conductivity and to obtain ionic liquid electrolytes. The work will involve the examination of the electrochemistry of these electrolytes in batteries, with particular focus on the mechanism of formation of solid electrolyte interfaces (SEIs). The main aim is to explore how size and chemical makeup is related to electrolyte stability and battery performance. Techniques for study include full cell and pouch cell analysis, impedance measurements, cyclic voltammetry, solid-state and solution NMR spectroscopy and post-cycling exploration of the SEIs using SEM, AFM and XPS. The broader aim of the project is to introduce improved electrolytes and additives for sodium ion batteries.