Open pool battery module with permeable electrodes

Abstract

A battery module is a static open-pool single-cell battery that, in addition to a battery box 400 housing multiple electrode elements in a common electrolyte pool for an open-pool battery, may have electrode elements 442, 443 of the same polarity that are spaced apart but electrically connected in parallel and suspended from a common bus into a common electrolyte pool 405. The electrode elements 442, 443 are alternating cathode elements 442 and anode elements 443. A method for manufacturing this battery module is also described.

Description

Technical Field

[0003] , , ,

[0001] The battery module described in this specification is a static, open pool battery. In addition to a battery box that houses a plurality of electrode elements in a common electrolyte pool for the open pool battery, although spaced apart, it can have electrodes that are electrically connected in parallel with other electrodes of the same polarity and are suspended from a common bus into the common electrolyte pool. It is an open pool battery.

[0002] [Related Application] This application claims the priority and benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 63 / 526,821, filed on July 14, 2023, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

Background Art

[0003] Batteries containing a liquid electrolyte present an inherent challenge in sealing the electrolyte both within the battery itself and within the individual cells within the battery. In particular, such sealed battery designs are difficult to manufacture at low cost and with high manufacturing throughput. In one conventional design, bipolar battery electrodes are assembled by repeatedly joining individual modular subassemblies of cells or frames to one another across a desired number of cells in series in a bipolar electrode stack. Isolation between adjacent cells and between cells and the battery's external environment is achieved using various joining methods, including compression sealing, infrared welding, laser welding, vibration welding, or adhesive sealing. Typical examples of this assembly limit manufacturing and automation options, can reduce overall yield due to the externally exposed sealing, and may involve multiple sequential subprocesses during the assembly of a single stack. Multiple assembly steps require high levels of process control and tolerance management due to the number of modular components being assembled to each other, and increase the cost of the battery due to the numerous complex modular components that must be molded or otherwise manufactured. In addition, all of the above joining methods are typically completed using rigid metal electrodes within the frame, which can provide chemical resistance, thermal resistance, and mechanical resistance to the assembly process.

[0004] In one embodiment of conventional designs, bipolar electrodes are formed from conductive plastic electrodes. Other battery designs proposed for conductive plastic electrodes require co-injection molding of the frame or battery casing with the conductive plastic electrodes. However, a challenge with this technique is that it severely limits the materials that can be used for conductive plastic electrodes, as only a limited number of materials can be injection molded.

[0005] Historically, the greatest challenges in implementing bipolar batteries have been related to both sealing individual cells from the external environment and sealing adjacent cells internally. In designs where individual cells are welded to each other, strong, repetitive welding is required over a large surface area to seal the battery from the external environment, and strong welding is required in gaskets or seals to seal adjacent cells internally. These sealing strategies can result in high manufacturing variability, long assembly times, and require a large amount of assembly equipment. Battery configurations with multiple cells may also require the use of separators, which increases the size, cost, and design complexity of the battery.

[0006] Furthermore, in battery configurations using conductive plastic electrodes, the conductive plastic electrode material with the best performance must also have a high proportion of conductive diluent relative to the amount of plastic. Such conductive diluents typically contain carbon, graphite, metal, or other conductive materials. When the volume fraction of such diluent is high compared to a low molten polymer, welding them together or injection molding them becomes difficult. Therefore, there is a need for simpler and cheaper battery configurations and construction methods that use liquid electrolytes, and such configurations and construction methods are also more suitable for materials and methods used to construct such batteries at a lower cost. [Overview of the Initiative]

[0007] This specification describes a static open-pool battery module that, in addition to a battery box housing electrodes suspended in a common electrolyte pool, may have conductive electrodes of the same polarity that are electrically connected to one another via a common bus and suspended from the bus into the common electrolyte pool. The electrolyte is neither divided nor separated between the common electrodes. The open-pool battery electrolyte may be a zinc-bromine electrolyte, but other electrolytes are also possible. Since all electrodes are suspended in the common electrolyte pool and are not sealed to one another, a single high-capacity cell is formed. Such a configuration simplifies battery design and manufacturing because only one cell is required in each module. The module may be a single battery, or multiple modules may exist in a battery energy storage system (BESS).

[0008] Flow batteries often share a common electrolyte that is pumped through multiple cells, whereas static batteries have historically been designed to operate in such a way that the electrolyte of any single cell is physically / mechanically isolated from adjacent cells within the module.

[0009] Unlike bipolar batteries, the open-pool battery configuration described herein does not have a seal defining individual battery cells within the pool (the battery housing is described as a bathtub for the electrolyte). The alternative configuration provides the same energy density for the same amount of active material as a bipolar design (where bipolar electrodes have a cathode on one side and an anode on the other), but does not require sealed electrodes forming individual battery cells. This design eliminates significant cost drivers, critical points of failure, and the entire subassembly from conventional battery designs with multiple cells. As a result, this design enables a simpler, more robust, and more cost-effective battery without sacrificing performance. Furthermore, in this design, each porous electrode element has reverse polarity electrode elements on both sides, in contrast to conventional bipolar designs where they are only on one side, and therefore this design makes more efficient use of the entire porous electrode element. Otherwise, its use can be heavily biased toward the side closest to the reverse polarity electrode. This effect allows for easy adjustment of the dimensions and spacing of electrode elements to achieve desired performance in this design, and enables reliable battery performance without the need for a separator between the anode and cathode elements (conventionally a porous membrane between the anode and cathode that is permeable to selective ions but impermeable to other ions and / or molecules). This simplifies the battery configuration and reduces the cost of the battery configuration without compromising battery performance. This simplicity stems from the fact that multiple separate anode electrode elements and multiple separate cathode electrode elements all share a common electrolyte within the static battery cell. Access to the shared electrolyte among all electrodes is achieved by designing the electrodes to be porous and eliminating the separator, which is a key component of static battery configurations with multiple anode / cathode electrode pairs. The advantages of this configuration over conventional designs are that it allows a single cell to contain a large amount of electrode material and have extremely high capacity, while minimizing manufacturing complexity and eliminating the need for mechanical sealing between cells.

[0010] Aspects of this disclosure provide a sealed battery housing (i.e., a “battery box” as used herein) for housing electrode elements in a common electrolyte pool, and a method for assembling the same. The battery box may be formed from a non-conductive elastomer or non-conductive resin. The non-conductive battery box may be formed using conventional techniques such as injection molding, extrusion molding, blow molding, or rotational molding. The interior of a bipolar battery box is configured such that a single continuous electrolyte pool is formed throughout the battery box to receive electrode elements. In one embodiment, the battery box includes a plurality of dividers extending laterally across the width of the battery box. The dividers (and the electrode elements they receive) are housed in a battery box having a plurality of vertical walls, a plurality of horizontal walls, a bottom wall, and a top. The dividers are not sealing members. The dividers ensure that the electrodes do not come into contact with each other, as contact between them could short-circuit the battery. The electrode elements may be either cathodes or anodes. In one embodiment, the battery has multiple cathode elements bus-connected to each other on a common cathode bus and multiple anode elements bus-connected to each other on a common anode bus. This forms a single cathode and a single anode that are electrically continuous but physically separated into multiple elements. This effectively wires certain types of individual elements in parallel rather than in series, forming a high-current battery rather than a high-voltage battery. Thus, this battery has a voltage across a single electrode but can maintain a current equal to the sum of the individual electrode elements.

[0011] In some embodiments, the battery box is a one-piece (i.e., molded) box made of a non-conductive composite resin having an open interior that houses electrode elements and other battery components therein. The non-conductive resin is a composite mixture of one or more non-conductive polymers, the non-conductive polymers may include polypropylene, high-density polyethylene, polystyrene, polyphenylene oxide, polyvinyl chloride or polyphenylene ether, or any other suitable thermoplastic material chemically compatible with the electrolyte used in the battery device. The material may be further mixed with structural fillers (including glass fibers, glass beads, or silica fume), colorants (including carbon black or titania), or flame retardants. In some embodiments, the battery box may be injection molded or machined. In some embodiments, the non-conductive composite resin may be a multilayer coating. In those embodiments, the battery box substrate or base does not need to be thermoplastic.

[0012] The battery box houses multiple electrode elements, namely at least one anode element and at least one cathode element. To realize the advantages of this design, configurations having multiple cathode elements and multiple anode elements are conceivable. In one embodiment, at least some of the electrode elements have a component made of a non-conductive plastic flake containing pores that allow ion transport, with electrode material attached to both sides by a method such as hot pressing. In one embodiment, the material used for the cathode is graphite felt or a similar graphite material having a high surface area. In one embodiment, the material used for the anode element or cathode element is carbon cloth or carbon foam. In addition to having a high surface area, the electrode material is also porous to allow it to be completely moistened by the electrolyte. As a result, the electrolyte contained in the open pool battery comes into contact with all electrode elements due to the porous nature of the electrode elements. As a result, the battery box has at least two adjacent "cells" (i.e., anode and cathode elements separated by the electrolyte) that are physically separated but located within a common electrolyte pool (i.e., there is no physical separation of the electrolyte between the cells).

[0013] In another embodiment, at least one of the electrode elements is constructed from an integral porous carbon or graphite material that is not attached to a perforated plastic substrate. In this embodiment, the amount of material used is minimized, but the electrode elements are sufficiently immobilized to prevent excessive movement of any soft electrodes, such as felt, which could cause a short circuit if the cathode comes into contact with the anode or vice versa. In this embodiment, the side partitions within the bathtub defined by the housing described herein help maintain the isolation of the electrodes. In addition, an electrical connection is required between the electrode elements and the bathtub at the top of the battery box. Examples of bathtubs include wires or bars.

[0014] In a configuration where the battery housing has internal partitions, each electrode element is housed in a slot defined by the partition. Since all electrodes are suspended from the bus into the common electrolyte, the partitions do not separate the electrolyte at all. The partitions are provided only to ensure that adjacent electrodes do not make physical contact that would cause a short circuit in the battery.

[0015] The conductive material used in the electrode element can function as both the electrode surface and a current collector capable of transporting current to the top of the cell (i.e., the common bus). The current collector can have various configurations. Regardless of the configuration chosen, the current collector can be housed at the top of the battery box.

[0016] This specification describes a method for assembling a battery using a housing formed from non-conductive plastic. Thus, the housing can be molded or formed by other techniques such as 3D printing or welding. In one embodiment, the battery box housing defines a bathtub in which an electrolyte is held therein. The bathtub may have non-conductive partitions extending from the sides inside the bathtub. The gaps between the partitions accommodate either an anode element or a cathode element between them. In one embodiment, the electrode assembly is pre-formed by fixing the electrode elements to a common bath structure. The common bath structure has a cathode bath and an anode bath. The cathode element is electrically connected to and structurally mounted in the cathode bath, but is insulated from and structurally mounted in the anode bath. The anode element is electrically connected to and structurally mounted in the anode bath, but is insulated from and structurally mounted in the cathode bath. Conductive and non-conductive adhesives for fixing electrode elements to the cathode bath and anode bath are well known to those skilled in the art and are not described in detail herein. Electrode elements can also be attached to the bath elements by sintering or welding.

[0017] The electrolyte can be added to the open pool battery box either before or after the electrode assembly is assembled into the battery box housing. In one embodiment, the lid is placed in the battery box after the bathtub has received the electrolyte, and then the electrode assembly is assembled with the battery box. In another embodiment, the electrode assembly can be assembled into the battery box, and then the electrolyte can be added. In yet another embodiment, the electrode assembly can be pre-formed together with the battery lid and placed in the battery box either before or after the electrolyte is added to the bathtub. The lid can be attached to the battery box by any conventional method such as welding, thermoforming, or adhesive.

[0018] The drawings described herein are for illustrative purposes only of selected configurations and are not intended to limit the scope of this disclosure. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0019] [Figure 1] This is a perspective view of a molded battery box having electrode partitions according to one embodiment of the open pool battery assembly described herein. [Figure 2] This is a perspective view of a molded battery box without dividers. [Figure 3A] This is a perspective view of the lid assembly when the electrode elements are placed on the lid assembly. [Figure 3B] This is a perspective view of the lid assembly when the electrode elements are placed on the lid assembly. [Figure 3C] This is a perspective view of the lid assembly when the electrode elements are placed on the lid assembly. [Figure 3D] This is a perspective view of the lid assembly when the electrode elements are placed on the lid assembly. [Figure 4] This figure shows the completed lid / electrode assembly being inserted into the battery box shown in Figure 2. [Figure 5] This is a perspective view of the electrode assembly, with the molded battery box shown in a cutaway view. [Figure 6]A graph showing the voltage (upper) and current (lower) of a test cycle by an open pool cell battery described in this specification.

Best Mode for Carrying Out the Invention

[0020] Embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in detail with reference to the drawings in which like reference numerals identify similar or identical elements. It should be understood that the disclosed embodiments are merely examples of the present disclosure that can be embodied in various forms. Known functions or structures are not described in detail so as not to obscure the present disclosure with unnecessary details. Therefore, the specific structural and functional details disclosed herein should not be construed as limiting, but merely as a basis for the claims and as a representative basis for teaching those skilled in the art to employ the present disclosure in substantially any suitable detailed structure.

[0021] I. Definitions The terms used in this specification are for the purpose of describing particular exemplary configurations only and are not intended to be limiting. As used in this specification, the singular forms "a", "an" and "the" can be intended to include the plural as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. The terms "comprises", "comprising", "including" and "having" are inclusive and thus specify the presence of features, steps, operations, elements and / or components, and do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, steps, operations, elements, components and / or groups thereof. Method steps, processes and operations described herein should not be construed as necessarily requiring their performance in the specific order described or illustrated, unless the order of performance is specifically specified. Additional or alternative steps can be used.

[0022] When an element or layer is referred to as being "on (in contact with)", "engaged with", "joined to", or "connected to" another element or layer, the element or layer can be directly on, directly engaged, directly joined, or directly connected to the other element or layer, or there may be intervening elements or layers. Conversely, when an element is referred to as being "directly on", "directly engaged with", "directly joined to", or "directly connected to" another element or layer, there are no intervening elements or layers. Other terms used to describe the relationship between elements should be interpreted similarly (e.g., "between" vs. "directly between", "adjacent" vs. "directly adjacent", etc.). As used herein, the term "and / or" includes any and all combinations of one or more of the associated listed items.

[0023] The terms first, second, third, etc. can be used herein to describe various elements, components, regions, layers, and / or sections. These elements, components, regions, layers, and / or sections should not be limited by these terms. These terms can be used only to distinguish one element, component, region, layer, or section from another. Terms such as "first", "second", and other numerical terms do not imply a sequence or order unless clearly indicated by the context. Thus, a first element, component, region, layer, or section described below could be termed a second element, component, region, layer, or section without departing from the teachings of the exemplary configuration.

[0024] The terms “upper,” “lower,” “above,” “beneath,” “right,” and “left” can be used herein to describe the position of various elements relative to other elements. These terms describe the position of elements in an exemplary configuration. However, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that frame assemblies can be rotated in space without departing from this disclosure, and therefore these terms should not be used to limit the scope of this disclosure.

[0025] As used herein, the term “battery” encompasses an electrical storage device comprising at least one electrochemical cell.

[0026] As used herein, the terms “electrochemical cell” or “cell” are used interchangeably to refer to a device capable of either generating electrical energy from a chemical reaction or accelerating a chemical reaction through the introduction of electrical energy.

[0027] As used herein, “electrolyte” refers to a substance that behaves as an ionic conductive medium. For example, electrolytes facilitate the flow of electrons and cations in a cell. Electrolytes include mixtures of materials such as aqueous solutions of metal halide salts (e.g., ZnBr2, ZnCl2, etc.).

[0028] As used herein, the term “electrode element” refers to an individual conductive component of an electrode assembly. An electrode element may also refer to either an anode or a cathode element.

[0029] As used herein, the term “anode” refers to the negative electrode element from which electrons flow during the discharge phase of a battery. The anode is also the electrode element that undergoes chemical oxidation during the discharge phase. In contrast, in a rechargeable cell, the anode is the electrode element that undergoes chemical reduction during the charging phase of the cell. The anode is formed from an electrically conductive or semiconducting material, such as conductive plastics or conductive composites, metals (e.g., titanium or aluminum), metal oxides, metal alloys, metal composites, semiconductors (e.g., TiC, SiC), etc. The anode can be porous to allow the electrolyte to flow through it and completely wet its surface area.

[0030] As used herein, the term “cathode element” refers to the positive electrode into which electrons flow during the discharge phase in a battery. The cathode element is also the electrode that undergoes chemical reduction during the discharge phase. On the other hand, in a secondary cell or rechargeable cell, the cathode is the electrode that undergoes chemical oxidation during the charging phase of the cell. The cathode is formed from an electrically conductive or semiconducting material, such as conductive plastics or conductive composites, metals (e.g., titanium or aluminum), metal oxides, metal alloys, metal composites, semiconductors (e.g., TiC, SiC), etc. In one embodiment, the cathode element has a component consisting of at least a to some extent perforated nonconductive plastic flake to allow the flow of electrolyte through the cathode element and thereby increase the surface area of ​​the cathode element that is moistened by the electrolyte.

[0031] The term "electrode assembly" refers to an assembly having multiple electrode elements, where the first portion of the electrode element is electrically connected to a common anode bus and at equipotential, and the second portion of the electrode element is electrically connected to a common cathode bus and at a common potential.

[0032] In a further embodiment, the cathode element may include at least a substrate made of a thin piece of non-conductive plastic containing pores that allow ion transport, with porous electrode material attached to both sides. The anode element may be formed from an electrode material similar to that of the cathode element, but the electrode material of the anode element is optionally porous. The assembly has porous electrodes attached to a bath. The electrodes can be welded or sintered. Any suitable mounting method can be considered. The electrode element provides an electrochemically active surface.

[0033] If the conductive material of the anode / cathode element is porous, the degree of porosity is largely a design choice. Those skilled in the art will understand that if the electrolyte is to flow freely through the conductive material and wet it, the conductive material needs to have a considerable amount of open volume to support this purpose. There is a trade-off between open volume and performance (in terms of the degree to which charge is exchanged between the electrode material and the electrolyte). In this regard, electrode materials with an open volume of at least about 50 percent are conceivable. In some embodiments, the open volume of the conductive material is about 80 percent to about 99 percent. In other embodiments, the open volume of the electrode material can be about 90 percent to about 95 percent. In one embodiment, the open volume of the cathode conductive material is about 90 percent to about 95 percent.

[0034] II. Exemplary Structure This specification describes a battery comprising an electrode assembly having electrode elements, wherein the electrode elements consist of a thin strip of non-conductive plastic on which a high-surface-area material such as graphite felt, carbon cloth, or carbon foam is arranged. These electrode elements are suspended from a common bath structure within a non-conductive battery box holding a common electrolyte pool, and the electrode elements are at least partially immersed in this common pool. The battery described herein has a design that alleviates the challenges of multi-cell battery configurations that require sealing and spacers between individual cells. The single-cell configuration requires only one common electrolyte pool from which all electrode elements are suspended from the common bath. In one embodiment, individual electrode elements are housed in side slots defined by non-conductive partitions. The partitions neither separate the electrolyte nor form individual battery cells. The partitions merely prevent contact between adjacent anode / cathode elements. In one embodiment, the electrode assembly, comprising electrodes, a cathode bath, an anode bath, and a lid, is pre-formed as a single assembly and mounted in a non-conductive battery box housing. The lid seals to the housing, while the cathode bath and anode bath extend from the housing to allow the battery to be electrically connected to other devices or systems.

[0035] This design reduces costs and simplifies battery manufacturing by reducing the total number of components manufactured for the battery casing or by relaxing the requirements for the material properties of the components. Because this design allows for assembly without sealing individual electrode elements, it also enables a more flexible design than when rigid metal electrodes, softer conductive plastic electrodes, or other bipolar electrode materials are used in the battery assembly. In summary, these advantages result in improved manufacturing yield, simpler manufacturing, and reduced overall costs compared to other designs.

[0036] In one embodiment, this specification describes the design of a static open-pool battery having one electrochemical cell in a molded box, and a method for assembling such a battery. In one embodiment, the electrolyte is zinc bromine, but other electrolytes (e.g., zinc halides) are also possible. Zinc chloride, zinc iodide, or combinations of different halogen compounds are possible. This design can also function with other water-soluble electrolytes that have sufficiently high conductivity. Water-soluble electrolytes with sufficient conductivity are well known to those skilled in the art and are not described in detail herein. Examples include electrolytes that release ions such as Na, Zn, K, Mg, Ca, and Al. See Zhang, H. et al., "Challenges and Strategies for High-Energy Aqueous Electrolyte Rechargeable Batteries" (Angew. Chem. Int., Vol. 60, pp 598-616 (2021)). The disclosures of this document constitute part of this specification by reference.

[0037] After filling the battery box with electrolyte, a lid for carrying the electrode assembly can be welded (or otherwise joined) to the top of the molded box containing the electrodes. This design creates an open-pool battery in which the electrolyte cannot leak from the bottom or sides, as all electrodes are sealed within the molded box, with only the top sealed (i.e., there are no potential leakage paths through the bottom or sides of the battery box, which is a single, molded, one-piece structure). In addition, this design can be manufactured more efficiently compared to the assembly process of multi-cell batteries.

[0038] While zinc bromine batteries are described herein, such descriptions are illustrative and not limiting. The battery designs and manufacturing methods described herein can be used in conjunction with any water-soluble salt-based static (i.e., non-flow) zinc halide electrolyte battery chemistry.

[0039] Furthermore, although the battery box is described herein as being manufactured by molding or injection molding, the battery box may also be manufactured by machining or any other suitable conventional technique for producing plastic parts. Molding is a low-cost method with higher manufacturing throughput.

[0040] Multiple different sizes and shapes exist for the box and the partitions that separate and hold the electrodes without separating the electrolyte. The number of partitions that can be included in the battery box and their orientation are largely design choices and depend on the number of electrodes that need to be kept separate. Different methods of making external electrical contact with the anode bath and cathode bath are also possible. Multiple different methods of attaching / sealing the lid to the battery box after the electrodes are inserted and the electrolyte is filled are also possible. Multiple different methods of creating vents or pressure relief valves on the lid of the box are also possible. Multiple methods of assembling the perforated non-conductive plastic electrode substrate to high surface area graphite felt / carbon cloth / carbon foam are also possible. As mentioned above, the conductive electrode material can be porous to allow the electrolyte to pass through and flow freely and wet the high surface area conductive material assembled to the perforated non-conductive plastic electrode substrate. Multiple methods of attaching the carbon material to the non-conductive plastic electrodes before inserting the electrodes into the box are also possible. However, the battery box is described here in an illustrative embodiment.

[0041] Two embodiments of the battery box are shown in Figures 1 and 2, respectively. Figures 3A to 3D are bottom views of the electrode assembly housed in the battery box of Figure 2 when the electrode assembly is assembled. Figure 4 is a perspective view of the electrode assembly of Figures 3A to 3D when the electrode assembly is inserted into the molded battery box. Figure 5 shows the assembled open pool battery.

[0042] After assembly, the lid is sealed to the battery box, and the electrode assembly is suspended from the portion of the lid facing the inside of the battery box. Figure 4 also shows the lid of the battery box, with the anode bus and cathode bus extending from the lid for external electrical connections.

[0043] Referring to Figure 1, a molded battery box 100 is shown which includes a plurality of partitions 106 enclosed within a plurality of vertical walls 102. As used herein, length is in the direction across individual cells, while width is in the direction of the cell stack. The molded battery box also has a plurality of lateral walls (e.g., side walls) 103, a bottom wall 104, and a top 105. Each partition 106 provides a small sub-compartment that prevents anodes / cathodes from physically contacting and short-circuiting the battery. The partitions form side slots 107 that do not separate the electrolyte, which is held in a common reservoir in which all electrodes are at least partially immersed. The molded battery box may also have partitions 108 at its bottom.

[0044] An alternative embodiment of the molded battery box 101 is shown in Figure 2. This molded battery box also has vertical walls 102, horizontal walls 103, side walls 103, bottom wall 104 and top, but it does not have the partition shown in Figure 1.

[0045] Referring to Figures 3A to 3D, a bottom view of an electrode assembly 200 of an open pool battery molding box (Figure 5) having multiple cathode elements 242 and anode elements 243 when assembled is shown. The battery box in which the electrode assembly is housed is a non-conductive box-shaped structure made of a non-conductive composite resin. For example, the non-conductive resin can be a composite of one or more non-conductive polymers, one or more of which may include polypropylene, high-density polyethylene, polystyrene, polyphenylene oxide, or polyphenylene ether. This material may be further mixed with structural fillers (including glass fibers, glass beads, or silica fume), colorants (including carbon black or titania), or flame retardants. In some embodiments, the battery box may be formed by injection molding, machining, 3D printing, or other conventional methods for forming such a structure.

[0046] In the electrode assemblies shown in Figures 3A to 3D, the cathode element 242 is electrically connected to and physically mounted and fixed to the cathode bus 222, but electrically isolated from the anode bus 223. The anode element 243 is electrically connected to and physically mounted and fixed to the anode bus 223, but electrically isolated from the cathode bus 222. The cathode element is provided with a tab 2421 that contacts the cathode bus 222. The remaining portion of the cathode element 242 rests on a spacer 225 that electrically isolates the cathode element from the anode bus 223. Similarly, the anode element 243 is provided with a tab 2431 that contacts the anode bus 223. The remaining portion of the anode element 243 rests on a spacer 225 that electrically isolates the anode element 243 from the cathode bus 222. The cathode element 242 and the anode element 243 are housed within an electrode receptacle 226 defined by a shallow partition formed in the electrode assembly 200. The electrode assembly 200 also has a notch 227 that houses the cathode bath 222 and the anode bath 223. As can be seen in Figure 3B, the electrode assembly 200 exposes only the portions of the cathode bath 222 and the anode bath 223 that contact the tabs 2421 and 2431 of the cathode element 242 and the anode element 243, respectively.

[0047] Referring to Figure 4, a perspective view of the electrode assembly 300 as it is about to be assembled into the battery box 400 is shown. Figures 3A to 3D show an electrode assembly molded battery box in which the cathode elements 342 and anode elements 343 are separated by a shallow partition 301 formed in the electrode assembly 200. As described above, each of the cathode elements 342 is bus-connected to one another using a cathode bus 322, and each of the anode elements 343 is bus-connected to one another using an anode bus 323. As stated above, the cathode elements 342 and anode elements 343 are permeable, preferably highly permeable. As described herein, the permeable electrode material is described as having an open volume or porous nature. In one embodiment, the cathode and anode have a non-conductive perforated substrate, which is usually plastic. As described above, the cathode element is formed by depositing a high surface area graphite felt onto a perforated plastic substrate. The anode element is formed by depositing carbon cloth or carbon foam onto a non-conductive perforated plastic substrate.

[0048] Referring to Figure 5, in some embodiments, the electrode assemblies shown in Figures 3A to 3D are inverted, and a top cover 451 from which the cathode element 442 and anode element 443 are suspended is placed on top of a battery box housing 404 to form a battery. Inside the housing 404 is a pool 405 containing a common electrolyte from which the cathode element 442 and anode element 443 are immersed. As mentioned above, the inside of the battery box may have side partitions to ensure that adjacent electrode elements do not come into contact with each other. The battery box pool 405 contains the electrolyte, and the cathode element 442 and anode element 443 are housed in the common electrolyte pool. The lid may be made of a solid non-conductive resin of an appropriate size for closing the battery casing. The lid may be sealed to the battery casing and external terminals after assembly by sealing material (e.g., compression sealant, elastomer, adhesive, etc.) or by infrared welding, vibration welding, laser welding, or other known methods of plastic welding. The sealing materials for battery boxes are well known and are not described in detail herein. Suitable sealing materials provide a liquid-tight / airtight seal to prevent the electrolyte and gases in the top space from escaping from the sealed battery box. The battery lid may include additional features to facilitate filling the common electrolyte pool with electrolyte.

[0049] Figure 6 shows two graphs illustrating voltage (top graph) and current (bottom graph) as a function of test time. Figure 6 demonstrates the effectiveness of the battery design with a single common electrolyte pool described herein.

[0050] From the foregoing and with reference to the various drawings, a person skilled in the art will understand that certain modifications may be made to this disclosure without departing from the scope of this disclosure. Although some embodiments of this disclosure are shown in the drawings, this disclosure is not intended to be limited thereto, and this disclosure is as broad as the art allows, and this specification is also intended to be read in the same way. Therefore, the foregoing description should not be construed as limiting, but merely as an example of certain embodiments. A person skilled in the art will envision other modifications within the scope and spirit of the claims appended herein.

[0051] While specific advantages have been listed above, various embodiments may include some of these advantages, none of them, or all of them.

[0052] Other technical advantages will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art after reviewing the above figures and descriptions.

[0053] While exemplary embodiments are shown in the drawings and described above, it should first be understood that the principles of this disclosure can be carried out using a number of techniques, whether currently known or not. This disclosure should not be limited in any way to the exemplary embodiments and techniques shown in the drawings and described above.

[0054] Unless otherwise specified, the objects depicted in the drawings are not necessarily to an accurate scale.

[0055] Without departing from the scope of this disclosure, modifications, additions, or omissions may be made to the systems, apparatus, and methods described herein. For example, components of the systems and apparatus may be combined or separated. Furthermore, the operation of the systems and apparatus disclosed herein may be performed by more components, fewer components, or other components, and the methods described herein may include more steps, fewer steps, or other steps. In addition, the steps may be performed in any suitable order. Where used herein, “each” refers to each member of a set or each member of a subset of a set.

Claims

1. A nonconductive housing defining a cell, wherein a nonconductive housing is configured to receive a lid thereon, An electrode assembly comprising a plurality of cathode elements and a plurality of anode elements, wherein the cathode elements optionally comprise a perforated non-conductive substrate to which a high surface area conductive material is attached, the anode elements optionally comprise a perforated non-conductive substrate to which a high surface area conductive material is attached, the anode elements and cathode elements are supported by a common cathode bus and a common anode bus, and the cathode elements extend from the common cathode bus and the common anode bus, the cathode elements are electrically and physically connected to the cathode bus and electrically isolated from the anode bus, and the anode elements are electrically and physically connected to the anode bus and electrically isolated from the cathode bus, A reservoir containing a common electrolyte, wherein all of the cathode element and the anode element are at least partially immersed in the common electrolyte; A lid, wherein the electrode assembly extends from the lid into the cell defined by the housing, the lid is attached to the housing so as to allow external electrical connections to the cathode bath and the anode bath, and the lid is attached to the housing to form a liquid-tight seal, A single-cell battery equipped with the following features.

2. The single-cell battery according to claim 1, wherein the high-surface-area conductive material is porous.

3. The single-cell battery according to claim 2, wherein the high-surface-area conductive cathode material is porous.

4. The single-cell battery according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the anode comprises an electrically conductive or semiconducting material.

5. The single-cell battery according to claim 4, wherein the conductive anode material is selected from the group consisting of conductive plastics, conductive composite materials, metals, metal oxides, metal alloys, and metal composite materials.

6. The single-cell battery according to claim 4, wherein the anode semiconducting material is selected from TiC or SiC.

7. The single-cell battery according to claim 5, wherein the metal is one of titanium or aluminum.

8. The single-cell battery according to claim 5, wherein the conductive composite material is selected from the group consisting of carbon felt, porous carbon, carbon cloth, carbon foam, and a graphitized form of the conductive composite material.

9. The single-cell battery according to any one of claims 4 to 8, wherein the conductive anode material is porous.

10. The single-cell battery according to claim 9, wherein the porous conductive material has an open volume of at least about 50 percent.

11. The single-cell battery according to claim 10, wherein the porous conductive material has an open volume of at least about 80 percent to about 99 percent.

12. The single-cell battery according to claim 3, wherein the porous cathode material is supported on a perforated non-conductive substrate.

13. The single-cell battery according to claim 12, wherein the porous cathode material is selected from the group consisting of carbon felt, porous carbon, carbon cloth, carbon foam, and a graphitized form of the conductive composite material.

14. The single-cell battery according to claim 13, wherein the porous cathode material has an open volume of at least about 50 percent.

15. The single-cell battery according to claim 14, wherein the porous cathode material has an open volume of at least about 80 percent to about 99 percent.

16. The single-cell battery according to claim 15, wherein the porous conductive material has an open volume of at least about 90 percent to about 95 percent.

17. The single-cell battery according to claim 12, wherein the non-conductive substrate is selected from the group consisting of polypropylene, high-density polyethylene, polystyrene, polyphenylene oxide, and polyphenylene ether.

18. The single-cell battery according to any one of claims 1 to 17, wherein the housing and the lid are formed from a non-conductive plastic.

19. The single-cell battery according to any one of claims 1 to 18, wherein the cell in the housing has a bottom and side walls, and a plurality of partitions extend from at least one of the bottom or the side walls, the partitions defining slots that prevent contact between the cathode and an adjacent anode but do not prevent the electrolyte from contacting all of the electrode elements and the cathode elements.

20. A single-cell battery according to any one of claims 1 to 19, wherein the electrolyte is present in the electrolyte reservoir.

21. The single-cell battery according to claim 20, wherein the electrolyte is a zinc halide solution.

22. The aforementioned electrolyte is sodium (Na ＋ ), zinc (Zn ＋ ), potassium (K ＋ ), magnesium (Mg ＋ ), calcium (Ca ＋ ) and aluminum (Al ＋ A single-cell battery according to claim 20, which releases metal ions selected from the group consisting of ).

23. A single-cell battery according to any one of claims 1 to 22, wherein there is no physical barrier in the electrolyte reservoir that electrically insulates one part of the common electrolyte from another part of the common electrolyte.

24. The preparation of a non-conductive housing that defines the cell, wherein the non-conductive housing is configured to receive a lid thereon, The present invention provides an electrode assembly comprising a plurality of cathode elements and a plurality of anode elements, wherein the cathode elements optionally comprise a perforated nonconductive substrate to which a high surface area conductive material is attached, the anode elements optionally comprise a perforated nonconductive substrate to which a high surface area conductive material is attached, the anode elements and cathode elements are supported by a common cathode bus and a common anode bus, and extend from the common cathode bus and the common anode bus, the cathode elements are electrically and physically connected to the cathode bus and electrically insulated from the anode bus but physically connected to the anode bus, and the anode elements are electrically and physically connected to the anode bus, electrically insulated by the cathode bus and physically connected to the cathode bus. Adding an electrolyte to a single electrolyte reservoir in which all of the cathode element and the anode element are at least partially immersed, The preparation of a lid, wherein the electrode assembly extends from the lid into the cell defined by the housing, the lid is attached to the housing so that external electrical connections can be made to the cathode bath and the anode bath, and the lid is attached to the housing to form a liquid-tight seal. How to assemble a single-cell battery, including [specific components / methods].

Images