Gel Electrolyte for Li Metal Battery

Abstract

The pursuit of high energy density enables lithium metal batteries (LMBs) to become the research hotpot again. However, the safety concerns including easy leakage and inflammability of the liquid electrolyte and the performance deterioration due to the uncontrollable Li dendrites growth in liquid electrolyte limit the further development of LMBs. Gel electrolyte, the most promising alternative for the commercial liquid electrolyte, is expected to solve the dilemma faced by the liquid electrolyte because of its higher safety, good flexibility and adaptability to the electrode and high ionic conductivity comparable to that of liquid electro-lyte. Deeply understanding the characteristics and the role of the gel electrolyte in LMBs is of great importance to achieve superior electrochemical performance of LMBs. In this review, we comprehensively introduce the chemical fundamental of the gel electrolyte. On this basis, the modification strategies and the recent progress of the gel electrolyte for LMBs are systematically reviewed and particularly highlighted, which are categorized based on composition regulation, structural design and functional design. We endeavor to provide guidance for the rational design of the gel electrolyte with superior properties for LMBs.

In-Situ-Polymerized 1,3-Dioxolane Solid-State Electrolyte with Space-Confined Plasticizers for High-Voltage and Robust Li/LiCoO2 Batteries

“…With the FEC plasticizer addition, the ionic conductivity has increased by dozens of times and the impedance drops down to 13 Ω at RT. The plasticizer tends to weaken the intermolecular forces between polymer molecules and thus the activity and mobility of polymer molecular chain increase, 37 on the other hand, introducing FEC plasticizer to PDOL also can promote the dissociation of Li salts and provide new ions conducting paths in plasticizer. 38 Because of the reasons above, ionic conductivity of the electrolyte is significantly improved by introducing FEC.…”

Polymer‐Based Solid‐State Electrolytes for High‐Energy‐Density Lithium‐Ion Batteries – Review

“…Consequently, the segmental mobility of the polymer is enhanced. [ 55,56 ] Furthermore, the incorporation of plasticizers with high‐dielectric constants facilitates the dissociation of the lithium salts. [ 57 ] These synergistic effects of enhanced segment mobility and increased charge carrier concentration further enhance the ion conduction of the polymer matrices.…”

Gelation of a metal oxide cluster for a proton exchange membrane operated under low humidity

“…12,13 GEs deliver comparable ion conductive capacity to liquid electrolytes, while the risks of solvent leakage and fast evaporation are greatly reduced owing to the strong affinity between the gel networks and solvents. 14,15 Inside the GEs, the as-formed cross-linking network accounts for the elastic response and the solvent component contributes to the energy loss, which is responsible for their observable viscoelastic behaviour under imposed deformations. By fine-tuning the chemical compositions and hierarchical structures, the mechanical properties of the resultant gels can be broadly tuned and adapted to different service conditions.…”