Use tape to solve the pain points of lithium-ion batteries: reduce the appearance of dendrites and extend battery life
The research team at Rice University used tape as the starting point and combined with some advanced laser technology to develop a promising new electrode material. This material can overcome the long-standing problems of current lithium-ion batteries and is expected to greatly improve battery performance. Lithium metal battery refers to a battery in which graphite, which is traditionally used as an anode (one of the two electrodes), is replaced with pure metal lithium. Because this material has a very high energy density, metal lithium can greatly accelerate the charging speed of the battery, and the capacity can reach 10 times. However, lithium-ion batteries also have some shortcomings, one of which is more troublesome is 'dendrites'. During the charging process, these dendritic protrusions will form on the surface of the anode and may cause the battery to short circuit, fail or catch fire. Therefore, a lot of battery research is focused on stifling them. The scientific research team from Rice University has made new breakthroughs in this field, starting with a piece of tape. The team attached tape to the copper current collector that forms part of the lithium anode and processed it with a laser to heat it to an extreme temperature of 2300 Kelvin (3680°F or 2026°C), giving it some very useful New features. This process turns the tape into a porous coating, mainly composed of silicon, oxygen, and a small amount of the magical material graphene. Preliminary experiments on the film show that it can be used as a protective layer for current collector components, which can absorb and release metallic lithium without allowing harmful dendrites to grow. In its laser-induced silicon oxide protective coating, the Rice University team may have found a way to take advantage of these positive factors without adding excess lithium burden. Its experiments show that the battery equipped with its new coating exhibits three times the life of other 'zero excess' metal lithium-ion batteries, retaining 70% of its capacity during 60 charge and discharge cycles. The team said that the technology is fast and safe, does not involve solvents, and can be performed at room temperature. Therefore, it is high hopes that it has the potential to expand.