Method for forming sintered composition

Abstract

A method for forming a sintered composition includes providing a slurry precursor comprising a lithium, sodium, or magnesium-based compound; strip forming the slurry precursor to form an unprocessed strip; and sintering the unprocessed strip at a temperature in the range of 500°C to 1350°C for a time in the range of less than 60 minutes to form the sintered composition, wherein the slurry precursor further comprises a solvent and a dispersant. The dispersant may include an amine compound, a carboxylic acid compound, or a combination, mixture, or salt thereof.

Description

Sintered lithium arsenic cobalt ore electrode Cross-referencing of related applications This application claims priority and benefit to U.S. Patent Application No. 17 / 407,677, filed August 20, 2021, with the United States Patent and Trademark Office, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. This disclosure relates to sintered lithium arsenic cobalt ore electrodes for use in Li-ion batteries. Lithium cobaltite (LCO) (LiCoO) 2) Due to its relatively high theoretical specific capacity (e.g., approximately 274 mAh / g) and high theoretical volumetric capacity (e.g., approximately 1363 mAh / cm³), it is suitable for applications requiring a high theoretical specific capacity (e.g., approximately 274 mAh / g) and a high theoretical volumetric capacity (e.g., approximately 1363 mAh / cm³). 3 It is used in most commercial Li-ion batteries (LIBs) due to its low self-discharge, high discharge voltage, and good cycle performance. Typically, LIB cathodes are prepared by incorporating oxides or carbonaceous powders into an organic binder, and this process is performed via a slurry-based coating process. However, challenges remain in the LCO tape forming and sintering process, such as poor dispersibility in the solvent, slurry wetting resistance on the carrier film, and tape burning during binder burnout. These problems result in insufficient density characteristics in the final cathode, thereby affecting the energy density of the LIB. This disclosure report presents a novel formulation that addresses LCO dispersion, slurry wetting issues, and thin-film combustion problems, as well as its application in the manufacture of sintered LiCoO. Continuous forming and rapid sintering of two electrodes. In some embodiments, the method of forming a sintered composition includes: providing a slurry precursor comprising a lithium, sodium, or magnesium-based compound; strip forming the slurry precursor to form an unprocessed strip; and sintering the unprocessed strip at a temperature in the range of 500°C to 1350°C for a time in the range of less than 60 min to form the sintered composition, wherein the slurry precursor further comprises a solvent and a dispersant. In one of the embodiments that can be combined with any other embodiment or example, the dispersant comprises an amine compound, a carboxylic acid compound, or a combination thereof, a mixture thereof, or a salt. In one of the embodiments that can be combined with any other embodiment or example, the amine compound comprises oleylamine, dibutylamine, or a combination thereof. In one of the embodiments that can be combined with any other embodiment or example, the amine compound comprises at least one amino group, at least one imine group, or a combination thereof, wherein the at least one amino group or at least one imine group contains an alkyl chain or an aromatic ring, and wherein the amine compound has fewer than 30 carbon atoms. In one of the embodiments that can be combined with any other embodiment or example, the carboxylic acid compound comprises oleic acid. In one of the embodiments that can be combined with any other embodiment or example, the carboxylic acid compound comprises an R-COOH structure molecule, wherein R is an alkyl chain or an aromatic ring, and wherein the R-COOH structure molecule has fewer than 30 carbon atoms. In one of the embodiments that can be combined with any other embodiment or example, the dispersant comprises a combination, mixture thereof, or salt of an amine compound and a carboxylic acid compound, and wherein the ratio of the carboxylic acid compound to the amine compound is 0:1 to 1:0. In one of the embodiments that can be combined with any other embodiment or example, the ratio of the carboxylic acid compound to the amine compound is 1:3 to 3:1. In one of the embodiments that can be combined with any other embodiment or example, the ratio of the carboxylic acid compound to the amine compound is at least 1:4. In one of the states that can be combined with any other state or embodiment, the lithium, sodium, or magnesium-based compound has a D50 particle size of up to 0.6 μm. In one of the states that can be combined with any other state or example, the solvent includes 1-methoxy-2-propanyl acetate (MPA), isopropanol (IPA), ethyl isobutyrate (EIB), ketones, aromatic hydrocarbons, amines, nitrated hydrocarbons, chlorinated hydrocarbons, or combinations thereof. In one of the states that can be combined with any other state or example, the solvent is nonpolar and has a dielectric constant of less than 20 at 20°C. In one of the embodiments that can be combined with any other embodiment or example, the lithium-based compound includes at least one of the following: lithium cobaltite (LCO), lithium manganite spinel (LMO), lithium nickel cobalt aluminate (NCA), lithium nickel manganese cobalt oxide (NMC), lithium iron phosphate (LFP), lithium cobalt phosphate (LCP), lithium titanate, lithium niobium tungstate, lithium titanium sulfide, or combinations thereof. In one of the embodiments that can be combined with any other embodiment or example, the lithium, sodium, or magnesium-based compound constitutes at least 50 wt.% of the total slurry precursor. In one of the embodiments that can be combined with any other embodiment or example, the sodium or magnesium-based compound includes at least one of the following: NaVPO 4F, NaMnO 2. Na 2 / 3 Mn 1-y Mg y O 2(0<y<1), Na 2Li 2Ti 5O 12 Na 2Ti 3O 7. MgCr 2O 4. or MgMn 2O 4. In one of the embodiments that can be combined with any other slurry precursor, the slurry precursor further comprises at least one of a binder and a plasticizer. In one embodiment that can be combined with any other embodiment or example, the strip forming includes: forming a slurry precursor into a sheet configuration having a thickness in the range of 5 μm to 100 μm; and drying the sheet configuration such that the combination of at least one solvent, dispersant, and plasticizer does not exceed 10 wt.% of the dried sheet. In one embodiment that can be combined with any other embodiment or example, the method further includes: debonding the dried sheet at a predetermined temperature. In one embodiment that can be combined with any other embodiment or example, the predetermined temperature is in the range of 175°C to 350°C. In one embodiment that can be combined with any other embodiment or example, the debonding step and the sintering step are performed simultaneously. In one embodiment that can be combined with any other embodiment or example, the method further includes: pyrolyzing the organic matter in the dried sheet at a temperature in the range of 175°C to 350°C. In one embodiment that can be combined with any other embodiment or example, sintering is performed for a time in the range of less than 45 min and includes continuously feeding the unprocessed strip through the sintering chamber at a predetermined rate measured in in / min. In one embodiment that can be combined with any other embodiment or example, the final thickness of the sintered composition is in the range of 2 μm to 100 μm directly after sintering without further processing. In one embodiment that can be combined with any other embodiment or example, the method further includes continuously forming the sintered composition into a strip. In some embodiments, the energy device includes: a first sintered, unpolished electrode having a first surface and a second surface; a first current collector disposed on the first surface of the first electrode; an electrolyte layer disposed on the second surface of the first electrode; a second electrode disposed on the electrolyte layer; and a second current collector disposed on the second electrode. In one embodiment that can be combined with any other embodiment or configuration, the first electrode comprises the sintered composition described herein. In one embodiment that can be combined with any other embodiment or configuration, the electrolyte layer has at least 10 -6 Conductivity in S / cm. In one embodiment that can be combined with any other embodiment or configuration, the first electrode is the substrate of the energy device. Sample 1. A method for forming a sintered composition, comprising: providing a slurry precursor comprising a lithium, sodium, or magnesium-based compound; strip forming the slurry precursor to form an unprocessed strip; and sintering the unprocessed strip at a temperature in the range of 500°C to 1350°C for a time in the range of less than 60 min to form the sintered composition, wherein the slurry precursor further comprises a solvent and a dispersant. State 2. The method of State 1, wherein the dispersant includes an amine compound, a carboxylic acid compound, or a combination thereof, a mixture thereof, or a salt. State 3. The method of State 2, wherein the amine compound includes oleylamine, dibutylamine, or a combination thereof. State 4. The method of any one of States 2-3, wherein the amine compound comprises at least one amino group, at least one imine group, or a combination thereof, wherein the at least one amino group or at least one imine group contains an alkyl chain or an aromatic ring, and wherein the amine compound has fewer than 30 carbon atoms. State 5. The method of any one of states 2-4, wherein the carboxylic acid compound includes oleic acid. State 6. The method of any one of states 2-5, wherein the carboxylic acid compound comprises an R-COOH structure molecule, wherein R is an alkyl chain or an aromatic ring, and wherein the R-COOH structure molecule has fewer than 30 carbon atoms. 7. The method of any one of 2-6, wherein the dispersant comprises a combination, mixture, or salt of amine compounds and carboxylic acid compounds, wherein the ratio of carboxylic acid compounds to amine compounds is 0:1 to 1:0. Method of state 8. Method of state 7, wherein the ratio of carboxylic acid compound to amine compound is 1:3 to 3:1. Method of Sample 9. Method of Sample 7, wherein the ratio of carboxylic acid compound to amine compound is at least 1:4. Sample 10. The method of any one of Samples 1-9, wherein the lithium, sodium, or magnesium-based compound has a D50 particle size of up to 0.6 μm. Sample 11. The method of any one of Samples 1-11, wherein the solvent includes 1-methoxy-2-propanyl acetate (MPA), isopropanol (IPA), ethyl isobutyrate (EIB), ketones, aromatic hydrocarbons, amines, nitrated hydrocarbons, chlorinated hydrocarbons, or combinations thereof. Sample 12. The method of any one of Samples 1-11, wherein the solvent is nonpolar and has a dielectric constant of less than 20 at 20°C. Sample 13. The method of any one of Samples 1-12, wherein the lithium-based compound comprises at least one of the following: lithium cobaltite (LCO), lithium manganite spinel (LMO), lithium nickel cobalt aluminate (NCA), lithium nickel manganese cobalt oxide (NMC), lithium iron phosphate (LFP), lithium cobalt phosphate (LCP), lithium titanate, lithium niobium tungstate, lithium titanium sulfide, or combinations thereof. Sample 14. The method of any one of Samples 1-13, wherein a compound based on lithium, sodium, or magnesium is at least 50 wt. of the total slurry precursor. Sample 15. The method of any one of Samples 1-14, wherein the sodium- or magnesium-based compound includes at least one of the following: NaVPO 4F, NaMnO 2. Na 2 / 3 Mn 1-y Mg y O 2(0<y<1), Na 2Li 2Ti 5O 12 Na 2Ti 3O 7. MgCr 2O 4. or MgMn 2O 4. Sample 16. The method of any one of Samples 1-15, wherein the slurry precursor further comprises at least one of a binder and a plasticizer. Version 17. The method of Version 16, wherein strip forming comprises: forming a slurry precursor into a sheet configuration having a thickness in the range of 5 μm to 100 μm; and drying the sheet configuration such that the combination of at least one solvent, dispersant, and plasticizer does not exceed 10 wt. of the dried sheet. The method of sample 17 further includes debonding the dried sheet at a predetermined temperature. Sample 19. The method of Sample 18, wherein the predetermined temperature is in the range of 175°C to 350°C. The method of state sample 20. The method of state sample 18, wherein the debonding step and the sintering step are performed simultaneously. The method of Sample 21. Sample 17 further includes pyrolyzing the organic matter in the dried sheet at a temperature ranging from 175°C to 350°C. 22. The method of any one of 1-21, wherein sintering is carried out for a time of less than 45 min and includes continuously feeding an unprocessed strip through the sintering chamber at a predetermined rate measured in in / min. State 23. The method of any one of states 1-22, wherein: without further processing, the final thickness of the sintered composition is in the range of 2 μm to 100 μm directly after sintering. The method of Sample 1 further includes continuously forming a thin strip of the sintered composition. 25. An energy device comprising: a first sintered, unpolished electrode having a first surface and a second surface; a first current collector disposed on the first surface of the first electrode; an electrolyte layer disposed on the second surface of the first electrode; a second electrode disposed on the electrolyte layer; and a second current collector disposed on the second electrode. State 26. Energy device of State 25, wherein the first electrode comprises a sintered composition of any one of States 1-24. A power device of any one of states 27 and 25-26, wherein the electrolyte layer has at least 10 -6 Conductivity in S / cm. State 28. An energy device of any one of states 25-27, wherein the first electrode is the substrate of the energy device. Additional features and advantages are set forth in the following embodiments and will be apparent in part to those skilled in the art from the description or to be recognized by practicing the embodiments as described in the written description and its claims, and in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. It should be understood that the foregoing general description and the following detailed description are merely exemplary and intended to provide an overview or framework for understanding the nature and characteristics of the request. Referring now to the exemplary embodiments shown in the accompanying drawings. Wherever possible, the same reference numerals will be used throughout the drawings to refer to the same or similar parts. Components in the drawings are not necessarily drawn to scale; rather, the focus is on illustrating the principles of exemplary embodiments. It should be understood that this application is not limited to the details or methods set forth in the specification or shown in the drawings. It should also be understood that the terminology is for descriptive purposes only and should not be considered limiting. Furthermore, any examples set forth in this specification are illustrative and not restrictive, and merely illustrate some of the many possible embodiments of the claimed invention. Other suitable modifications and adaptations to various conditions and parameters commonly encountered in this art and readily apparent to those skilled in the art are within the spirit and scope of this disclosure. Recently, there has been increased activity focused on understanding how to improve battery energy density to, for example, reduce the time interval between charging cycles, free up space in devices for other functions, and reduce weight where mobility is critical. Furthermore, higher energy density generally reduces costs because less material is consumed in the manufacturing process. Much of this attention has been focused on lithium-ion batteries, and efforts can be broadly categorized into two types. In one approach, largely compatible with existing lithium-ion battery manufacturing technologies, advanced cathode materials with higher capacities are being developed, such as NMC 811 and NCA (used alone or in combination with surface coatings), or increasing amounts of silicon can be added to the battery anode. In a second approach, the technology aims to achieve a lithium metal anode. This approach involves solid electrolytes such as lithium garnet, lithium phospholipid, and LiPON. This disclosure relates to the design of a novel formulation for the continuous forming and sintering of LCO strips. Dispersants, binders, plasticizers, and solvents are the four key components of the slurry formulation, excluding the solid powder. Dispersants affect the strip forming process and the quality of the raw strip. Binders and plasticizers affect strip strength, flexibility, release properties, and the ability to assemble from stacked strips by extrusion. Solvents affect the drying rate and coilability of the raw strip during continuous forming. Specifically, this application discloses novel dispersants in LCO ribbon slurry formulations that promote better dispersion of LCO powder. Dispersants play a crucial role in ribbon forming because they are essential for dispersion, wetting, high density, porosity, deflocculation, slurry stability, and the strength of the unprocessed ribbon. They also serve as a starting point for ribbon forming using fine powders. After solvent evaporation, the dispersant allows particles to settle into a tightly compacted unprocessed ribbon. Therefore, an effective dispersant can increase the density and strength of the unprocessed ribbon. The dispersants disclosed herein include amine molecules or combinations of amines and carboxylic acids. Amines or combinations of amines and carboxylic acids, used as dispersants, improve LCO dispersion to obtain stable slurries for ribbon forming. In some embodiments, the amine compound may include at least one amino group and / or imine group containing an alkyl chain or aromatic ring, wherein the number of carbons in the structure is less than 30. In some embodiments, the carboxylic acid compound may include an R-COOH molecule, wherein R is an alkyl chain or aromatic ring and the number of carbons in the structure is less than 30. Figure 5 illustrates an example of a dispersant in an LCO slurry formulation for tape forming according to some embodiments: an amine (oleylamine), a carboxylic acid (oleic acid), and combinations thereof. The combination of amine (oleylamine) and carboxylic acid (oleic acid) does not form a compound with a specific molecular morphology. In other words, depending on the acid-to-amine ratio and its interactions with other components in the slurry, the combination can be a mixture or a salt. The choice of combination ratio, chain length, and the structure of the organic acid and amine depends on other slurry components, such as solvents and binders, because the behavior of the surfactant (i.e., dispersant) depends on the hydrophilic-lipophilic balance (HLB) value, the interactions between the components, and the pH preference of the binder. HLB is a measure of the degree to which a compound is hydrophilic or lipophilic, determined by calculating the HLB values ​​of different regions of the molecule used in the application. Good dispersants / surfactants have HLB values ​​compatible with solvents and / or binders. Shorter alkyl chains exhibit weak hydrophobic interactions. Regarding pH preference, some powders or binders function well in slightly acidic conditions, while others function better in alkaline conditions. Because amines are basic molecules and carboxylic acids are acidic molecules, the amine:carboxyl ratio can be varied to provide a suitable pH environment for the powder or binder. Other dispersants for the ribbon forming of ceramic powder may include fatty acids, esters, phosphate esters, and terpineol. Other dispersants for the ribbon forming of ceramic powder may include polymers such as polyethylene glycol (PEG), polyvinyl butyral (PVB), and polyvinyl pyrrolidone (PVP). Binders and plasticizers provide crosslinking and improve the tensile strength of the unprocessed ceramic matrix. As mentioned above, dispersant properties (e.g., composition ratio, chain length, and structure of organic acids and amines) depend on the appropriate selection of the binder. Binders that work well with the dispersants disclosed herein include polyvinyl butyral (PVB), polyacrylic acid, and polypropylene carbonate, such as QPAC 25 and QPAC 40. These binders may include hydroxyl or carbonyl functional groups, which provide sites for linking the dispersant. The dispersants disclosed herein are organic molecules, and therefore have less steric hindrance and better controllable orientation compared to commercial polymeric dispersants used in interaction with binders. The interaction between the binder and dispersant disclosed herein helps prevent the formation of entangled networks and bridging flocculation at the overhanging ends of the binder, which can lead to gravitational settling of ceramic particle clusters, increased slurry viscosity, and molded parts with uneven particle distribution. Plasticizers that work well with the dispersants disclosed herein include dibutyl phthalate, the non-phthalate plasticizer Santicizer® Platinum P-1400, polyols, acetates, glycerides, castor oil, and mineral oils. As described above regarding binders, these plasticizers have hydroxyl or carbonyl functional groups, which provide sites for interaction with the dispersant and form a uniform and stable paste for molding. The choice of solvent depends on the desired properties of the carrier film (i.e., the film formed by shaping the slurry composition) and the required vapor pressure for the drying rate. Solvents may include propylene oxide-based glycol ether acetates, esters, alcohols, and hydrocarbons. In some embodiments, solvents include 1-methoxy-2-propanyl acetate (MPA), isopropanol (IPA), ethyl isobutyrate (EIB), ketones, aromatic hydrocarbons, amines, nitrated hydrocarbons, chlorinated hydrocarbons, or combinations thereof. As described above, this disclosure relates to the design of a novel formulation for the continuous forming and sintering of LCO strips for electrodes in LIB applications. Sintered cathodes achieve higher energy densities by making more efficient use of available space. For example, sintered cathodes increase energy density by serving as mechanical supports. Typically, aluminum supports are used as mechanical supports for battery structures. A thickness of only about 0.5 μm to 1.0 μm is sufficient for current distribution and collection. They are typically applied to one side of the cathode support via metal evaporation or other industrial thin-film deposition processes. For porous structures in solid-state batteries, the energy density of sintered cathodes for LCOs, as disclosed herein (i.e., without the need for aluminum supports), increases by approximately 50% by volume and approximately 27% by weight, and for dense structures, by approximately 80% by volume and approximately 37% by weight. Compared to conventionally fabricated cathodes, sintered cathodes eliminate the mass and volume of organic binders and conductive carbon. Referring generally to the figures, various embodiments of sintered electrodes comprising at least one alkali metal or alkaline earth metal are disclosed. The sintered electrodes have a thickness of 2 μm to 150 μm and a minimum diameter of 3 cm. 2 The cross-sectional area of ​​the electrode. Compared to conventional electrode materials, sintered electrodes can be manufactured to be much larger and self-supporting than typical thin-film formed electrodes, and can be used without any additional finishing techniques such as grinding or polishing, compared to other sintered electrodes. The disclosed sintered electrode achieves these advantages via a strip-forming process that allows for faster manufacturing speeds of "medium" thickness electrode materials, where the processing speed is independent of the electrode thickness. That is, the electrode can be manufactured to be thicker than conventional electrodes manufactured via thin-film technology, and thinner than other sintered electrodes that must be ground to a usable size. Furthermore, the electrode can be sintered quickly in a more economical process compared to current processes used to manufacture electrode materials. In fact, conventional processes typically use thin-film technologies, which are slower and more difficult to build thick layers. In this way, the relatively thick sintered electrode of this disclosure not only eliminates non-functional components, such as mechanical supports, but also increases the battery's charge capacity. In addition, the electrode thickness and strip-forming manufacturing process allow for the manufacture of electrode materials in roll-to-roll form. The sintered electrodes disclosed herein are intended to be applicable to a variety of battery chemistry compositions, including lithium-ion, sodium-ion, and magnesium-ion batteries, as well as batteries using solid-state or liquid electrolytes. This document discloses various embodiments of the sintered electrodes, manufacturing processes, and lithium-ion batteries. These embodiments are provided by way of example and not limitation. As mentioned, various embodiments of the sintered electrode include at least one of an alkali metal or an alkaline earth metal. In other embodiments, the sintered electrode may be a fluoride compound. In embodiments, the sintered electrode includes at least one of lithium, sodium, or magnesium. In embodiments, the sintered electrode also includes at least one transition metal such as cobalt, manganese, nickel, niobium, tantalum, vanadium, titanium, copper, chromium, tungsten, molybdenum, tin, germanium, antimony, bismuth, or iron. Exemplary embodiments of lithium-based electrodes include lithium cobaltite (LCO), lithium manganite spinel (LMO), lithium nickel cobalt aluminate (NCA), lithium nickel manganese cobalt oxide (NMC), lithium iron phosphate (LFP), lithium cobalt phosphate (LCP), lithium titanate, lithium niobium tungstate, lithium nickel manganese oxide, and lithium titanium sulfide (LiTiS2). Exemplary embodiments of sodium-based electrodes include NaVPO4. 4F, NaMnO 2. Na 2 / 3 Mn 1-y Mg y O 2(0<y<1), Na 2Li 2Ti 5O 12 , or Na 2Ti 3O 7. Exemplary embodiments based on magnesium include, in particular, magnesia-chromite (MgCr). 2O 4) and MgMn 2O 4. In embodiments, the sintered electrode includes a first phase and at least one other phase mixed with the first phase (e.g., a second phase, a third phase, a fourth phase, etc.). In embodiments, one or more additional phases are selected to provide additional functionality. For example, in one embodiment involving a lithium electrode, a second phase, such as a lithium garnet phase, enhances the effective lithium conductivity of the electrode. In one embodiment, the second phase enhances electronic conductivity. The additional one or more phases may be added prior to sintering, or the sintered electrode may contain open pores that can be wetted with the additional one or more phases. In an embodiment, the second phase is spinel, which provides additional electronic conductivity. Increased electronic conductivity is beneficial for the manufacturing process of single-cell batteries. For example, increased conductivity reduces the battery's internal resistance, enabling faster charging and higher power delivery. Increased conductivity also allows for the use of thicker electrodes, which is beneficial for cathode manufacturing and battery assembly. Battery capacity is controlled by the quality of the active electrode materials. Conversely, the rate of sheet manufacturing is determined by area. In other words, regardless of sheet thickness, the same area can be produced. Therefore, if the cathode is thicker, a cathode of a given capacity can be manufactured in a shorter time. Using a thinner cathode to improve rate performance means assembling more layers of single cells to build a battery of a given capacity. The number of assembly steps required to manufacture a battery with a thicker cathode can be reduced, thereby lowering costs. In some embodiments, the sintered electrode includes a first phase and a trace, insignificant amount of a second phase. One advantage of the sintered electrodes disclosed herein is that they can be manufactured larger than conventional electrode materials used in batteries, such as batteries manufactured using thin-film technology. In embodiments, the sintered electrodes have a thickness of 2 μm to 150 μm, or 5 μm to 150 μm, or 20 μm to 80 μm, or 30 μm to 60 μm, or any value or subrange thereof disclosed. In addition to being thicker than thin-film electrodes, sintered electrodes can also be made to have a relatively large cross-sectional area. In embodiments, the sintered electrode has a thickness of at least 3 cm². 2 or at least 10 cm 2 or at least 100 cm 2 or up to 1 m 2 The cross-sectional area, or any value or subrange thereof disclosed therein. Sintered electrodes can be manufactured to be larger than conventional thin-film electrodes because they are formed from rapidly sintered strips or extruded raw strips. To form the raw strip, a slurry (or paste) is prepared from powder components, a binder, and a solvent. The powder components include one or more powdered compounds containing lithium, sodium, or magnesium-based compounds and at least one alkali metal or alkaline earth metal. The powdered compound containing lithium, sodium, or magnesium-based compounds and an alkali metal or alkaline earth metal can be a single powdered compound. Alternatively or additionally, the compound may include a lithium, sodium, or magnesium-based compound and a single compound containing an alkali metal or alkaline earth metal. Furthermore, in embodiments, the powdered compound may further contain a transition metal, which is either together with the lithium, sodium, or magnesium-based compound and the compound containing an alkali metal or alkaline earth metal or in a single compound. For example, regarding lithium electrodes, the powdered compound may include lithium and transition metals such as LCO or LMO. In another example, a compound may contain a lithium compound and a compound containing an alkali metal or alkaline earth metal, and another compound may contain a transition metal. For example, regarding lithium electrodes, the lithium compound may be, in particular, at least one of the following: Li 2O, Li 2CO 3. LiOH, LiNO 3. Lithium acetate (CH 3COOLi), or lithium citrate (Li 3C 6H 5O 7), and the compound containing a transition metal may be at least one of the following: MnO 2. Mn 2O 3. Co 2O 3. CoO, NiO, Ni 2O 3. Fe 2O 3. Fe 3O 4. FeO, TiO 2. Nb 2O 5. V 2O 5. VO 2. Ta 2O 5. or WO 3. In one embodiment, the powder component of the slurry or paste (comprising all powdered compounds) comprises 40% to 75% by weight of the slurry (or paste). In other embodiments, the powder component comprises 45% to 60% by weight of the slurry (or paste), and in still other embodiments, the powder component comprises 50% to 55% by weight of the slurry (or paste). The slurry (or paste) contains a binder that holds the powder components together in the form of an unprocessed ribbon before sintering. In the embodiments, the binder is particularly at least one of the following: polyvinyl butyral (PVB) (e.g., Butvar® PVB resin available from Eastman Chemical Company), acrylic polymer (e.g., Elvacite® acrylic resin available from Lucite International; polyacrylic acid, etc.), or polyvinyl alcohol. The slurry (or paste) also has a solvent in which powder components and binders are dispersed. The choice of solvent depends on the desired properties of the carrier film (i.e., the film formed by shaping the slurry composition) and the required vapor pressure for the drying rate. Solvents can also be selected to prevent the leaching of alkali or alkaline earth metals from lithium, sodium, or magnesium-based compounds in the slurry. This leaching can occur due to ion exchange or hydroxide formation. Once alkali or alkaline earth metals enter the solvent, several undesirable side effects can occur. For example, the solubility of the binder may decrease; the dissolved metal may interfere with the dispersant; the dissolved metal may migrate during drying, leading to chemical inhomogeneity in the dried ribbon; or the chemical properties of the inorganic particles themselves may change. Furthermore, the reaction with the solvent is time-dependent, thus the slurry properties are subject to continuous changes and potentially unstable processes. Solvents may include ethylene glycol ether acetates based on propylene oxide, esters, alcohols, hydrocarbons, 1-methoxy-2-propanyl acetate (MPA), ethanol-butanol mixtures, or combinations thereof. In some embodiments, solvents include 1-methoxy-2-propanyl acetate (MPA), isopropanol (IPA), ethyl isobutyrate (EIB), ketones, aromatic hydrocarbons, amines, nitrated hydrocarbons, or chlorinated hydrocarbons, or combinations thereof. Therefore, in the embodiments, the solvent is selected to be nonpolar. In a specific embodiment, the nonpolar solvent has a dielectric constant of less than 20 at 20°C. In other embodiments, the nonpolar solvent has a dielectric constant of less than 10 at 20°C, and in other embodiments, the nonpolar solvent has a dielectric constant of less than 5 at 20°C. Furthermore, in the embodiments, the solvent leaches less than 1 ng / L of alkali metal or alkaline earth metal from the powder component in the slurry. In other embodiments, the solvent leaches less than 0.1 ng / L of alkali metal or alkaline earth metal from the powder component in the slurry, and in other embodiments, the solvent leaches less than 0.01 ng / L of alkali metal or alkaline earth metal from the powder component in the slurry. In some embodiments, the chemical properties of the binder can be modified to work in conjunction with nonpolar solvents such as MPA. For example, Butvar® B-79 is a commercially available PVB with a low concentration of hydroxyl groups derived from polyvinyl alcohol (11-13% by weight) and a low molecular weight compared to other PVB binders. This allows for easy dissolution and high solubility to control viscosity and achieve high solids loading. In the embodiments, the slurry (or paste) may contain other additives that facilitate processing. For example, in the embodiments, the slurry (or paste) may contain between 0.1% by weight and 5% by weight of dispersant and / or plasticizer. Regarding the dispersants described above, novel dispersants for LCO ribbon slurry formulations are disclosed, which promote better dispersion of LCO powder. Dispersants in ribbon forming are crucial for dispersion, wetting, high density, porosity, deflocculation, slurry stability, and the strength of the unprocessed ribbon. After solvent evaporation, the dispersant allows particles to settle into a tightly compacted unprocessed ribbon. Therefore, an effective dispersant can increase the density and strength of the unprocessed ribbon. The dispersants disclosed herein include amine molecules or combinations of amines and carboxylic acids. Amines or combinations of amines and carboxylic acids, as described above, improve LCO dispersion to obtain a stable slurry for ribbon forming. In some embodiments, the amine compound may include at least one amino group and / or imine group containing an alkyl chain or aromatic ring, wherein the number of carbons in the structure is less than 30. In some embodiments, the carboxylic acid compound may include an R-COOH molecule, wherein R is an alkyl chain or aromatic ring and the number of carbons in the structure is less than 30. Amines or combinations of amines and carboxylic acids, as dispersants, improve LCO dispersion to obtain a stable slurry for ribbon forming. Other dispersants for ribbon forming of ceramic powders may include fatty acids, esters, phosphate esters, terpineol, and fish oil. Other dispersants for ribbon forming of ceramic powders may include polymers such as polyethylene glycol (PEG), polyvinyl butyral (PVB), and polyvinyl pyrrolidone (PVP). Plasticizers that work well with the dispersants disclosed herein include dibutyl phthalate and non-phthalate plasticizers such as Santicizer® Platinum P-1400, polyols, acetates, glycerides, castor oil, and mineral oil. Furthermore, as will be discussed more fully below, the presence of transition metal oxides in the slurry (or paste) can induce catalytic combustion reactions during sintering. Therefore, in the embodiments, the slurry (or paste) may contain additives to prevent or reduce the severity of such combustion reactions. Specifically, the slurry (or paste) may contain antioxidants such as phenol (e.g., butylated hydroxytoluene (BHT) or alkylated diphenylamine), or materials with endothermic decomposition properties, such as inorganic carbonates and hydroxides. deal with The slurry (or paste) is strip-formed or extruded to obtain an unprocessed strip of the desired thickness for sintering electrodes. As discussed above, the thickness can range from 2 μm to 150 μm. In an embodiment, the unprocessed strip is dried to remove a substantial portion of the solvent, leaving primarily lithium, sodium, or magnesium-based compounds containing alkali metals or alkaline earth metals. In an embodiment, drying can occur at ambient temperature or at a slightly elevated temperature of 60°C to 80°C (or begin at ambient temperature and transition to an elevated temperature). Furthermore, in an embodiment, air is circulated to enhance drying. In an embodiment, the amount of organic material remaining after drying does not exceed 10% by weight of the dried unprocessed strip. After drying, the unprocessed strip is debonded and sintered. That is, the unprocessed strip is heated to a temperature at which the polymer binder and any other organic matter are burned off. In an embodiment, debonding occurs in a temperature range of 175°C to 350°C. Subsequently, the dried and debonded unprocessed strip is sintered. Sintering occurs within a temperature range of 500°C to 1350°C. The sintering time within this temperature range is less than 60 minutes. In one embodiment, the sintering time is less than 50 minutes, and in other embodiments, the sintering time is less than 45 minutes. After sintering, the porosity of the sintered electrode does not exceed 30%. In one embodiment, the sintered electrode has a porosity of no more than 25%. In other embodiments, the sintered electrode has a porosity of no more than 20%, and in other embodiments, the sintered electrode has a porosity of no more than 15%. In one embodiment, the porosity of the sintered electrode is at least 0.1%. Due to the sintering process, in one embodiment, the sintered electrode has an average particle size of 10 nm to 50 μm. In other embodiments, the average particle size is 50 nm to 10 μm, and in other embodiments, the average particle size is 100 nm to 1000 nm. Furthermore, in the embodiments, the sintered electrode has open porosity, providing fluid communication between the first and second surfaces of the sintered electrode. That is, in the embodiments, a lithium, sodium, or magnesium compound phase constitutes the solid phase, and the pores constitute a second phase, wherein the second phase is a continuous phase within the solid phase. Furthermore, in the embodiments, the pores of the sintered electrode tape are substantially aligned to facilitate ion transport. That is, the pores are aligned along an axis perpendicular to the first and second surfaces. For example, each pore may have a cross-sectional dimension longer than any other cross-sectional dimension of that pore, and the longer cross-sectional dimension is substantially perpendicular to the first and second surfaces of the electrode, for example, aligned on average within 25° of the vertical line. Advantageously, compared to other sintered electrodes, the described sintering process produces sintered electrodes that do not require further finishing (e.g., mechanical grinding or polishing) before being incorporated into the battery structure. Specifically, previously sintered electrodes were formed from larger disks, for example, with a thickness of 500 μm to 1 mm, and had to be cut to usable dimensions and ground to usable thickness. It has been reported that this grinding process can only achieve a thickness of about 130 μm, which is the practical limit for electrodes manufactured using this method. By forming the electrodes into thin strips, the process is not only more economical (e.g., eliminating the need for grinding / polishing steps and enabling roll-to-roll manufacturing), but the desired electrode material thickness can also be achieved. Furthermore, because the sintered electrode is self-supporting, it can be used as a substrate for depositing additional layers. For example, a metal layer (e.g., up to 5 μm) can be deposited on the surface of the sintered electrode to serve as a current collector for the battery. Additionally, in exemplary embodiments, solid electrolytes such as lithium phosphorus oxynitride (LiPON) and lithium garnet (e.g., LLZO garnet) are used. 7La 3Zr 2O 12 Lithium phosphate (LiPO) electrolyte can be deposited onto sintered electrodes via RF sputtering. Alternatively, a thin-layer LiPON solid electrolyte can be deposited via a thin-layer LiPO. 3PO 4 ammonolysis or LiPO 3. Alternatively, it can be applied via reactive sintering. These processes are envisioned to be faster and potentially less capital-intensive compared to conventional solid electrolyte deposition techniques. Similarly, solid electrolytes of lithium garnet (e.g., LLZO) can be applied via sol-gel, direct sintering, and reactive sintering. Furthermore, as a self-supporting layer, sintered electrodes can provide a basis for advantageous manufacturing methods of lithium-ion batteries using liquid electrolytes. In other words, the cathode (i.e., the sintered electrode) serves as the battery substrate. Specifically, sintered electrodes can be manufactured in a continuous process and used as a coating substrate in batch or roll-to-roll processing. This process allows the sintered electrode to be metallized, for example, by sputtering and / or electrolytic deposition, to form a metallized sintered electrode. In this way, the thickness of the electrode current collector metal in conventional lithium-ion batteries can be reduced from a typical thickness of 10-15 μm to at least 5 μm, less than 1 μm, or at least 100 nm. Moreover, metallized sintered electrodes can be supplied to battery cell manufacturers as independent components in sheet or roll form. Advantageously, these metallized sintered electrodes reduce the volume of the cell typically reserved for the current collector, thereby allowing for more active electrode material and higher capacity. In this regard, sintered electrodes are particularly suitable for ion-intercalation batteries. An exemplary embodiment of a lithium-ion battery 10 is shown in Figure 1. The lithium-ion battery 10 includes a sintered cathode 12, an electrolyte layer 14 or region, and an anode 16. In an embodiment, the sintered cathode 12 has a thickness of 2 μm to 150 μm. Additionally, in an embodiment, the sintered cathode 12 has a thickness of at least 3 cm. 2 The cross-sectional area of ​​the cathode 12. Advantageously, the sintered cathode 12 mechanically supports the lithium-ion battery 10 so that the sintered cathode 12 is not supported on a mechanical support such as a zirconium oxide support. The advantage of this architecture is that it essentially eliminates non-functional components in the battery. That is, while providing mechanical support, the sintered cathode 12 remains a functional component and contributes to the battery's capacity. Therefore, the cathode support design can provide the same total capacity with a thinner profile, or the cathode thickness can be increased to achieve a higher net capacity within the same dimensions. Furthermore, the sintered cathode 12 can be used in both solid-state and liquid electrolyte lithium-ion batteries. Specifically, in a solid-state battery, the electrolyte layer 14 includes a solid electrolyte (e.g., having a >10 ppm). -6 The electrolyte layer 14 comprises a solid electrolyte, such as LiPON, lithium garnet (e.g., LLZO), or lithium sulfophosphorus, with a conductivity of S / cm. More specifically, in a solid-state battery, the electrolyte layer 14 comprises a solid electrolyte, such as LiPON, lithium garnet (e.g., LLZO), lithium sulfophosphorus, or a lithium super ionic conductor (LISICON), and the combination of lithium-ion conductivity and thickness results in a specific areal resistivity of less than about 100 Ωcm. 2 Specifically, one advantage of LiPON is its resistance to dendritic crystal growth. In a liquid electrolyte battery, the electrolyte layer 14 comprises a liquid electrolyte, such as LiPF6. 6-DMC (lithium hexafluorophosphate in dimethyl carbonate), and a polymer or ceramic separator for separating the cathode 12 and the anode 16. In either case, the sintered cathode 12 increases the charging capacity compared to conventional lithium-ion batteries. The battery 10 also includes a first current collector 18 disposed on a first surface of the sintered cathode 12. In the illustrated embodiment, a second current collector 20 is disposed on the anode 16; however, in an embodiment, the anode can be a metal (e.g., lithium metal or magnesium metal), in which case the current collector can be excluded. Furthermore, in the illustrated embodiment, the battery 10 is encapsulated in a protective coating 22. In an embodiment, the first current collector 18 is copper, while the second current collector 20 (when in use) is aluminum. The protective coating 22 can be, for example, parylene. Although the depicted embodiments only include a sintered cathode 12, the anode 16 may also be a sintered electrode according to this disclosure. For lithium-ion batteries, the (sintered) cathode 12 may include at least one of lithium arsenic cobalt ore, lithium spinel manganese oxide, lithium nickel cobalt aluminate, lithium nickel manganese cobalt oxide, lithium iron phosphate, lithium cobalt phosphate, lithium nickel manganese oxide, or lithium titanium sulfide, and the (sintered) anode 16 may include at least one of lithium titanate or lithium niobium tungstate. Furthermore, although a lithium-ion battery is described, it can alternatively be based on sodium-ion, calcium-ion, or magnesium-ion chemicals. For a sodium-ion battery, the (sintered) cathode 12 may include: NaMnO 2. Na 2 / 3 Mn 1-y Mg y O 2 (0 < y < 1), or NaVPO At least one of the 4Fs, and the (sintered) anode 16 may include Na. 2Li 2Ti 5O 12 Or Na 2Ti 3O At least one of the seven. For magnesium-ion batteries, the (sintered) cathode 12 may include MgCr 2O 4 or MgMn 2O At least one of the four, and the anode 16 may be metallic magnesium (or may serve as a second current collector 20). Any of the aforementioned battery chemistry may use a liquid electrolyte comprising a solvent (e.g., DMC) and a salt having cations that match the intercalated ions. Alternatively, for sodium-ion batteries, a sodium super ionic conductor (NASICON) may be used as a solid electrolyte. For the purpose of illustrating capacity gain, Figure 2 provides a schematic cross-section of a conventional solid-state thin-film microcell 100. The microcell 100 includes a cathode current collector 102 and an anode current collector 104 deposited on an inert mechanical support 106. A cathode 108 (e.g., LCO or LMO) is formed on the cathode current collector 102 and surrounded by a solid electrolyte 110 (e.g., LiPON). An anode 112 is deposited on the electrolyte 110 and the anode current collector 104. A coating 114 is provided to protect the cathode 108, electrolyte 110, and anode 112. In conventional battery designs, the mechanical support 106 is relied upon for processing during the manufacture of the battery 100, and this support serves as a platform for depositing the cathode 108 and electrolyte 110 layers. The mechanical support 106 typically has a thickness of 50 μm to 100 μm. The mechanical support 106 and the protective coating 114 also provide rigidity to the final package and help prevent damage. In these conventional cells 100, the cathode 108 is typically grown to the desired thickness using processes such as RF sputtering or pulsed laser deposition. These deposition techniques are another reason why the conventional cell 100 requires a mechanical support 106. These conventional methods produce cathode material at a rate of <10 μm / hr, thus imposing practical and commercial limitations on the achievable thickness of these conventional cathode materials. Therefore, thin-film microcells are only used in applications requiring small-sized power sources, such as smart cards, medical implants, RFID tags, and wireless sensing. The comparison of the charging capacity of the battery 10 in Figure 1 of this disclosure with that of the conventional battery 100 in Figure 2 is performed at the same nominal thickness of 80 μm. Specifically, the comparison is made between (1) the conventional battery 100 having a 50 μm thick mechanical support 106 of zirconium oxide and a 5 μm thick cathode, and (2) the battery 10 of this invention having a 35 μm thick cathode 12. Notably, the thickness of the cathode 12 of the battery 10 of this invention is less than the thickness of the mechanical support 106 of the conventional battery 100, thereby allowing space to be reserved for metallic lithium at the anode 16. In both absolute and volumetric terms, the additional thickness of the sintered cathode 12 and the removal of the mechanical support 106 provide a capacity seven times higher, and by weight, a capacity ten times greater. Besides simply allowing for a larger electrode, the sintered cathode 12 of the depicted embodiment also offers the structural advantage of increased charging capacity compared to conventional cathodes. In a conventional cathode 108, the active cathode particles make point contact. The cross-sectional area of ​​the contact is very small, thus exhibiting high resistance to the movement of lithium ions and electrons. To overcome this resistance problem, carbon is added to the electrode as a conductive pathway to facilitate the transport of electrons in and out of the active particles, and the pore spaces in the electrode are permeated by a liquid electrolyte to rapidly conduct lithium ions. This use of carbon creates a trade-off between battery capacity and charge / charge rate performance. Another problem with the point contact between the active cathode particles is that these contacts are weak; therefore, polyvinyl fluoride (PVF) is used to bind the active particles to carbon to provide structural strength during processing. In contrast, the particles in the depicted sintered cathode 12 are bonded together, thus eliminating the need for electron-conducting carbon and binders. In this way, the proportion of space allocated to pores that facilitate lithium ion movement can be reduced, and more space can be dedicated to the active material used with the sintered cathode. The inventors estimate that, for a given cathode material, the total capacity can be increased by approximately 30% with the same cathode thickness. Alternatively, the cathode thickness can be reduced by 20-25% while maintaining the same capacity for a more compact battery. As described above, the holes in the sintered cathode 12 can be aligned in the direction of ion entry and exit from the anode, thereby further improving space utilization or enhancing power density. As used herein, the phrase "self-supporting" refers to a structure that is not adhered to or supported by an underlying substrate (by means of an inert mechanical support). In some instances, self-supporting sintered electrodes are freestanding, allowing for mechanical manipulation or movement of the electrodes without the need for adhesion or fixation to the substrate, and can themselves serve as a substrate for depositing additional layers. Thus, in the embodiments described herein, the self-supporting sintered electrode has a dual function: serving as a support on which additional energy storage elements (e.g., electrolyte layers, current collectors, etc.) can be disposed, and serving as a functional component of the battery (e.g., cathode or anode). As used herein, the phrase "cross-sectional area" refers to the cathode surface area that can be used to support the battery structure. For example, referring to Figure 1, the cross-sectional area of ​​the sintered cathode 12 is defined by the horizontal length (e.g., width) of the cathode (measured as the length between protective coatings 22) and the depth of the cathode (goes to page). In some instances, the cathode can be completely dense, containing closed or open pores, with an open porosity of up to 30%. Sintered cathodes can have a thickness of 5 to 150 μm. The process of manufacturing a cathode with this conductivity requires, after sintering, a residence time of at least 1 minute and at most 1 hour at a temperature of 400°C to 825°C in an atmosphere of at least 5 vol.% oxygen. This residence time can be provided as a holding time during the cooling process of the high-temperature sintering or as a separate processing step. This disclosure relates to the design of a novel formulation for the continuous forming and sintering of LCO strips. Dispersants, binders, plasticizers, and solvents are four key components in the slurry formulation, excluding solid powder. Specifically, this application discloses novel dispersants in the LCO strip slurry formulation that promote better dispersion of LCO powder. The dispersant affects the strip forming process and the quality of the unprocessed strip. The binder and plasticizer affect the strip strength, flexibility, release properties, and the ability to assemble from stacked strips by extrusion. The solvent affects the drying rate and rollability of the unprocessed strip during continuous forming. Example Example 1 - Cathode Preparation and Characterization Starting with lithium arsenide-cobalt ore purchased from American Elements, rapid sintering of freestanding cathodes was carried out. The powder was nominally stoichiometric, and XRD indicated it was a single phase with peak positions and intensities consistent with layered rock salt structures. The received powder was ground to break the aggregate into dispersible particles of the required sintering size. Grinding was performed in batch mode using a Union Process Mill in a 1 L grinding jar. 2600 g of 2 mm diameter zirconia media, 400 g of the received LCO powder, and 360 mL of isopropanol were fed into the mill. The mill was stirred at 2000 rpm for 3 hours. The typical average particle size after grinding was between 0.35 and 0.45 μm, and the particle size distribution (mainly varying between 0.2 μm and 1.1 μm) is shown in Figure 3, illustrating the particle size distribution of the LCO powder after abrasive grinding during ceramic ribbon formation. The powder and medium are dried together and then separated by sieving. Ceramic ribbons for rapid sintering are formed using milled LCO powder. The total concentration of binder and non-volatile organic compounds is determined to control the ribbon's flammability and ensure it bonds at a reasonable rate during rapid sintering. The slurry composition contains 40-95 wt.% LCO powder, 2-40 wt.% binder, 1-5 wt.% dispersant, and 1-20 wt.% plasticizer, blended with the remaining solvent. The LCO is dispersed in the solvent before adding the binder by light milling. The slurry is formed into unprocessed ribbons with thicknesses of 35 μm and 25 μm to achieve firing thicknesses of approximately 25 μm and 20 μm, respectively. In both cases, the width is 100 mm. The carrier used for forming is silicone-coated polyethylene terephthalate to facilitate the release of LCO from the ribbon. Rapid sintering of LCO ribbons to produce cathodes is performed by the following: (1) Use scissors to manually cut the unprocessed LCO strip still on the carrier into strips 300-400 mm long and 50-60 mm wide. Manually release the strip from the carrier. (2) An approximately 3 m long, 80 μm thick alumina strip is passed through a 1 m long muffle furnace operating at 1050°C, then through adjacent binder burnout devices consisting of two opposing air bearings, and onto a platform. The binder burnout devices are approximately 300 mm long and have multiple heating zones programmed to provide a linear temperature uniformity between 225°C at the inlet and 325°C at the outlet, and to interface with the muffle furnace. The air bearings are carefully aligned beforehand with the alumina “D” in the muffle furnace. The purpose of “D” is solely to provide a flat surface for the alumina strip or cathode strip. (3) The LCO strips are carefully placed onto the alumina strips so that their long axes are centered. The alumina strips with LCO strips are pulled through the binder burnout zone at 63.5 mm / min, then through the muffle furnace for sintering, and finally reach the platform at room temperature, where the strips are collected. A cathode disk with a diameter of 12.3 mm is laser-cut from the sintered LCO strips. Figure 4 shows the temperature profile of the LCO strip in a rapid sintering apparatus, starting from the binder burnout zone. Sintering of the LCO strip is completed within exactly 20 minutes. The LCO strip is automatically released from the carrier and pulled directly through the binder burnout apparatus and through the muffle furnace used for roll-to-roll sintering of the cathode strip. In this arrangement, alumina strips are not required for transport. Because the strips are thin and flexible, they twist rather than break under large temperature gradients. The process used in this paper imparts the same thermal history to the sintered LCO strip. Example 2 - Structure of Dispersants Figure 5 illustrates an example of a dispersant in an LCO slurry formulation used for strip forming: an amine (oleylamine), a carboxylic acid (oleic acid), and combinations thereof. The combination of amine and carboxylic acid does not form a compound with a specific molecular structure. Depending on the acid-to-amine ratio and its interaction with other components in the slurry, this combination can be a mixture or a salt. Therefore, the acid-to-amine ratio and the structures of the acid and amine can be varied to achieve the desired slurry properties for strip forming, such as pH, viscosity, and settling velocity. Example 3 - Dispersants for improving LCO dispersion in solvents Typically, Figures 6A-9B show that LCO dispersed in 1-methoxy-2-propanyl acetate (MPA) solvents with oleylamine (OAM) (Figures 6A and 6B) and dibutylamine (DBA) (Figures 7A and 7B) exhibits smaller particle sizes compared to dispersions using fish oil (FO), oleic acid (OA), and combinations of acids and amines. This indicates that amines are better dispersants for LCO in MPA solvents compared to other dispersants. However, combinations of acids and amines as dispersants exhibit a greater number of smaller LCO particles compared to using a single amine or a single acid in isopropanol (IPA) solvent (Figures 8A-9B). The preferred acid to amine ratio (OA:OAM or OA:DBA) is 1:3. Table 1 shows several examples of LCO dispersed in 1-methoxy-2-propanyl acetate (MPA) solvent using various dispersants such as fish oil, oleic acid, oleylamine, and combinations of oleic acid and oleylamine. In experiments 1-12, the MPA solvent (6.102 g) and LCO (3.088 g) were kept constant. Table 1 Figures 6A and 6B show the particle size distribution (Figure 6A) and D10 / D50 / D90 particle sizes of LCO dispersed in MPA solvents containing fish oil (FO), oleylamine (OAM), oleic acid (OA), and combinations of OA and OAM. Figure 6A shows a sharp peak at 0.344 μm from the LCO sample containing OAM as a dispersant. The highest peak at 0.344 μm represents LCO dispersed by OAM alone (Experiment 6), indicating that OAM is a better dispersant for LCO in MPA among all samples. Furthermore, according to Figure 6B, the D50 particle size of Experiment 6 demonstrates that the LCO dispersed by OAM alone has the smallest D50 particle size among all samples, at 0.467 μm. The LCO without any dispersant has a larger D50 particle size, at 0.677 μm (Experiment 0). After grinding, the original LCO particle size was 344 nm. If the particle size remains around 344 nm using a dispersant, it indicates that the ceramic particles are well dispersed in the solution. If the particle size is larger than the original 344 nm (e.g., 750 nm or larger), this indicates that some LCO aggregates / particle clusters are present in the solution. Because binders or plasticizers cannot penetrate the LCO aggregates / clusters, the uniformity and stability of the slurry composition and the quality of the formed ribbon are uncontrollable. Figures 7A and 7B show the particle size distribution curves (Figure 7A) and D10 / D50 / D90 particle sizes of LCO dispersed in MPA solvents containing fish oil (FO), dibutylamine (DBA), oleic acid (OA), and combinations of OA and DBA. Figure 7A shows that the peak of LCO dispersed by DBA alone (sample number 7 in Figure 7B) is narrow and located at a position less than 0.500 μm. All other curves in Figure 7A are wider than the curve of DBA alone, and the peak position is greater than 0.500 μm. This indicates that among all samples in this ensemble study (i.e., Figures 7A and 7B), DBA is a better dispersant for LCO in MPA. The D50 particle size of LCO from Figure 7B proves that LCO dispersed by DBA alone is also the smallest LCO, at 0.574 μm. The D50 particle size of LCO without any dispersant is relatively large, at 0.729 μm (sample number 1 in Figure 7B). Figures 8A and 8B show the particle size distribution curves (Figure 8A) and D10 / D50 / D90 particle sizes of LCO dispersed in IPA solvents containing fish oil (FO), oleylamine (OAM), oleic acid (OA), and combinations of OA and OAM. Figure 8A shows several curves with similar peak positions less than 0.500 μm. However, the peak of LCO dispersed in IPA with a 1:3 OA:OAM ratio (sample 12 in Figure 8B) is the narrowest, indicating it is the best dispersant in this ensemble study. The narrower LCO particle size distribution peaks indicate that the LCO particles are well dispersed and have better homogeneity in solution. The D50 particle size in Figure 8B shows that the LCO dispersed in sample 12 is 0.566 μm, slightly smaller than that dispersed with OAM alone (sample 7) and other OA:OAM ratios. The D50 particle size of LCO without any dispersant is relatively large, at 0.613 μm (sample number 1). Figures 9A and 9B show the particle size distribution curves (Figure 9A) and D10 / D50 / D90 particle sizes of LCO dispersed in IPA solvents containing fish oil (FO), dibutylamine (DBA), oleic acid (OA), and combinations of OA and DBA, according to some embodiments. Figure 9A shows that although several curves have peaks below 0.500 μm, the narrowest peak is the peak of LCO dispersed by combinations of OA and DBA at an OA:DBA ratio of 1:1 (half) (sample 10) and an OA:DBA ratio of 1:3 (sample 12). This indicates that these are the best dispersants in this ensemble study. The D50 particle size in Figure 9B shows that the LCO dispersed by samples 10 and 12 is 0.57 μm, slightly smaller than that dispersed by DBA alone (sample 7). Example 4 - Solving the problem of moisture-resistant slurry composition The problem of moisture resistance is caused by the cracking of films composed of powder pastes on substrates. This poses a significant limitation on the formation of inorganic films with desirable properties such as good stability, uniformity and continuity on substrates after aging or heat treatment, because films on non-wettable surfaces are unstable. The slurry compositions in Tables 2 and 3 cause wetting problems on Mylar carrier films, which can be caused by binders or solvents. Mylar is a polyethylene terephthalate (PET) film, widely used in various applications such as electronics, food packaging, industrial specialties, molding and release, and the graphic market due to its balanced tensile properties, good adhesion, excellent moisture and chemical resistance, and ability to withstand temperatures from -100°F to 300°F. Here, silicone-coated Mylar is used and designed for use as a release film in various molding applications and is relatively inexpensive compared to other carrier films. This wetting problem is solved by changing the solvent. Table 2 shows slurry formulations using OAM as a dispersant and MPA as a solvent. Table 3 shows slurry formulations using a combination of OA and OAM at an OA:OAM ratio of 1:4 as a dispersant and MPA as a solvent. Table 2 Table 3 Figures 10A and 10B illustrate the wetting resistance of the slurry compositions from Tables 2 (Figure 10A) and 3 (Figure 10B) prepared using MPA as a solvent and formed on Mylar films. Wetting resistance is a problem caused by the cracking of the film of the slurry composition on the substrate, as shown in the figures. The combination of OA and OAM (Figure 10B) is slightly better than OAM (Figure 10A) because it forms a larger continuous film area compared to OAM alone. Although the film uniformity produced by this combination of slurries on the Mylar carrier film is also better than that produced by OAM slurry alone, there is some degree of residue of both dried, unprocessed strips on the Mylar film after release. Figures 11A and 11B illustrate an improved anti-wetting process achieved by using ethyl isobutyrate (EIB) instead of MPA as a solvent to form the slurry compositions from Tables 2 (Figure 11A) and 3 (Figure 11B) on a Mylar film. After drying under ambient conditions, the new slurry compositions form a uniform, continuous, and smooth film on the Mylar substrate. The dried film is released from the Mylar substrate without residue. In the slurry formulations from Tables 2 and 3, EIB replaces MPA as the solvent. Except for the solvent substitution, the other components and amounts remain the same as in the slurry compositions of Tables 2 and 3. The unprocessed strip using OAM as a dispersant (Figure 11A) is easily released without residue on the Mylar film. The unprocessed strip using a combination of OA and OAM as a dispersant (Figure 11B) has a small amount of light brown residue on the Mylar film upon release. Figures 12A and 12B show images of slurry compositions prepared using IPA as a solvent to form Mylar films from the slurry compositions in Tables 2 (Figure 12A) and 3 (Figure 12B). After drying under ambient conditions, the new slurry compositions form a uniform, continuous, and smooth film on the Mylar substrate. However, some residue remains on the Mylar substrate upon release of the dried film, indicating that the interaction between the slurry composition and the substrate is too strong. As shown, there are no wetting problems on the Mylar film for any of the slurries prepared with IPA solvent. However, the unprocessed ribbon (Figure 12A) prepared with OAM dispersant exhibits some cracks after drying. The unprocessed ribbon (Figure 12B) prepared with a combination of OAM and OA as dispersants does not exhibit cracks after drying. Therefore, as shown in Figures 10A-12B, the slurry compositions in Tables 2 and 3 can result in different anti-wetting properties on Mylar carrier films, depending on the solvents used in the molding process. Example 5 - Slurry composition for continuous strip forming Continuous strip forming enables roll-to-roll or continuous in-line processing to reduce the cost of strip ceramics. The slurry used for continuous strip forming requires a stable slurry for producing uniform strips and a relatively fast drying rate to allow for the winding of the unprocessed strip. Table 4 shows a slurry formulation that allows for continuous forming and enables the LCO strip to be successfully wound at room temperature with the airflow without stickiness issues. If the solvent in the formed unprocessed strip is not completely dried during continuous strip forming, the formed unprocessed strip becomes sticky, causing it to adhere to the carrier film after winding and resulting in damage to the unprocessed strip upon release. Table 4 Example 6 - Pulp composition and sintering process for preventing ribbon combustion Unprocessed ribbons containing organic components burn rapidly in air at approximately 200°C during the sintering process, attributed to the exothermic reaction between oxygen released from LCO and the organic material. Combustion of the unprocessed ribbons can be controlled by adjusting the slurry formulation and the sintering process. Rapid burnout of the organic components during the heating process is problematic because the ribbon turns to ash after intense combustion. Figure 13 illustrates the thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) of various LCO raw strips and powders according to some embodiments. The TGA analysis was performed using a LECO Corp. TGA701 thermogravimetric analyzer. Heating was carried out under airflow at a rate of 100°C / hour. The weight loss curves from the TGA analysis show that LCO powder without binder experiences gradual weight loss between 200-400°C. However, LCO raw strips with binder experience rapid weight loss between 180-220°C, indicating that a large amount of organic matter is rapidly combusted due to the binder composition and concentration in this temperature range. Figures 14A-14C show images of LCO raw ribbons prepared using a slurry composition containing EIB solvent and OAM dispersant (Figure 14A); the residue of the LCO raw ribbon ignited during binder burnout (BBO) treatment when pulled into a tube furnace at a speed of 2.3 in / min (Figure 14B); and the successfully sintered LCO ribbon after being pulled into a tube furnace at a speed of 1.6 in / min and sintered at 1050°C (Figure 14C). In air with a flow rate of 6 SCFM, the BBO process exhibits a linear temperature profile from 225 to 325°C, as shown in Figure 4. All three zones of the furnace were set to 1050°C to facilitate ribbon sintering. The slower pull speed in Figure 14C (1.6 in / min, compared to 2.3 in / min in Figure 14B) provides additional time for flameless pyrolysis and evaporation of the organic components from the unprocessed strip. The solvent dries completely during strip forming or at below 100°C, thus not affecting flameless pyrolysis. The dispersant molecules selected herein have lower heats of vaporization compared to polymeric dispersants, evaporating at below 200°C to limit thermal runaway of LCO. The strip withstands burnout and sintersects quite well at 1050°C. Figures 15A and 15B show scanning electron microscopy (SEM) cross-sectional (Figure 15A) and top-view (Figure 15B) images of LCO ribbons sintered at 1050 °C. The unprocessed ribbons were prepared from a slurry composition containing OAM dispersant, Butvar B-79 binder, dibutyl phthalate plasticizer, and EIB solvent. The SEM images show that the ribbons have a dense structure. The particle shape appears to be rice grain-like in the top view and exhibits fibrous structure in cross-sectional examination. Therefore, this disclosure generally relates to the design of novel formulations for the continuous forming and sintering of LCO strips. Dispersants, binders, plasticizers, and solvents are the four key components of the slurry formulation, excluding solid powders. Dispersants affect the strip forming process and the quality of the unprocessed strip. Binders and plasticizers affect strip strength, flexibility, release properties, and the ability to assemble from stacked strips by extrusion. Solvents affect the drying rate and rollability of the unprocessed strip during continuous forming. Specifically, this application discloses novel dispersants in LCO ribbon slurry formulations that promote better dispersion of LCO powder. Dispersants play a crucial role in ribbon forming because they are essential for dispersion, wetting, high density, porosity, deflocculation, slurry stability, and the strength of the unprocessed ribbon. They also serve as a starting point for ribbon forming using fine powders. After solvent evaporation, the dispersant allows particles to settle into a tightly compacted unprocessed ribbon. Therefore, an effective dispersant can increase the density and strength of the unprocessed ribbon. The advantages of the revealed formulations include: (1) cost reduction (the dispersants, solvents, and binders revealed herein reduce feedstock costs. Most importantly, the formulations developed herein can be used for continuous thin band forming, allowing high-treatment production and reduced manufacturing costs); The ratio to amines can be varied in order to achieve the desired slurry properties such as pH, viscosity, settling velocity, etc. for thin strip forming.Chain length and the structure of organic acids or amines can also be selected based on hydrophobicity and compatibility with solvents and interaction with carrier films); At a temperature of 200°C, the LCO unprocessed thin strips have combustion problems, which is attributed to the exothermic reaction between the oxygen released from the LCO and the organic material. The dispersant molecules described herein have a lower heat of evaporation compared to the polymer dispersants, which can evaporate below 200°C in order to limit the thermal runaway of LCO); tunability (better dispersed LCO particles of a single molecule have less steric hindrance compared to polymer dispersants, thereby allowing the application of a magnetic field to achieve design alignment of the electrodes for improved energy density and practical realization of all solid-state Li-ion secondary cells); produced in the range of 5 μm. Unless otherwise explicitly stated, it is by no means desirable that any method articulated herein be understood as requiring its steps to be performed in a particular order. Therefore, it is never desirable to infer any particular order when the method claim does not actually state the order in which its steps follow or does not otherwise specifically state in the requisition or specification to limit the steps to a particular order. Additionally, as used herein, the article “one (one)” is intended to include one or more components or components and is not desirable to be understood to mean only one. As used herein, the term “porosity” is described as a percentage of volume (e.g., at least 10 volume percent, or at least 30 volume percent), where “porosity” refers to the portion of the volume of a sintered object not occupied by inorganic material. As used herein, the terms “approximately,” “approximately,” “roughly,” and similar terms are intended to have broad implications consistent with common and recognized usages of those who are ordinarily familiar with the technical persons involved in the subject matter of the present disclosure case. Review of the present disclosure case Familiarity with this technology should understand that these terms are intended to allow the description of certain features described and claimed for protection without limiting the scope of such features to the precise numerical range provided. Accordingly, these terms shall be understood to indicate that non-substantial or insignificant modifications or changes to the subject matter described and claimed for protection are considered to be within the scope of the invention as enumerated in the additional claims. As used herein, "as the case may," "depending on the circumstances," or similar expressions are intended to mean that the event or situation subsequently described may or may not occur, and that the description includes both the possibility that the event or situation occurs and the possibility that it does not occur. The indefinite article "a / an" and its corresponding definite article "the" as used herein mean at least one, or one or more, unless otherwise specified. References to the position of elements herein (e.g., "top," "bottom," "above," "below," etc.) are used merely to describe the orientation of the various elements in the drawings. It should be noted that the orientation of the various elements may differ according to other exemplary embodiments, and such variations are intended to be covered by this disclosure. Regarding the use of any plural and / or singular terms in this document, those skilled in the art can, depending on the context and / or application, convert from plural to singular and / or from singular to plural. For clarity, various singular / plural transformations are explicitly stated herein. Those skilled in the art will readily recognize that various modifications and variations can be made without departing from the spirit or scope of the disclosed embodiments. Since modifications, combinations, sub-combinations, and variations of the disclosed embodiments incorporated into the spirit and substance of the embodiments are readily apparent to those skilled in the art, the disclosed embodiments should be understood to include each item within the scope of the additional claims and their equivalents. 10: Lithium-ion battery; 12: Sintered cathode; 14: Electrolyte layer; 16: Anode; 18: First current collector; 20: Second current collector; 22: Protective coating; 100: Conventional solid-state thin-film micro battery; 102: Cathode current collector; 104: Anode current collector; 106: Inert mechanical support; 108: Cathode; 110: Solid electrolyte; 112: Anode; 114: Coating The accompanying drawings are included to provide further understanding and are incorporated in and form a part of this specification. The drawings illustrate one or more embodiments and, together with the specification, serve to explain the principles and operation of the various embodiments. Figure 1 illustrates a lithium-ion battery described herein according to some embodiments. Figure 2 shows a schematic cross-section of a conventional solid-state, thin-film microcell according to some embodiments. Figure 3 shows the particle size distribution of LCO powder after wear grinding in ceramic ribbon formation, according to some embodiments. Figure 4 shows a temperature profile in a rapid sintering apparatus, starting from the point of entering the binder burnout zone, according to some embodiments. Figure 5 illustrates an example of a dispersant in an LCO slurry formulation for strip forming according to some embodiments: amine (oleylamine), carboxylic acid (oleic acid), and combinations thereof. Figures 6A and 6B show the particle size distribution curves (Figure 6A) and D10 / D50 / D90 particle sizes of LCO dispersed in MPA solvent by fish oil (FO), oleylamine (OAM), oleic acid (OA), and combinations of OA and OAM, according to some embodiments. Figures 7A and 7B show the particle size distribution curves (Figure 7A) and D10 / D50 / D90 particle sizes of LCO dispersed in MPA solvent by fish oil (FO), dibutylamine (DBA), oleic acid (OA), and combinations of OA and DBA, according to some embodiments. Figures 8A and 8B show the particle size distribution curves (Figure 8A) and D10 / D50 / D90 particle sizes of LCO dispersed in IPA solvents by fish oil (FO), oleylamine (OAM), oleic acid (OA), and combinations of OA and OAM, according to some embodiments. Figures 9A and 9B show the particle size distribution curves (Figure 9A) and D10 / D50 / D90 particle sizes of LCO dispersed in IPA solvents by fish oil (FO), dibutylamine (DBA), oleic acid (OA), and combinations of OA and DBA, according to some embodiments. Figures 10A and 10B show images of the wettability of the slurry compositions from Table 2 (Figure 10A) and Table 3 (Figure 10B) prepared using MPA as a solvent and formed on Mylar films according to some embodiments. Figures 11A and 11B illustrate improved moisture resistance achieved by using ethyl isobutyrate (EIB) as a solvent instead of MPA in order to form the slurry compositions from Table 2 (Figure 11A) and Table 3 (Figure 11B) on Mylar films, according to some embodiments. Figures 12A and 12B show images of slurry compositions prepared using IPA as a solvent to form the slurry compositions from Table 2 (Figure 12A) and Table 3 (Figure 12B) on a Mylar film, according to some embodiments. Figure 13 illustrates the pyrogravimetric analysis (TGA) of various LCO unprocessed strips and powders according to some embodiments. Figures 14A-14C show images of LCO raw strips prepared according to some embodiments using a slurry composition containing EIB solvent and OAM dispersant (Figure 14A); the residue of the LCO raw strip ignited during binder burnout (BBO) treatment when the LCO raw strip is pulled into a tube furnace at a speed of 2.3 in / min (Figure 14B); and the successfully sintered LCO strip after being pulled into a tube furnace at a speed of 1.6 in / min and sintered at 1050°C (Figure 14C). Figures 15A and 15B show scanning electron microscopy (SEM) cross-sectional (Figure 15A) and top-view (Figure 15B) images of LCO ribbons sintered at 1050°C according to some embodiments. Domestic storage information (please note in order of storage institution, date, and number): None. International storage information (please note in order of storage country, institution, date, and number): None. 10: Lithium-ion batteries 12: Sintered cathode 14: Electrolyte layer 16: Anode 18: Episode 1 Electrical Appliances 20: The Second Episode - Electrical Appliances 22: Protective coating

Claims

1. A method for forming a sintered composition, comprising the steps of: providing a slurry precursor comprising a lithium, sodium, or magnesium-based compound; strip forming the slurry precursor to form an unprocessed strip; and sintering the unprocessed strip at a temperature in the range of 500°C to 1350°C for a time in the range of less than 60 minutes to form the sintered composition, wherein the slurry precursor further comprises a solvent and a dispersant comprising an amine compound and a carboxylic acid compound, wherein the weight ratio of the carboxylic acid compound to the amine compound is from at least 1:4 to less than 1:

1.

2. The method as described in claim 1, wherein the amine compound comprises oleylamine, dibutylamine, or a combination thereof.

3. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the amine compound comprises at least one amino group, at least one imine group, or a combination thereof, wherein the at least one amino group or the at least one imine group contains an alkyl chain or an aromatic ring, and wherein the amine compound has fewer than 30 carbon atoms.

4. The method as described in claim 1, wherein the carboxylic acid compound includes oleic acid.

5. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the carboxylic acid compound comprises an R-COOH molecule, wherein R is an alkyl chain or an aromatic ring, and wherein the R-COOH molecule has fewer than 30 carbon atoms.

6. The method as described in claim 1, wherein the ratio of the carboxylic acid compound to the amine compound is from 1:4 to 1:

3.

7. The method as described in claim 1, wherein the lithium, sodium, or magnesium-based compound has a D50 particle size of up to 0.6 μm.

8. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the lithium-based compound comprises at least one of the following: lithium cobalt oxide (LCO), lithium spinel manganese oxide (LMO), lithium nickel cobalt aluminate (NCA), lithium nickel manganese cobalt oxide (NMC), lithium iron phosphate (LFP), lithium cobalt phosphate (LCP), lithium titanate, lithium niobium tungstate, lithium titanium sulfide, or combinations thereof.

9. The method as described in claim 1, wherein the lithium, sodium, or magnesium-based compound is at least 50 wt. of the total slurry precursor.

10. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the sodium or magnesium-based compound comprises at least one of the following: NaVPO4F, NaMnO2, Na2 / 3Mn1-yMgyO2 (0 < y < 1), Na2Li2Ti5O12, Na2Ti3O7, MgCr2O4, or MgMn2O4.

11. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the strip forming step comprises the following steps: forming the slurry precursor into a sheet configuration having a thickness in the range of 5 μm to 100 μm, the slurry precursor further comprising a plasticizer; and drying the sheet configuration such that a combination of the solvent, the dispersant, and the plasticizer does not exceed 10 wt.% of the dried sheet.

12. The method as described in claim 1, wherein the sintering is performed for less than 45 minutes and includes continuously feeding the unprocessed strip through a sintering chamber at a predetermined rate.

13. A method for forming a sintered composition, comprising the steps of: providing a slurry precursor comprising a lithium, sodium, or magnesium-based compound; strip forming the slurry precursor to form an unprocessed strip; and sintering the unprocessed strip at a temperature in the range of 500°C to 1350°C for less than 60 minutes to form the sintered composition, wherein the slurry precursor further comprises a solvent and a dispersant comprising an amine compound, a carboxylic acid compound, or a combination thereof, and wherein the sodium or magnesium-based compound comprises at least one of the following: NaVPO4F, NaMnO2, Na2 / 3Mn1-yMgyO2 (0 < y < 1), Na2Li2Ti5O12, Na2Ti3O7, MgCr2O4, or MgMn2O4.

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