EurekAlert July 4, 2022
Researchers at UC San Diego have developed an electrolyte that is not only versatile and robust throughout a wide temperature range, but also compatible with a high energy anode and cathode. It is made of a liquid solution of dibutyl ether mixed with a lithium salt, and compatible with a lithium-sulfur battery. The electrolyte helps improve both the cathode side and anode side while providing high conductivity and interfacial stability. They engineered the sulfur cathode to be more stable by grafting it to a polymer. In tests, the proof-of-concept batteries retained 87.5% and 115.9% of their energy capacity at -40 and 50 C (-40 and 122 F), respectively. They had high Coulombic efficiencies of 98.2% and 98.7% at these temperatures, respectively, which means the batteries can undergo more charge and discharge cycles before they stop working. Next step for the research is scaling up the battery chemistry, optimizing it to work at even higher temperatures and further extending cycle life. Their paper will be published the week of July 4 in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS)…read more.